Betsy Giberson

Starting with bolts of undyed silk and linen, I cut rectangles and bind the edges. All my pieces are constructed geometrically with the straight edges of rectangles. The challenge of constructing garments with straight edges that will hang gracefully on the human body is intriguing to me. Also, there is no waste. Next step is to dye the base color. I use my own recipes for the dyes so that I can achieve the tone that I want. Then I over-dye using shibori techniques to establish patterns on the cloth. Once, twice, sometimes three times until the piece feels finished. Finally I sew. Doing the production and creation myself allows me an intimate relationship with the cloth. One idea organically evolves into the next idea. I make simple garments and complicated scarves.