Introduction to Silk Painting: Create Unique Pieces

Sokina Guillemot starts off by introducing herself and telling you about her influences, from Sonia and Robert Delaunay to Douanier Rousseau and Léon Bakst.

After walking you through all the materials you need, she gives you tips to help you find inspiration in your surroundings (a book, a magazine, your grandmother's fabric ... anything goes!) Continue with some exercises to train your hand before deciding on and then creating your colors with paint.

Next, learn how to set up your workspace, make preparatory sketches, and select your final composition—visualizing it by bringing it to scale.

Stretch the silk over the frame and start tracing with a textile marker using the preparatory sketch as your guide. Go over it with gutta and then paint and play around with colors. After letting it dry for 48 hours, add the finishing touches and hang it up. Don't forget to grab your iron, it'll come in handy!

Sokina rounds out the course by teaching you how to care for your creations and how to package them with tissue paper. To take it a step further, she shows you what other items you can create, such as scarves and silk paintings framed under glass.