c. 1996

Woman's Coat

To achieve the tapestry-like effect she wanted, self-taught weaver Trudie Roberts developed a technique in 1982 that she called “California Rags.” Strips of printed cotton are woven with warp threads in two colors, and whole additional thin wefts of multicolored yarn give structural stability and suppleness to the resulting fabric. This technique, related to Japanese rag textiles, produces an intriguing thick-and-thin texture and a rich interplay of color, compressing the design of the original printed cotton; it is perfect for simply shaped, one-of-a-kind garments such as this kimono-like coat.