Unit 7 (Level 2): Advanced Surface Design — Print, Dye, and Repeat Pattern

Length

2 weeks

Builds On (Level 1)

In Level 1 (Unit 7) you tested individual surface techniques — applique, embroidery, block printing, fabric paint, simple dye — on a sample panel and learned the first rule of respectful design: never copy protected cultural imagery. You can already make a clean swatch before committing to a product, and you can talk about a technique's history, contemporary use, and care.

Level 2 assumes all of that is mastered. We now move from *testing one mark* to designing a system: an original motif that you engineer into a true repeat, print or dye across a length of fabric, and apply to a finished product to a professional standard. You will work with real dye chemistry, multiple print methods, and process documentation good enough for a portfolio.

Unit Description

Students develop an original surface-pattern design from a personal or place-based source, then reproduce it across fabric using a chosen print or dye method and apply it to a small product (tote, scarf, cushion panel, or garment panel). The unit covers screen printing (paper-stencil and an introduction to photo-emulsion), block and lino printing, an introduction to heat-transfer/sublimation and digital textile printing as concepts, and a working knowledge of dye types and basic dye chemistry. Central to the unit is repeat-pattern engineering — straight, half-drop, and mirror repeats — and the ethical discipline of designing originals rather than borrowing them. Work is studio-based, low-cost, and documented with a professional process/technique card.

Historic Notes

Printing and dyeing cloth are among the oldest design technologies. Resist and immersion dyeing appear independently across the world — Japanese *shibori*, West African *adire* and indigo, Indonesian *batik*, Indian *bandhani* and mordant block printing on the Coromandel Coast that supplied the global chintz trade. Block printing carved the same motif into repeatable units centuries before mechanical reproduction; the wooden printing block is, in effect, an early "tile" of a repeat. Screen printing grew from stencil traditions and became central to twentieth-century art and fashion, from Marimekko's bold repeats to Warhol's editions. Engineered repeat pattern itself is a design discipline with named structures (straight, half-drop, brick, mirror) that predate but map directly onto today's digital tools.

Many of these traditions are culturally owned. The *techniques* (immersion dyeing, resist, carving a block) are shared human knowledge; specific *motifs and meanings* often are not.

Contemporary Uses

Surface design drives fashion, interiors, and accessories: textile-design studios sell repeat artwork to brands; independent makers screen-print small runs; sportswear and fast fashion use dye-sublimation and digital printing for photographic, all-over graphics with no minimum repeat. Slow-fashion and craft markets value hand block printing, naturally dyed indigo, and shibori. Digital textile printing has lowered the barrier to short runs and personalisation, while raising questions about who owns a pattern. Designers are expected to supply print-ready repeat tiles, colourways, and care information — exactly the deliverables in this unit.

Learning Targets

• I can develop an original motif from a personal or place-based source without copying protected cultural designs.
• I can engineer a motif into a seamless repeat (straight, half-drop, or mirror) and explain the structure I used.
• I can select a print or dye method to suit my fibre, design, and budget, and justify the choice.
• I can mix and apply dye or print safely, with correct ventilation and PPE, and achieve reasonable colourfastness.
• I can compare dye types (fibre-reactive vs all-purpose/union) and match a dye to a fibre.
• I can produce a printed or dyed length and apply it to a finished product with durable, well-finished results.
• I can document method, repeat type, care, and design sources on a professional process card.

Key Notes

Print Methods

Key idea: block and screen need a physical repeat unit; sublimation and digital can print continuous art but sublimation only bonds to polyester.

Dye Types and Basic Chemistry

Core principle: match the dye to the fibre. Fibre-reactive dye will barely colour polyester; acid dye will not hold on cotton. A *covalent* (fibre-reactive) bond is permanent; many natural and all-purpose dyes hold by weaker means and fade faster. Always pre-wash (scour) fabric to remove finishes, or dye will resist.

Resist and Removal Techniques

• Immersion dyeing: even, all-over colour; stir constantly, allow enough water volume to move freely.
• Shibori: resist by binding, folding, stitching, clamping, or pole-wrapping (*arashi*) before dyeing; the resist blocks dye to make pattern. Classic with indigo but works with fibre-reactive.
• Discharge / bleach: *removes* colour from an already-dyed fabric using a bleach or discharge paste to make a light pattern on dark ground. High-hazard: ventilation required, gloves and eye protection, neutralise bleach afterward (an anti-chlor or thorough rinse), never mix bleach with ammonia. Results vary by dye — some dyes will not discharge.

