cheesecloth creating

Recently, there has been a lot of talk about creating with cheesecloth. Last year for ArtFest 4 the Soul (which is now Art Is) I created a guest book made from layers of cheesecloth and 'meltable' fabrics which I painted, stitched, burned, stitched and painted again. There are layers of metallic threads, both silk and satin ribbons/fabrics and when you put all these fabrics together some will singe and crinkle while others will remain the same as soon as the heat gun hits it. From there it's more layering, more paint, more stitching and before you know it, the sun has gone down and you can't see the piece in the dark so that's a sign you've completed it. The heat gun I use is the big gun made to soften wallpaper and paint not the embossing kind so I try to work in a well ventilated space with a mask or outside. Me and a heat gun are best outside as I've been known to over do on my burning skills. Picture this, hitting a button with heat to have it not go up in flames but SMOKE, billowing smoke as I run thru the house to get this to the kitchen sink to stick it under the faucet. Yes, in the winter weather the windows were then opened and the ceiling fans turned on. Creativity is such a learning process and I hope this encourages you to try a little bit of cheesecloth.