Karen Bell

I first used Dharma Trading products in 1987 when I began my water-based silkscreen company, Great Silkie Artwear. I silkscreen the line drawing in black onto a T-shirt or garment, let it air dry, and then paint or float the colors, which are watered down, using Versatex textile paints and Jacquard textile colors, with a cardboard placed within the T-shirt to keep the colors from bleeding onto the back. Again, these are air dried and next placed in a very hot clothing drier until they are hot to the touch. I usually add a bonding agent to my inks so they will set well in a drier. I have printed and painted thousands of garments with this method, and have sold them to universities, wineries, festivals, catalogs, galleries, and gift shops. To express myself in the Fine Arts, I began to create hand painted Batiks on large pieces of cotton, rayon, and hemp, using Dharma Batik Wax, Tjanting Tools and Jacquard silk paints. I remove the wax by ironing the piece between old newspaper, which also sets the silk dyes into the fabric. I lived many years in Sebastopol, California, but have recently moved to Asheville, North Carolina, where I find Dharma Products at the local craft store. Dharma Trading had enabled me to explore the world of fabric surface design by offering many great products and much support. Thank You Dharma!