A-Z of Silk Painting-Tips and Techniques

Painting on silk begins with a luxurious base of precious pure white China silk stretched tightly on a frame. Silk painting is the art of applying dye to silks. Often the silks are used as scarves, ties, or clothing. The finished works can also be framed pictures, wall hangings, or household decor.

Silk painting is quick, fun and easy. No experience in art is necessary. Painting on silk can be can be as simple as filling in the colors in a coloring book. On the other hand, an artist can create a beautiful original painting on silk. The silk seems to glow with vibrancy and a special luster, adding a wonderful animation to the painting. Even the simplest painting on silk is beautiful because of the glow and warmth of the silk shining through.

Silk painting is almost the opposite of other types of painting. Generally, the artist paints by controlling the placement of pigment on a surface, usually through the use of brushes. In silk painting, the painter controls the movement of pigment within boundaries such as a resist on the silk. Brushes become much less important because the dye will move on the silk after it is placed there. Because the dyes flow so freely on silk, the job of the silk painter is to control the movement of the pigment on the silk rather than its placement.

The basic technique for most silk painting begins by drawing the outlines of the design with a rubber-like liquid(gutta---The purpose of a resist is to stop the flow of dye and create a barrier, which makes the outline of an image).When the liquid "fence" is dry the silk dye is allowed to flow within each segment of the picture. The result can be uniform fields of color as in two-dimensional cartoons or stained-glass design.

Silk painters can also add dimension with color, shading, and various surface techniques. The challenge for silk painters is to add dimension and to vary the effects on the surface. Silk painters use some of the same techniques as watercolorists to create unique designs. The use of salt, alcohol effects, wet-on-wet treatment, and wet-on-dry painting are common in silk painting. However, the effects on silk are often more dramatic than on paper. Techniques usually have to be applied in different ways on silk than they are used by watercolorists.

The result can be uniform fields of color as in two-dimensional cartoons or stained-glass design. The challenge to silk painters is to add dimension and to vary the effects on the surface. Silk painters use some of the same techniques as watercolorists to create unique designs: use of salt, alcohol effects, wet-on-wet treatment, and wet-on-dry painting. However, the effects on silk are often more dramatic than on paper. Techniques usually have to be applied in different ways on silk than they are used by watercolorists.


Silk painting is easy to do. The challenge is learning which supplies to use.

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Materials needed for Silk Painting -Short list

Dyes: at least the 3 primary colors red, blue, yellow.


Palette or small ceramic cups or containers for your dye

Brushes, water color brushes, sponge brushes

Reisist
Gutta serti, or aqua Gutta

Large water containers like empty tubs from yogurt, butter etc.

Pencil or marker pen

Scissors

Hairdryer

Silk scarves


Gloves- to protect hands

Alcohol- from pharmacy (not the drinking kind)

frame, 22" x 70" wood stretcher bars can get at art supply store

Rubber bands
Clips from office supply store

Information Courtesy:From Internet through google search

 

Materials needed for Silk Painting -Detailed list
In order to create beautiful silk, there are a number of supplies you will need.

1.Silk paints or Dyes:
There is a difference between choosing silk paints or dyes. When you set a dye, it actually bonds chemically with the fiber which means the hand of the fiber is unchanged, so the silk will keep its natural silky feel. Paints, on the other hand, will sit on top of the fiber and will change the feeling of the texture of the silk, resulting in a loss of some of the silky texture. On white silks, transparent dyes and transparent flowable silk paints work the best. Black silks need opaque paints which will leave the silk stiff. This type of paint works best as accents rather than with whole areas.

2.Paint Brushes:
Silk brushes are soft and have the ability to soak up large amounts of dye. They are used for filling in areas of the silk and watercolor painting. Fabric brushes are stiffer and are able to force paint or dye into the weave of the fabric. There are a number of different types of brushes that you may wish to have depending on what design you have chosen.
a.Foam brushes are good for applying silk to large areas and for applying hot wax in batik.
b.Sumi brushes are used for silk painting and calligraphy and are stiffer in the center to let more liquid in.
c.Liner brushes are best for lines and curves.
d.Chinese wash brushes are used for broad sweeping strokes.
e.Round tip brushes can be used for both detail work and large areas depending on the amount of pressure you use.
f.Tiny round tip brushes are used for detailing.
g.Flat tip brushes can be used for blocking in color stroke work, and shading.

