Hot Textiles: Inspiration and Techniques with Heat Tools
Hot  , in British artist Thittichai’s parlance, means the application of heat to specific textiles to create a range of works, from decorative hangings to practical gift cards. As the green movement increases in power, hot can also denote a trend that’s hard to ignore: how to recycle and repurpose the amazing quantity of grocery packaging (among others) that the world produces? Thankfully, the author uses both Rs in this meandering exploration of transforming space-age materials and, yes, plastics. Textiles take first and second place, whether name brands like Tyvek (10 percent polyester) and different weights of the interfacing Pellon to plan everyday plastic shopping bags and candy wrappers. Much space, too, is devoted to safety, such as toiling in a well-ventilated room and wearing protection while using irons, solderers, and guns. Yet, since techniques are so heavily dependent on the combination of materials and amount of heat, readers will have to be content with the glorious number of color examples from nine artists, a handful of exercises to practice, and a few projects (brooch, greeting cards). True eco-imagination at work—and play. --Barbara Jacobs