Repeat Pattern Engineering

A repeat is a single tile designed so its edges flow seamlessly when stepped across fabric.

• Straight (block) repeat: tile copied directly up/down and side to side on a grid. Simplest; can look rigid or "stripey".
• Half-drop repeat: every other column shifts down by half the tile height. Hides the grid, feels organic; the workhorse of textile design.
• Mirror (reflection) repeat: tile flipped horizontally and/or vertically to create symmetry; good for kaleidoscopic or formal effects.
• The "drop-and-overlap" trick to make a seamless tile: cut the tile, swap the halves (so the outer edges meet in the middle), then draw new motifs only in the middle gap — never across the new outer edges. The edges now match by construction.

Plan scale, density (how much ground shows), and colourway (the same artwork in different colour sets). A motif placed only once is a *placement print*; a motif stepped across the cloth is an *all-over repeat*.

Machine Embroidery and Mixed-Media Surface

Surface design can layer: print or dye first, then add free-motion machine embroidery, applique, beading, or foiling for emphasis. Stabilise lightweight fabric with tear-away or wash-away backing before dense stitching. Keep added elements durable for the product's intended care — a tote washed often cannot carry loose beadwork.

Durability and Care

• Fix prints: most fabric paints/inks need heat-setting (iron through cloth or tumble) to become washable.
• Fix fibre-reactive dye with soda ash and time, then wash out unbonded dye until water runs clear (prevents later bleeding).
• Test colourfastness: rub a damp white cloth over the finished print (crocking test); strong transfer means under-fixed.
• Write honest care instructions: hand-wash cold, wash dark separately, no bleach on dyed goods, etc.

Cultural Respect and Original Design

Chilliwack sits in Stó:lō territory. As your design power grows in Level 2, so does your responsibility. The discipline of this unit is to design originals.

• Source motifs from your own life and place: personal symbols, family stories you have a right to tell, local plants and landscape (mountains, river, salmon-as-*your-own-observed-form* not as a Nation's crest), geometry, your own photographs, your name or handwriting.
• Never reproduce, trace, or "remix" Indigenous, sacred, ceremonial, clan, family-owned, or Nation-specific designs — including Coast Salish formline, totemic crests, or motifs found online with no clear right to use. These are owned cultural property, not free reference.
• Be careful with motifs that *belong to specific cultures elsewhere* too (e.g. paisley, batik motifs, Adinkra symbols). Admiring a tradition is not the same as having the right to sell its symbols.
• Credit your influences. If a technique tradition inspired your *method* (you used shibori binding, or indigo), name it on your process card as a tradition you learned from — credit the technique without claiming a culture's motifs.
• If you are ever unsure whether a design is protected, the answer is to choose another direction and ask your teacher. "I wasn't sure, so I designed my own" is always the right call.

Hands-On Assignment: Original Repeat — Print or Dye a Length and Apply It

Task

1. Develop an original motif from a personal or place-based source. Sketch at least three motif options and note the source of each. Confirm none reproduce protected cultural designs.
2. Engineer the motif into a repeat — choose straight, half-drop, or mirror — and prove the tile is seamless (paper mock-up or stepped photocopy stepped on a grid).
3. Choose a method and fibre that match (block, paper-stencil screen, or a dye/resist technique such as shibori or immersion). Justify the choice for your design and budget.
4. Produce a sample length of the repeated print/dye (minimum approx. 30 cm x 30 cm of repeated pattern, at least two full tiles in each direction so the repeat reads).
5. Apply it to a small product: tote, scarf, cushion panel, drawstring bag, or a panel set into a garment. Finish edges and construction cleanly.
6. Fix and care-test the surface (heat-set or soda-ash fix; crocking test).
7. Complete a process/technique card documenting: method, repeat type, fibre and dye/ink, scale and colourway, fixing/care instructions, and design sources/influences (with credit).

Cost

Low. Suggested low-cost routes:

• Blocks: craft-foam glued to a wood/cardboard backing, carved lino, or even potato for trials — under $5.
• Stencils: freezer paper or cardstock cut by hand; one screen and squeegee shared across the class.
• Dyes: kitchen/natural dyes where possible (onion skin, avocado pits, black beans, turmeric, red cabbage) on thrifted natural fabric; or shared fibre-reactive dye for durable cotton results.
• Fabric: thrifted cotton/linen sheets, calico/muslin remnants, a thrifted plain tote or scarf. Pre-wash before dyeing.
• Fabric paint/ink: shared class jars, heat-set with the iron you already use.

