Flower Pounded Fabric Book

I have kept this flower-pounded fabric for months, looking for the right binding idea. In January, the Handmade Book Club focused on the Long Stitch Portfolio binding, which was perfect for my needs.

Every summer I like to pound flowers. Besides the immediate, colourful results it’s a great way to work out frustrations.

This botanical printmaking fits nicely in my cyanotype and eco-printing art practice. Last summer I tried something a little different; I mordanted the fabric before I pounded the flowers.

How I mordant my fabric.

I used plain, unbleached muslin fabric. I treated the fabric in a solution of 1 TBSP of Alum to 10 cups of warm water. Stir to dissolve the alum, if it doesn’t dissolve I warm the water slightly.

I soak the fabric over night and hang to dry.

Before pounding, I place a plastic mat under my fabric and then laid down my flowers. I cover the flower layer with another layer of fabric and bounded using a mallet.

Mordanting the fabric ahead of time has made the flower colour very powerful and it has remained strong for months.

Dye-your-own coordinating fabric.

To create my custom green fabric I dye pieces of unbleached muslin with iDye by Jacquard. I mix together blues and yellow to get this darker green. To get the over-dyed (uneven finish) look I dye the fabric, dry it and then dye again in a slightly darker version of my colour.

Join me in Owen Sound. September 4, 2025.

I will be teaching an ecoprinting workshop in Ontario, Sept. 4, 2025 at the Canadian Encaustic Conference .