Samantha Mullarkey Textile Design
Get to Know Me
I originally trained in Art and Design at college in Nottinghamshire and then spent a couple of years in employment in design studios specialising in illustration before finally deciding to embark on freelance career.
As a child I had always loved making things, either painting, modelling, sewing or Knitting but particularly loved fabrics and textures. After finding myself not quite so full filled creatively one day, i felt inspired to look at Art workshops, doing something just for the fun of it. I eventually found a course doing Silk painting at West Dean College in Chichester and straight away booked a place. I had a wonderful time and met many lovely people but the best thing of all, I was completely hooked. I loved the feel of working with Silk it is so sumptuous and tactile, the ways in which the coloured dyes would intermingle to create often unplanned but beautiful effects was so captivating.
Since this time my passion for working with fabrics and textures was reignited and I now not only produce arrange of Hand Painted silks but Machine Embroideries using both painting and embroidery skills together with layering of textures and heat manipulation.
Hand Painted Silks
I create a range of Hand Painted Silk and Velvet scarves and cushions, most of my designs are inspired by nature, such as butterflies, dragonflies , shells and flowers. I often use Gutta as a resist but also enjoy painting direct on to the fabrics. The colours are achieved using steam fix dyes which have a wonderful vibrancy, and once steam set become permanent.
Silk
Dragonfly Silk and Velvet scarf
Silk & Velvet
Dragonfly & Irises
Silk
Embroidered Poppy Heads
Hand painted silk velvet scarf
Anenomes in blues and violets
Dancing the moon
Silk Painted wall art
Alliums
Silk Emboidered Painting
Embroideries
Dragonfly Dance
Embroidered Textile detail, achieved by using both machine embroidery with layers of distressed Lutrador and metal organza.
Burning and Distressed
I have used a combination of various layers of handpainted lutrador using both dyes and acrylic ink , which i embellished with both machine embroidery and tiny glass beads. Each layer of fabric was then heat distressed to create a lace like qaulity and a more 3 dimesional feel of this butterfly dancing a cross the summer hedgerows.
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Rock Pool
As the sea tide gradually recedes, unveiled are tiny rock pools filled with shells and seaweed. I have used a gutta outliner as well embroidery with metallic threads to capture the last light of the evening on these delicate little shells.