Estimated student cost: $0–$10 CAD, mostly thrifted base product.

Deliverables

• Motif development sheet (3+ sketches with sources).
• Seamless repeat tile + stepped mock-up showing the repeat structure.
• Printed/dyed sample length (2+ tiles each way).
• Finished product with clean construction and edges.
• Crocking/colourfastness test result noted.
• Process/technique card (method, repeat type, fibre/dye, care, design sources with credit).

Worksheet

1. State your motif's source (personal/place-based) in one sentence. How is it original to you?
2. Which repeat structure will you use (straight, half-drop, mirror) and why does it suit your motif?
3. Sketch your seamless tile. Mark where the edges must match.
4. What fibre is your fabric, and which dye or ink correctly matches it? Explain the match.
5. Which print/dye method did you choose, and what is the main reason (design, durability, or cost)?
6. List the safety and ventilation steps for your method (especially if discharging/bleaching).
7. How will you fix your colour, and how will you test colourfastness?
8. Write the care instructions you will put on your product.
9. Name one technique tradition that influenced your method. How will you credit it without taking a culture's motifs?
10. What is your plan if you discover mid-project that a motif you liked is a protected design?

Quiz/Test

1. Which dye type forms a permanent covalent bond with cotton, and what chemical fixes it?
2. Why will sublimation transfer not work well on a 100% cotton tote?
3. Define a half-drop repeat and give one advantage over a straight repeat.
4. What does "scouring" (pre-washing) fabric do, and why does it matter before dyeing?
5. Name two safety requirements specific to discharge/bleach work.
6. Explain the difference between a placement print and an all-over repeat.
7. Give one example of a respectful, original motif source and one example of a motif you must NOT use.
8. What is a crocking test, and what does a heavy result tell you?
9. Scenario: A student finds a striking Coast Salish formline design online and wants to screen-print it onto scarves to sell. What is wrong, and what should they do instead?

Answer key (model answers; accept accurate equivalents):

1. Fibre-reactive dye (e.g. Procion MX) bonds covalently to cellulose/cotton; it is fixed with soda ash (sodium carbonate), which raises pH so the dye reacts with the fibre.
2. Sublimation dye only bonds to polyester (it sublimates into the plastic fibre under heat). Cotton has no plastic to receive it, so the colour washes out / barely holds.
3. A half-drop repeat shifts every other column down by half the tile height. Advantage: it disguises the grid, so the pattern looks more organic and continuous rather than rows and columns.
4. Scouring removes manufacturing finishes, sizing, oils, and dirt so dye can penetrate evenly. Without it, finishes act as a resist and you get patchy, pale, or uneven colour.
5. Any two: adequate ventilation / work outdoors or with extraction; gloves and eye protection; neutralise/rinse the bleach (anti-chlor) afterward; never mix bleach with ammonia.
6. A placement print is a single motif positioned once (like a logo on a chest); an all-over repeat is a tile stepped seamlessly across the whole cloth so the pattern continues with no obvious start or end.
7. Respectful original source: personal symbols, family stories you have a right to tell, local plants/landscape, your own photos, geometry, your handwriting. Must NOT use: Indigenous/Coast Salish formline, sacred or ceremonial designs, clan or family crests, or any Nation-specific motif you have no right to (also other cultures' owned symbols).
8. A crocking test rubs a damp white cloth across the print to check for colour transfer. A heavy result means the colour is under-fixed / not colourfast and will rub off or bleed in wash — it needs more fixing or washing out of excess dye.
9. The design is culturally owned property; copying and especially selling it is appropriation, not inspiration. The student should stop, not use it, learn the context, and design an original motif from their own life/place — and if they genuinely wanted Coast Salish work, that requires a proper relationship and permission from the artist/Nation, with credit and compensation, not a download. Ask the teacher.

Rubric

References and Further Learning

Watch

• Screen Printing Using Simple Tools — printing fabric with a hand-cut stencil and a basic, low-cost kit (bookhou).

Read

• Dyes and Dyeing — Charles E. Pellew's 1913 guide to dye types and small-scale hand dyeing (Project Gutenberg).
• Vegetable Dyes — Ethel Mairet's public-domain book of natural-dye recipes and methods (Internet Archive).

Explore

• Indian Textiles — an authoritative survey of block printing and indigo dyeing that credits the traditions behind the techniques (V&A).

_Links were verified at publication; if one moves, search the title._