How I made my accessory.

I have chosen which final design I am going to manufacture for my accessory. I collected a number of different materials that I could use to produce it, for example, fabrics, buttons, threads and different coloured zips. I also made some samples and experimented with the zips to achieve the outcome I wanted.

Here is how I made the accessory.

• First I drew the shape of the petal, choosing which size I wanted.

• Then placed it on my chosen fabric and cut it out in a petal shape.

• After that I wanted to manipulate the fabric to alter its appearance, so I experimented, using techinques from some of the workshops which were part of the unit. I wanted to see which technique would be the most effective. The batik wax worked well, so I used the batik wax to create a shape inside the petal. When the wax had dried I coloured the the spaces with inks, then removed the wax with a hot iron.

• I have put interfacing on the petal-shaped base fabric to maintain its shape when I attach the zips.

• I then laid the shapes onto the fabric base, arranging them in the pattern I wanted. I then sewed a zigzag stitch along the edges with a contrasting thread.

• I also sewed in a running stitch to outline the shape of the petal.

• Setting the fabric to one side, I started to create different sized petals with the zips, to achieve the shape I wanted. On some of the zips I have sewn a zigzag stitch along the tape to create a texture.

• After I had made a number of the petal zips I hand stitched them onto the fabric base that I had made previously. I also added some buttons to add more texture.