Snow day inspiration, experimentation, preparation

We are lining up workshops for the new year, and our swap/clothing drive is wrapping up so looking for inspiration everywhere for the fabrics we are collecting.  Out in the urban winter I have seen the city using up-cycled textiles, mostly sheets, for various temporary fixes. These makeshift fabric snakes were soaking up thawing snow in the TTC subway station, and I saw traffic signals under construction wrapped in old sheets during a pause- more durable than cardboard I guess.

At home I am looking around for problems that could be solved with some up-cycling, and I made this kitchen laundry bag (for rags and towels en route to laundry)... it has a hole so even if you are really lazy the laundry goes right in...

And finally got around to trying out printing on fabric and it is amazing. straight from an ink jet printer, no extra items needed. Canvas is stiff enough to go through on its own, but you can print on sheets if you iron on some freezer paper to stiffen it (you can google how, but basically, iron shiny side onto any fabric, cut to paper size and print onto fabric side, ink jet printer, as if it were paper.)

The labels will be used so makers at workshops or any WIP artists can label their creations... and handwrite with permanent marker what piece comes from and what it is transformed into, with space for their name at the bottom- artist credit!