This post is the first in a series exploring elements of design such as line, form, colour, shape, pattern etc. and how they can be expressed in various types of quilting. We’ll start with texture and how it’s used in the collaged elements of our work.
Unlike other design elements, texture can be experienced with two senses. You can touch quilts and feel the actual physical texture of the fabric. You also experience texture with your eyes. many prints and patterns on fabrics look like they could be felt.
Fabric collage is often used to create an image. The subject can be part of an overall design like the house in our Some Day on Quilts Pattern. It can also be the birds, plants and landscapes depicted over the entire surface of a design like our To Every Bird There is a Season series. Our patterns create different objects, shapes and landscapes by breaking down the image into outlines. You fill the outlines by positioning smaller pieces of fabric to create the desired object and its texture.
The following are some examples of how you can represent texture in your fabric collages.
Overall Texture:
Simple shapes like strips, small squares or curvy shapes of fabric can be used to make your collage interesting and exciting. These repeated shapes and their prints add overall texture to the picture and create ‘rests’ between one engaging area and another.
Simulated Texture:
An important thing to keep in mind when you are collaging is the scale of the elements in the project. You may want to vary the size of an object in a landscape, like a tree, to create a sense of depth and distance. Using preprinted commercial fabrics depicting rocks etc. may limit your options for varying scale.
We are always amazed at how we can find prints and patterns in our stash to create specific textures like the surfaces of a rock, feather, leaves or wood. Batiks are great for this because they naturally have a variety of colour and value. The patterns and motifs in batik prints can range from clear to muddy, creating more options for representing depth and detail. Objects that are defined by sharper texture tend to appear closer; use prints with these characteristics more in the foreground. Blur objects and textures to make distant objects and the background recede.
Fleeting Texture:
Texture is the beauty on the surface. The surface character of objects like stone, wood and brick can change with light but are largely constant. The light and dark features that make up the texture of water and waves, the sky and clouds, fire and smoke and the seasonal colour of foliage are much more fleeting and varied. This type of texture can be represented by material with gradual changes in values such as ombre fabrics.
Don’t be afraid of including patterned fabrics in you collages to represent water or the sky, they can actually break up the surface and add interest- this is a good place not to think too literally about your fabric choices. Make a point of auditioning some unexpected misfits to see if they play well with others you are considering- they just may add life where you didn’t sense it.
Borrowed Texture:
You can use scraps and fabrics you already have to complete most collage projects. If you do want to supplement what’s available in your stash and scrap bin here are a few tips from our practice:
- Look for fabrics outside of your usual ‘go to’ selection. Watch for fabrics with a variety of scale, value and colour in the print. Abstract, African, large print florals and others may have a large variety of textures within a single design.
- Using a lot of solids will result in a more contemporary or ‘graphic’ look to your collage. Fill areas with small scale prints which work as a ‘solid’ to add texture to break up sections of similar value within a collage.
- Pre-cuts, like charm packs, are a good way to purchase a wide variety of textural possibility at once. They are sometimes curated by colour and print, using them in the same image can help to unify a project.
- Look for panels that can be cut into smaller pieces to give you a wide variety of texture and coloured pieces to use in your collage.
- Swap pieces of fabric with other sewists to increase your selection of fabric on hand quickly.
Fabric collage is a useful technique for creating images that are identifiable but is also enjoyable for the tactile enjoyment we get even from just looking at the finished work. In reality, texture affects all types of quilting because it supports pattern and value which are important to all composition. Have a look through your stash, UFOs and projects at hand to see how texture - real or imagined- is at play in your work.
Check out the video promo for The Nature of Texture.