Craft to Career: Designing with Textiles: DIY Fabric & Fiber Projects
MAKING CRAFTS A CAREER What's your passion Think about that hobby or activity that challenges excites and fulfills you the one that makes you lose track of time Maybe it's drawing painting sewing or woodworking Or perhaps there's something you've always wanted to try such as graphic design or metalworking Arts and crafts have been enriching the lives of artists and audiences for thousands of years Many craftspeople have found ways to use their passion to support themselves financially turning their craft into a career Anyone can become an artist All you need is some basic knowledge a little creativity and a lot of patience This book is full of tips tricks and techniques to get you started on the road from craft to career What will you make Craftspeople make life more interesting Their creations delight others while often serving a practical purpose A well crafted table is both useful and beautiful A well designed concert poster can draw fans in while providing important information The details of a jacket or hat reflect an individual's personality and style 5
It takes more than 6,600 silkworms to make just two pounds 0.9 kg of silk Sheep farmers usually shear their sheep in the spring to keep the sheep cool in the summer heat Acrylic is often used as a synthetic substitute for wool 6 Cotton bolls are protective coverings for cotton seeds
THE BASICS WHAT ARE FIBER ARTS Have you ever admired a stunning red carpet gown carefully crafted rug or hair raising Halloween costume You were looking at fiber arts Any art that uses textiles can be considered fiber art Textiles are cloths or woven fabrics They are made using materials such as yarn thread and rope These materials are made up of twisted fibers tiny holes to create long strands The strands are then twisted together to create thread which can be woven into fabric This process is how spandex polyester and acrylic fabrics are made Today people are finding new ways to make fibers from recycled materials Some companies melt water bottles into long strands These are woven together to make fabric Old clothes and textiles can also be recycled The textiles are shredded and then made into new thread and yarn For most of human history fibers were made from plants and animals Wool is made from sheep's hair also called wool Cotton fibers come from the seed bearing part of a cotton plant Silkworms produce long strands of silk to make cocoons These strands can be unraveled from the cocoons and woven together to make silk fabric Many modern materials come from synthetic or human made fibers These are usually made of polymers created through chemical processes Petroleum is the starting point for most synthetic fibers But different chemical reactions are used to make different polymers Usually these polymers take the form of tiny plastic pellets These are melted and pushed through 7 Plastic pellets that will be turned into polyester
