Wondering Wednesday.... What Is Zeelon?

Ineke asked about Zeelon, so I thought I'd talk a wee bit about that today.  I wanted to take a picture of the lightest and heaviest weights, and decided that the best way to do that was to dye some... and that brought up Maggi's question about dyeing with Procion, and why it didn't work. 

Zeelon is made of nylon fibres, in exactly the same way as Lutradur is made (I talked about spun bonded fabrics and they way they are made in this post ).  It comes in three weights; light, medium and heavy.  I love Lutradur, and when I was sent a sample of the medium weight Zeelon, I wasn't overly impressed.  I didn't think it was all that much different to Lutradur.  Boy, was I wrong!  I didn't realise it until I handled the light weight.  Lutradur has a slight stiffness to it, and whilst Lutradur 30 is fine, it retains that slight stiffness.  Handling Zeelong light is like handling a very strong cobweb, with a slight sheen to it.  The heavier weight is also soft, but has a crispness about it that I find very attractive.  And Zeelon does still have the transparency that Lutradur is renowned for.

Zeelon comes in white, so to get a decent image, I needed to dye some.  I could have used transfer dyes, but the quickest way to get an all over colour is to use acid dyes.   Nylon dyes extremely well with acid dyes, as you can see above.  The colours are strong and true.  I gave instructions for dyeing with acid dyes in Exquisite Evolon; it is a very straightforward process.  So, can you dye it with Procion MX?  Well, yes, you can, but not with soda ash.  It is possible to use Procion MX with vinegar and heat, the same way as you use an acid dye.  There is a long standing argument about whether or not this gives good colour.  I have used both acid dyes and Procion MX dyes in this way, and have to say that I haven't noticed much of a difference in the overall results.  So if Procion MX is the only dye you have, you can use it to colour Zeelon.  For myself, I prefer to use acid dyes for nylons and silk, for the simple reason that that is what these dyes were designed to do.  But if I don't have a particular colour at home, and I do have some Procion, then I'll use that and not worry about it. 

Now, all I have to do is decide how to use these two bits of fabric... and remind you to ask me some more questions for the next Wondering Wednesday!

Polyester? Me? You're Kidding, RIght?

Blue Tree Dreaming : Quilted Lutradur.

...is what I would have said five or six years ago if you had told me that about eighty to ninety percent of my working time as a textile artist would be spent using polyester.  Now, though, that's exactly how I spend my time.  I work with Lutradur, Evolon and now Zeelon, using them for all kinds of things, including creating stitched photographs and multi layered quilts and embroideries.  With my friend and fellow artist Dijanne Cevaal, I wrote 'Lovely Lutradur'; Dijanne was the person who introduced me to spun bonded fabrics, for which I'm profoundly grateful.  A meeting with Mervyn from Spunart introduced me to Evolon; in fact, I stole his only sample... I'm surprised he still speaks to me!  And more recently, Mervyn has introduced me to Zeelon, another spun bonded fabric that has been introduced to textile artists.  It's an exciting time, with so many different cloths from man made fibres to play with!

 

Lost In Translation.  Dyed Lutradur over commercial fabric, heat distressed to show some elements in their original colours.

So why am I starting this blog?  Well, mainly because I want to create a resource for everyone who is using spun bonded fabrics in the art world, and explore the possibilities with you.  I know that every time I go to a quilt group meeting or a show, people tell me that they have got some lutradur, or evolon, or zeelon...or all three... but they have never used it because they don't know quite how to use it.  And that's despite all the books that have been written.  So... think of this blog as an interactive book.  I'll be showing you some step by step projects to make with your fabrics, as well as answering questions you might have about these wonderful fabrics. I'm also hoping to interview other artists who work with these fabrics, so that you can see how different people approach working with these amazing fabrics.  I'm aiming to post here every day, (barring accidents, illness and acts of God, of course), in a very structured way, starting...well, now, really! 

cushions made from Evolon

So...  the week will look roughly like this.

Monday is Inspiration Day.  I'll post something inspirational...a quote, a picture, a question.  I can't think of a better way to get the creative juices going at the start of the week.

Tuesday is for Trying Things Out.  This is the day when we explore actually using the fabrics.

Wednesday is Wondering Day.  Every Wednesday, I will answer a question that YOU have set.  You can email me here and ask me anything you like about these fabrics; how to dye them, how to use them... or ask for advice on a project you're working on.  

Thursday is another Trying Things Out day.

Friday is Photo Day!  Photos of past or ongoing work, mine, yours, anything that is interesting.  Again, you can email me if you would like to have your work featured here; the only proviso is that it must contain at least some of one or more of the spunbonded fabrics.  I will fully credit your work, will link to your blog or website, and will write an article based on the information you give me in a short and simple pre-publication questionnaire.

Saturday and Sunday are Fun Days!  Depending on what has been going on in the week, we could cover any or all these topics...think surprise!

I hope you'll enjoy visiting this blog...please do ask questions, make comments, give me feedback, so I can write stuff that meets YOUR needs.   And today would be a good day to ask questions for this and successive Wednesdays... what's the one thing you would love to know about spun bonded fabrics  (but were afraid to ask)?

Flying Circus.  An Evolon quilt, with both hand and machine stitching.