Azaleas in the Evening

Abstract

<p>This flowing silk organza evening dress was designed using fabric hand dyed with azalea blossoms. It consists of three layers of silk organza designed in a low-waste, wrap-across-the-back style with asymmetric hem. I seek to constantly challenge myself by learning new dyeing, surface design, pattern making, and/or construction techniques, combining learned techniques in different ways. Exploration of the contact method of natural dyeing as a new textile design technique was my initial design goal. My second design goal was to seek out dyestuff sources that I had not used before when developing the color for this textile and garment design. Azalea blossoms were a readily available potential dyestuff and one that I had not used in previous designs. I found that use of these flowers as a dyestuff was an experimental opportunity, because no information was discovered regarding use of azaleas in either the historical or contemporary natural dye literature.</p>