Color and Texture in Textiles

March 10, 2011 by debi.

Color and texture are such an important part of designing.  When I walk into a yarn store or fabric store the first thing that I notice are all of the colors. These stores virtually assualt your sense of vision.  There are colors everywhere, and there is every color under the sun.  I, unfortunately, am attracted to all colors.  Yes, like everyone I have my favorite colors, but to me color is like eye candy.  The picture below is of a tile at the top of a the stairway that someone built into the side of the cliff next to my home in Mexico.  It is a perfect example of color and texture.  The tiles are beautiful and I love the colors, but you also have the texture of the broken tile, the concrete,  the sand and dirt on the tile, even the cracking of the glaze on the tile add texture to the picture.

 When I designing hand knits or hand crocheted items or looking for a fabric for a dress, I also touch for texture.  Even though the picture of the tile has texture, it is not a kind of texture you would want to touch.  One of the things I do when I walk into a yarn store or fabric store is to start touching the yarns and fabrics. I love the soft feel of cashmere yarn or the feel of a beautiful silk or rayon fabric.  We live in a world where our senses are constantly being assualted.  So when I feel something really soft like a wonderfully soft cotton, I know that it will make a wonderful lace hat for summer, a soft pair of socks, or that cardigan that you never want to take off.  When I touch a beautiful rayon at the fabric store with a pastel floral pattern, I know that it will make a fantastic sundress for those really hot days, or a skirt that is so soft and floaty you will feel like you have nothing on.  This shawl below is one of those accessories that you never want to give up.  The color is perfect, and the soft chenille is comfy and cozy.  It is light enough to use in the summer on a cooler evening, but warm enough to use in the winter also.  It’s texture and color are what make it the ideal accessory.  This shawl is available only at  http://www.dreamsbydebi.com/mauve-lace-hand-crocheted-shawl-p-92.html

The scarf below is a perfect example of color and texture.  This scarf is hand crocheted with 100% mercerized cotton, and the color is so, so pretty.  The cotton is really soft, so it has a very smooth feel to it.  What give this scarf texture are the actual crocheted stitches.  This scarf is crocheted in sections, and each sections has different stitches, which gives its unique look.  So it is not only soft to the touch, but the stitches give it lots of interest.  This scarf is available at http://www.dreamsbydebi.com/deep-lavender-hand-crocheted-scarf-p-89.html

So the next time you walk into a yarn or fabric store, let your senses take over and enjoy what you see and feel.

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