3.Gutta or Water-Soluble Resist:
A resist is anything that prevents the dye from getting past it. It is used to outline shapes and designs to block color to one particular area. There are many different types of guttas and water-soluble resists, such as clear gutta, black, silver, and gold gutta, clear water soluble resists, and gold and silver, black, and colored water soluble resists. Keep in mind that clear guttas and resists are typically meant to be removed when the silk painting is complete, but colored guttas and resists typically remain and do leave a hardening of the fabric.

Clear Guttas:This type of gutta comes from Indonesian rubber trees. It is used typically in the French serti technique (described later). It has a rubbery feel, but is removed from the fabric through dry cleaning after painting and dyeing is completed.

Black, Silver and Gold Guttas:These are used when you want a defining non-white line. They are meant to leave on the silk and will not be removed. You cannot dry clean this silk or the gutta will be removed. This color is beautiful, but sometimes will flake later on.

Clear Water Soluble Resists:This type of resist is removed by rinsing with warm water. It is also fume free.

Gold and Silver Metallic, Black, and Colored Water-Soluble Resists:These resists can be dry cleaned. This remains on the fabric which leaves a particular feel to the silk. These do not look quite as metallic as the metallic guttas.


4. Applicator Bottle for the Resist:
You want to purchase an applicator bottle with a metal tip. They are fairly inexpensive.

5.A Stretcher Frame:
There are a variety of stretcher frames you can use. If you just want to buy one, you can find artist's canvas stretcher bars at an art supply store. If you want to make one you can build it form old wooden picture frames or from soft wood.

6.A White Silk Item:
There is great variety in terms of quality of the silk you purchase. Be sure to check for shiny areas in your silk, and if you have any, you should wash it before dyeing it because there may be some silk gum left behind on your silk that will cause the fabric to dye lighter.

How to Paint Silk​

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Painting silk requires an adherance to a sequence of steps in order to achieve the desired effect. Here are the steps to creating beautiful painted silk.
1. Prewashing the Silk
You can prewash your silk either by hand or using the gentle cycle with warm water and Synthrapol in the washing machine. Rinse, dry it somewhat, and when it is still a little damp, you need to press it with an iron that is set to the silk setting. If you do not set your iron properly you will burn and ruin your silk.

2. Preparing your Design
Now it is time to determine your design on the silk. You may either use a vanishing marker or a pencil to lightly draw your design onto the silk.

3. Making a Stretching Frame
Your silk will need to be stretched and suspended off the table, so you will need a stretching frame. You can use an artist's canvas stretcher bar which you can find at most art supply stores, and they typically come in different lengths depending on the size of your silk. You could also adapt old wooden picture frames to serve as a stretching frame, or you could even build your own frame. Be careful that the wood you choose needs to be soft enough that you will be able to push pins or 3 pronged tacks into it. Be sure that if you are painting silk with finished edges that you must be sure that the inside measurements of the frame are at minimum 2-3 inches larger than your piece of silk. You don't want the edges of the silk to contact the stretcher marks.

4. Stretching Your Silk
Now it is time to stretch your silk. First, you need to stretch your silk onto the frame using silk thumb tacks or stainless steel push pins every 4-6 inches along each side. Another option is to use rubber bands and safety pins, silk clips, or Chinese Suspension Hooks. You will need to connect these to the rubber bands to the edges of the silk approximately every 4-6 inches. Next, the rubber band needs to go around a push pin which will pin into your frame. There is an advantage to using rubber bands, which is that it will maintain the tension of the silk for you. When you are stretching your silk, you want to develop the exact amount of tension necessary for your silk to stay taut when you are painting, but it cannot be so tight that it will tear. That would be a disaster. When you begin painting, your silk may begin to sag, so you will need to adjust while you are painting. Be sure that your frame is suspended a few inches over your table in order for it to remain untouched. You can place it on blocks underneath the corners of your frame or on cups that are upside down.

