This quilt first started from seedlings. Flowers were grown in my garden, harvested, and combined with other natural and organic dyeing materials to create “My Printed Garden.” This piece was dyed using the eco-printing technique with the flowers of Marigolds, Hollyhocks, Cosmos, Hopi sunflower seeds, Dyers Coreopsis, Onion skins, and Indigo for the backing and border. The center square on the quilt's backing was dyed with marigolds and indigo using eco-printing and a Shibori folding technique.
“Shoes Too Big to Fill”
Collaboration with Printmaker Eliza Frensley
“Shoes Too Big to Fill” was a collaboration quilt created with printmaker Eliza Frensley. The format was chosen as an effective way to combine Eliza's two-dimensional design skills and mine in 3D construction and natural dyes. This piece combines eco-printed logwood chips, screen-printed mordants, and an outlet to conceptually focus on memory and trauma recognition, attempting to express identity awareness.
Marigold & Cochineal Quilt
This quilt was created using a combination of eco-printing and vat dyeing techniques with freshly harvested marigold flowers and cochineal bugs. Through the eco-printing process, color is transferred directly from plant material to fabric using steam, leaving behind botanical impressions and richly textured surfaces.
While this process produces vibrant results, it also generates leftover dye material that is often discarded due to concerns about achieving less saturated or predictable colors. This work challenges that notion by embracing the potential of these remnants. The textured blocks were created through eco-printing, while the solid-colored blocks were dyed using the discarded marigold flowers and cochineal from the printing process. By repurposing this material, the quilt highlights the beauty and value that can emerge from what is often considered waste, transforming overlooked resources into vivid fields of color.
Buckthorn/Persian Berries Quilt
Thickened Iron Mordant, Aluminum Mordant, and two combinations of Iron and Aluminum were screen-printed onto cotton fabric and dyed in Buckthorn, also known as Persian berries. The image printed is a rough depiction of microscopic plant cell structures and formations used to connect organic imagery and subject to the natural material of the dye.