Submitted by Lily Yoder on the 2020 winter session study abroad program in Paris, France sponsored by the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies…
During the first week in Paris, my group got the opportunity to have a workshop on shibori. Before this, I had no idea what it was, but I found out that it is a manual resist dying technique used in Japan, that creates patterns on fabric. Our instructor was a little French woman who spent time in Japan and has worked with many designers including Balenciaga, to help create dyed textiles. We learned that by manipulating the fabric by folding it, using string, and other materials, you can create various patterns. It was fun to learn, but also difficult because one wrong fold can change the whole pattern. Overall, it was really an eye-opening experience into how different cultures can combine together to learn and create new techniques. It was also amazing to be given the opportunity to work with someone with so much experience and knowledge of a technique I would not have known about otherwise.