5. Applying Resist or Gutta
The fifth step is to apply the gutta or resist. Your gutta or resist should be in an applicator bottle. Hold the applicator bottle vertically with the tip touching the silk and go directly over the lines you drew previously using your vanishing marker or pencil. When you are doing this, be sure to coat the line thoroughly with no gaps. If you leave a gap, the paint will escape out of the shape. Be sure that you look at the back of the silk to make sure that the resist or gutta has penetrated through the silk. If it hasn't, you will need to apply your resist or gutta to the back of the silk garment as well. Then you need to let the resist dry. Depending on the time you have and your patience, you can let it air dry or use a heat gun or blow dryer to speed up the process.

6. Applying the Dye or Paint
The sixth step involves adding the color to the silk. You need to dip your brush into the dye or paint and apply is sparingly to the center of the outlined shape by only touching the paintbrush to the fabric. The paint itself will move towards the resist line. You do not want to oversaturate your brush or the fabric or the paint or dye may just go right over the resist line and ruin your design. If you find that you have a gap in a resist line that you did not see before, you can stop the movement of the escaping dye by using a hair dryer to dry it quickly and then patch it with resist or gutta to stop the flow.

7. Setting the Color
Now that you have finished applying the paint or dye to the silk, it will not be permanent until you set the color. Once it has been set, you will be able to wash or dry clean your garment without losing the color. Now the method that you will use for this process is going to depend on the type of dye or paint that you use. Instead of explaining to you the different options, I will advise you to read the directions on the paint or dye package and they will give you the right advice for your particular paint or dye.

8. Removing Clear Water Based Resist or Clear Gutta
This is the final step in the process of painting your silk. Once you have set the dye or paint, you can remove the gutta or resist that remains in your silk. If you have clear gutta, it is removed by dry cleaning. If you have clear water-based resist, it is removed by rinsing it in warm water. Once you have removed the resist, hang it to dry, and then iron it lightly while it is still just a little damp. If you used colored guttas, they are meant to leave on the silk.
Information Courtesy:From Internet through google search.

Got this site from google.Given the procedure along with pics.Make use of it.
Silk Painting - Techniques

Heres a file attachment for the detailed procedure of painting.

 

Silk Painting Techniques​

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There are several silk painting techniques that you may wish to try. They are the Serti Technique, watercolor like effects, and detailed patterns without resists.

The Serti Technique
This is also known as the closing or fence technique. You form designs with gutta or water-based resists. The silk must be already pre-washed, dried, and stretched on a stretcher. The gutta or water-based resists are applied to the white silk. Once it has dried, it remains a barrier for the dye or paint so that it remains white. This will allow you to keep color within certain areas of your design and have very sharply defined borders. Once the dye of paint is set into the fabric properly, you may now remove the resist or clear gutta and you will be left with a very clear line of color on the original fabric. There are also some colored guttas and resists that can stay on the fabric rather than removing them.

Watercolor-like Effects
You can achieve watercolor-like effects by applying dye or paint to prewashed and stretched silk with a paint brush, eye dropper, sprayer, or any other tool that will help you get an abstract effect. Also, if you spray the silk lightly with water before you add the color you will increase the flow of the dye or paint once you apply it with your tool. Another idea is to sprinkle silk salt on the silk when it is still wet and letting it remain on the fabric until it is dry. Then you can remove the salt and it will leave very interesting looking effects. Another idea is to apply alcohol to dye-painting silk. You can try any of these techniques and see if you like the result.

Detailed Patterns Without Resists
You can achieve this effect by using a stop-flow primer applied to the prewashed and stretched silk. Leave it to dry before painting on the dyes or the paints. In this way, the color will remain where you put it instead of flowing to other areas. You can also freehand paint without using gutta or water-soluble resists. At the end you can wash out the stop-flow primer.

Fixing your colors ​

Silk paints and dyes need to be fixed permanently into the silk to allow it to be washed, dry cleaned and to prevent it from fading in the sunlight. The fixing process sets the dye or paint into the silk. If the dyes and paints are not fixed the colors will all run when it is washed and they will fade in the sun. Unfixed painted silk will watermark and stain if it comes into contact with water. So I suggest you keep your painted silks in a clean polythene bag before you fix them. The method of fixing you use will depend on the type of colors you have used. It is extremely important to check the method of fixing when you buy your dyes.
Silk Dyes must be fixed into the silk by steaming (not just a steam iron) or with a liquid fixative depending on the make. If you use the latter then follow the instructions on the bottle. Silk Paints are fixed using a hot iron.

