Textile Body part two:bypass

 On of the most interesting operations I have watched was the unblocking of an artery which then required a patch. Whilst watching I often begin to compare what is happening to problems I have had when making something and when the blockage was removed I thought of some antique silk pearl string that I had.It was yellowed and tangled and had finally found a purpose!
 I wanted to replicate something of what I had seen of vein harvesting and arterial bypasses for the Textile Body and so my thoughts turned to the delicate stitches and structures which must be handled. 
  I chose cotton organdie which is both sheer and yet robust and used an old technique seen on 1920's afternoon dresses. I inserted rouleaux loops (thin fabric tubes) between two flawless panels of the fabric using a decorative but flexible insertion stitch to attach them. Using a space dyed thread  emphasised the challenges of unpicking such a structure from its surroundings.The colours of the thread change subtly along the work and would be difficult to match if you needed to replace them and the fabric shows every fault and flaw. Part of one of the rouleaux is stuffed with the old silk thread which can be seen above bulging out of the delicate fabric.
 The challenge here is seen in the contrast between the perfect fabric with its delicate embroidery and the problem bulge.How to remove the blockage or even the entire structure is the task,either would require planning and damage control. Which do you do? and how do you prevent damaging the surrounding material.There is a spare rouleaux which could be either used as a replacement or as a bypass to the blockage. The entire piece is woven through the muscle/french knitting layer.
  In fabric you can see the problems of such a procedure without having to have much surgical knowledge and yet the parallels can also be understood medically.