Each of these garments is a portrait of a family member. This series was a labor of love and an exploration of identity, garment as gift, and personal story telling. All color in each piece came from me dyeing it by hand using natural dyes. The lace in Lace Spirit is handmade by me, and I foraged for the black walnuts I used to dye that piece a rich brown. Working mostly from my bedroom, I sewed the overalls’ applique by hand. I dyed and hand-wove the fabric in Southern Belle , which is a piece about domestic labor, the alienation of conservative Christian womanhood, and is intentionally lacking in creative design. The fur used in Rabbit and Raven was skinned by the subject of the piece from a coyote hit by a car. That piece includes themes of strength and vulnerability. Screen printed images on Joy, Hope, Nostalgia were done using natural dyes, and many were based off of family photographs. Using natural dyes in this work is part of and an illustration of the deep connections my family has with the natural world. Each of these slow and intentional processes provided time and space to honor these relationships and stories.

In order:

Appalachian Queer for Justice

Linen, natural dyes

Joy, Hope, Nostalgia

Rayon, natural dyes, tencel yarn

Rabbit and Raven

Silk, cotton, natural dyes, textile pigment, coyote fur, snake bones

Southern Belle

Hand-woven tencel, silk, natural dyes

Lace Spirit

Silk, cotton lace made by the artist, natural dyes, vintage cotton sheet, family locket

2017

2020

linen, cotton

hand sewn embroidery and reverse applique

I created this series after working as apprentice to artist Rena Wood through the Master Artist Apprenticeship supported by Tennessee Craft.

2020

Natural dyes and embroidery floss

2019

handwoven cotton, wool, silk, steel, natural dyes

This piece is a record of a certain time and place in which home may or may not be contained.

2018

This print is a study of the relationship between sleep and anxiety. Linoleum block printed on cotton using a natural dye iron/tannin ink process.

silk, cotton, plant dyes

2015

Words taken from my journals, handwritten in dye on scraps of fabric, like scraps of paper.

cotton, silk, rayon, fiber reactive dyes

2015

2018

For one month at a residency at STARworks in NC, I worked on this quilt. I dyed cotton and linen fabric as well as cotton thread with natural dyes before piecing it together and hand-quilting.

fiber reactive dyes, rayon fabric

I screen-printed the 3-layer original design by hand on yardage before using it to construct this garment.

2015

wool, organza silk, acid dyes, wooden button made by the artist

2016

2019

linen fabric, cotton thread naturally dyed; hand-stitched pillow covers with invisible zipper