Visit My Dye Studio

All the silks and silk velvets in my collection are “one of a kind”; each hand painted with fiber reactive dyes using a variety of Chinese brushes creating a luminosity and depth for which these dyes are characteristically renowned.

I spend a great deal of time in my dye studio mixing my color palette for each season. From a selection of 8 dye concentrates, I may create as many as 21 to 35 various dye colors. Determining my colorways is perhaps the most crucial aspect for me - it is the beginning of my creative process and the source of much of my inspiration.

The brilliance of the dyes as they interact with the luminosity of the silk is personally thrilling. I have chosen to work with fiber reactive dyes because the rich permanent colors offer me an extensive range of bright, radiant, extremely light and wash fast colors.

As I work in my studio I keep a record of the process of each “one of a kind” creation, and sample swatches of the dyes used in each piece. Each creation is signed on the piece and numbered on the hang tag. All this is recorded into my dye log and serves as a valuable working reference for future designs and colorways.

Beginning with pure white silk, I stretch each piece on a custom built wooden frame. When I’m working with silk velvet, I begin by painting on the silk side so the dye will wick to the velvet pile side. The transformation is quite magical! This type of dye painting by hand is often referred to as direct application .

After painting the silk or silk velvet, the fabric is hung to dry and then loaded into a steamer ( I built my own!) to process for 40 minutes at 180-200 degrees F, which permanently fixes the dyes. The next step is to wash the fabric which removes excess dye, leaving the silk soft, supple and ready to wear.

Caring for Silks

My silks can be hand washed with a delicate wool wash soap and drip-dried. Silk must never be wrung or twisted while wet. To refresh your velvets if creased , steam them or use your home dryer. Place the silk in a mesh garment bag, wet a small washcloth and moisten with a liquid fabric softener. Toss into the garment bag with the velvet. Dry for 10 minutes on permanent press.