IRON FIXING
This is the easiest method of fixing and is used for silk paints.
Simply wait until the silk is completely dry.
1. Remove it from the frame and iron with a hot dry iron on the reverse side for about 3-4 minutes.
If you have painted a 3 dimensional silk item such as a silk lampshade you can fix this using a hair dryer on the hot setting. This takes about 15 minutes and you must be careful not to burn the silk.
After fixing the colors are permanent and the silk can be washed and dry cleaned.
Protect your ironing board when you are fixing the silk as sometimes the gutta reprints on to the board especially metallic gutta.

STEAM FIXING
Silk Dyes require steam for fixing, not just a steam iron but actually wrapping the silk up in paper or muslin and steaming it on your cooker in a steamer. It is easy to steam small amounts of silk at home on your cooker. However if you are going to paint a lot of silk lengths and yardage it is better to send it to a steaming service. Your silk painting suppliers should be able to tell you where your nearest service is. Sometimes the dry cleaners have a steam box which they will let you use. Professionals usually invest in their own steamers which come in either vertical or horizontal designs, and are very expensive.

How do I steam fix my silk on my cooker?
To steam your silk at home you will need a vegetable steamer, fish steamer or whatever you use to steam in your kitchen. If you have nothing the cheapest buy is a bamboo vegetable steamer. A double boiler saucepan will also work..

1. Lie your silk flat on some absorbent paper (not kitchen towel) or a muslin cloth. Brown paper with no wax coating, lining paper or Kraft paper are all suitable. You can also use old newspaper (Don't use recent papers or the black printing ink will come off onto your silk).

2. Roll the paper and silk gently with the silk on the inside. Tuck the ends of the roll in towards the center and roll together to make a small package. Seal with masking tape.

Rolling the silk, and preparing for steam fixing.
3 Place the package in the steamer and steam for 40 minutes.
The package must not touch the sides of the steamer. Make sure that the water in the base of your steamer cannot touch the package. Also be sure the water does not dry out before the 40 minutes is up.
The most important thing to consider is that your package of silk must not get wet. I always put a layer of foil under my package and a small lid of foil just covering the package so that any drops will not ruin the package of silk. The drops of water just roll off the package and back into the water. Protect your package as much as you can but do not completely seal it up in foil as the steam needs to get to it.
After steaming remove the package and unwrap your work. If you have used metallic or colored gutta it is best to unwrap the package while it is still hot as when it cools down the gutta sometimes sticks to the paper.

WASHING
After fixing (especially steam fixing) you will notice how vibrant your colors have become. Rinse the silk in warm soapy water to remove any excess dye and also to remove water based gutta. Some colors run more than others and it is not unusual to have excess dye washed out at this stage especially navy blue and red.
After washing I always iron my silks while they are still damp. You can iron your silk with a steam iron or an ordinary iron on a medium setting. If your silk has metallic or colored gutta on it, make sure you iron on the reverse side.

DRY CLEANING
If you ever use solvent based gutta on your work you will need to remove it by either soaking it in white spirit or having it dry cleaned. Do check before sending any of your silks to the dry cleaners that the colored or metallic gutta that you have used can be dry cleaned, check on the bottle for the manufacturers instructions.

Information Courtesy:From Internet through google search.

 

The Care of Silk​

If using dyes that are steamed set. The dry silk is steamed to set the dye permanently into the silk. This makes the piece completely colorfast and washable. However, if silk is left in direct sunlight for long periods of time the silk fibers will be weakened and some colors may fade. Silk paintings and wall hangings should be given the same consideration any fine art piece would receive.
Silk is a organic protein fiber and will dissolve in chlorine. Therefore all silks should be washed in pure soap, preferably colorless soap. Clear dishwashing soap or shampoo are fine.
With simple care your fine silks will last for many years.

Giving some pre-painted designs for your pursual which I got from the google search.
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