Chapter 6: Tucks, Pleats and Gathers

 Tucks: I've chosen cotton organdie for this first series of technical samples.  The fabric is crisp with body helping it keep a fold well.  It's also transparent which shows the layers really well.

In Sample 6:1 I've been experimenting with the width of tucks and their spacing.  Pressing these to one side creates some nice sculptural effects, b) looks almost like a clump of blades of grass.

Sample b) in 6:2 really sits best with the 6:1 samples.  It's a double tuck, a narrow one centred on top of a wider one.  There is a formality about it and it gives a really nice raised surface.  Later, I randomly cross-stitched over them to disturb the formality but I wasn't really very happy with the result.

6:1
a) Edge Stitched   b) 1cm wide   c) 1cm wide, but at greater intervals
d) 1cm wide grouped

Below in 6:2 Sample a) shows off set darts and this makes for an irregular surface.  Sample c) is even more irregular.  This is made up of short lengths of tuck at random angles which also causes the fabric in between to crumple.  These could be stuffed.

6:2

Below in 6:3 are three further samples: far left random edge-stitched fine tucks, in the middle tucks made with a zigzag stitch where the width has been varied throughout its length. In the next variant this idea has been extended by using thick embroidery thread in the bobbin.  In both the second and the third samples the needle holes have really contributed to the tucks' appearance.

6:3

Finally in 6:4 are two samples, where the tucks have been repeatedly over-stitched using a zig zag -- the predominance of needle holes is again a feature.  On the right are very simple tucks which have been threaded with raffia and snipped along their length to expose the stuffing material.

6:4

Combination Tucks:  I found using non-fabrics for these samples really interesting, and was surprised how well they stitched.

First is 6:5 bubble pack, where tucks have been machined the full length of the material, then cut through diagonally, re-positioned and re-machined.  Jagged edges are produces and the off-set pieces catch the light in an interesting way.

6:5

Below in 6:6 plastic sheeting has been pin-tucked and edge stitched, cut at right angles to those tucks then re-seamed with some tucks uppermost and others facing downwards.  There is scope to use this idea more imaginatively by making the cuts less uniform and re-stitching to form more unpredictable lines in the landscape.

6:6

In 6:7 I've used plastic sheeting again (old envelopes from my Selvedge magazine).  Here the material has machine stitched tucks which have been threaded with several strands of thick wool.  This has been drawn up so that the plastic sheeting gathers creating soft pleats between each tuck.  The surface is nicely raised and remains translucent.

6:7

6:8

The final sample of these combination tucks is made with stiff clear plastic seamed and cut diagonally, then pieced together with some seams above, some below (the same technique as 6:6).  The effect is like cracked ice on a puddle, the facets are off-set and reflect the light.

Gathers:   Below are three samples of gathers using man-made (net curtain) and natural fibres (muslin).

 In 6:9 radiating gathers from a corner of the net curtain fabric which created a spider's web of soft folds

6:9

In 6:10 muslin has been stitched in diagonal lines in two directions creating a soft bubbling, puffy effect.

6:10

Then in 6:11 spirals have been stitched close together on a piece of muslin.  I had to pull these shapes from both ends to create this interestingly pleated surface and gradually ease the fabric along the thread: the pleats are both within and between the spirals.

6:11

Since the wonderful Summer School with Caroline Bartlett the world of manipulating fabric and other materials has opened still further and I'm  thoroughly enjoying experimenting with so many interesting ideas.