Disaster Strikes Dyepot

This hasn't been my dye season so far. I have some seeds started, and so far they're doing well. But two times I've tried to do a mixed yellow blossoms dyepot and two times I have failed. The first succumbed to a horrible case of mold because I waited to long to use it. So, this time I set the pot on simmer to kill any mold spores in preparation for tonights dying. Unfortunately, I forgot to turn the pot off when I left for work. By the time my son woke up, there was little left to my dye besides the black goo at the bottom of the pot. Since my dying was supposed to be for a swap, I can't chance that it will be horrible, despite the fact that I've added water to the pot. So, I'm going to use my stash of onion skins to dye my yarn. I just hope I have enough. What a total bummer. Fits right in with the rest of the day. Ah well.

On a brighter note, the rhubarb divisions I planted all took except one, and that one may not be a total gonner yet. Theres still some hope left.

Thanks for the listen.

Leah 8-)

Some more of my Dying

#1, Is a funky result from a black eyed susan dye bath that had some other similar looking flowers mixed in by mistake. Alum, COT on Merino /Tencel Roving

#2, Cochaniel on cormo roving. Alum/COT

#3, Jewelweed dye bath (I love this color) on Merino roving, Alum/COT

#4, The last two are chemically dyed roving. The rainbow colored one is on merino roving, the other on a merino/tencel blend. These were from a class taken at the VT Sheep and Fiber Fest last year.

Some of my Dying

The peach color is a yellow base from mixed yellow blossoms exhaust overdyed with cochaniel exhaust on reclaimed merino. (fiber salvaged from some merino batting). The mossy green (actually a little darker than shown) came from fermented apple leaves with a hint of iron on reclaimed merino. The banana color came from the first dye of the mixed yellow blossoms on as yet unreclaimed merino batting. The slate blue was a surprise, having come from what I thought were pine needles I gathered along the side of the road. I LOVE the shade, and plan to try and dye some more this season. The picture with three colors are the same as the slate blue previously discussed only on mystery locks. First was part of the initial dye, 2nd is with exhaust, 3rd is exhaust plus ammonia.

Here are some

A Beautiful Day for a Garden

Today was one of those perfect days. Bright, sunny, neither to hot or to cold. Blue skys worthy of a postcard. I started the day with a trip to the Vermont Wildflower Farms. I picked up most all of the flowers I wish to plant this season. I collectedd mixed yellow blossoms (more forsythia, dandelions, and some previously collected and frozen heliantus. While it simmered on the stove top, I potted up seeds in germination mix. Green cotton, two kinds of indigo, Hopi Black Sunflowers, and lupines.

I did some cleaning in the perennial beds, and noted that there were over a dozen Rhubarb plants ready to be devided. So I dug them up, saving a foot long length of root for the dye pot. I planted them in several sunny spots around the yard, so there should be pleanty to use this season.

I also purchased Walla Walla onion sets, which in addition to being delicious have fairly thick skins! Should work well.

Happy Gardening!

Leah. 8-)

When it Rains it Pours

This time, I'm not talking about the weather, but about all the other things that can happen to get in the way of creating the perfect garden. Despite the rainy weather, I find Im incapable of staying inside. So, with the rain on my back and a sack in my hand, I planted onions and garlic rows yesterday. I also set up some of the seed beds which will be used to make starts out doors. I make a clear plastic greenhouse-ish cover, and plant some of the seeds I'll later have to move into the rows. I'm hoping that this will enable me to bypass the traditional nightmare of hardening my seedlings (the highest deathrate time in my garden most years).

I had my wonderful gifted madder seeds soaking (they have a rather thick and husky shell) so they'd germinate. The ones that don't swell at all need to be scarified (or nicked) in order to grow. When I went to plant the seeds this morning, I discovered the big mug they'd been soaking in was missing. I found it in the dishwasher. Just figures, a whole house full of people who don't even know where the dishwasher is, much less what it does... and my lovelies are gone. "Oh, you mean that mug of stuff that looked like tea?" my husband said. So, here I am at this late date searching for madder seeds. Yesterday, I was searching for Japanese Indigo and several other items that had also disappeared. Fortunately, I'm blessed with wonderful understanding Ravelry friends who are willing to share a little of what they have with me. I'll just be a bit late getting started. I'll live.

My pot of forsythia is still on the stove top. I added another armload of (starting to fail) blooms to the pot this morning. I should be able to do some dying with them soon if they work out as they're supposed to.

In the mean time, I'm using the little free time I have to scour wool and fiber. I did a big load of snowy white alpaca, a load of gold angora (goat), and I have a load of shetland in the sink as we speak. (I have a lovely ewe named Evening Rose whose owners sell me her fiber every year). The colors are amazing. Every shade from True black to palest silver with a bit of cream in '09 that was gone in '10. You'll get to see it later.

I'll be going on a gathering walk in a little while. I want to try using the inner bark of the white birch, and I noticed a tree down by the side of the road. Off I go!!!

Leah

8-)

Rain Rain Go Away

This is hand combed top. The left is white Alpaca, the right is a brown/gold icelandic cross top.

These "nests" are made from dyed New Zealand wool. I used fermented apple leaves and ammonia to get the soft mossy green color.

This was the biggest surprise of all. I used needles from what I thought was a pine

from along the side of the road. I dyed inexpensive merino batting. I lost about 50% of the bulk to NNVM. The remainig slate blue merino top is breath taking (IMHO)

My plots have been tilled and I'm ready to form the beds. Where should I be right now? Where else, in the garden. Unfortunately, the garden is mud, and its been raining for 3 days. The gentle saturating rain that encourages growth (and is now supporting the weed population). So, I'm watching through the window. At least the seed starts are under way.

My wonderful new comb and hackle set arrived. I'd started natural dying a year ago, and had some fiber that I'd dyed but had been unable to work with because even with carding there were to many neps noils and bits of VM (NNVM) to be practical. So I've been practicing my combing skills using the dyed fiber. I have pounds and pounds of short staple merino batting, a good bit that was dyed, but made for a really lumpy yarn. I ended up losing a good 50% to NNVM, but the remaining top is AMAZING. The details are above.

Today is the official Beginning of the Dye Season

The dye season starts today with the first pot of blossoms simmering on the stove. I picked the blossoms last night after work. After hacking the forsythia plant nearly to death (I was trying to get rid of it because it hadn't bloomed in years) the darn thing returned this season with a vengence. It is absolutely weighed down with millions of huge deep yellow blossoms. I picked a packed plastic grocery sack of the blooms and set them in a pot of cold water. I brought it to a lightly bubbling simmer for about 45min, and then turned off the stove. I'll let it sit till the weekend then see what I can get with some fiber I'll have already mordanted with alum and COT.

The plower will be here this evening to set the garden bed and to dig out a new hillside garden that I'll be using to plant with Black eyed susans and some other flowers that won't compete or cross breed with them. Apparently thats where I went wrong with the great putty fiasco of last season. I was mixing the BES with a flower that looks similar (unknowingly).

I won't be able to actually lay seed for a couple of weeks yet. (Still to cold for any newly germinating plants) but I'll have the chance to lay my beds, figure out companion plants and make sure any newly emerging weeds are removed to the compost pile.

I'll add to this post a bit later with pictures after the plows arrive.

Leah

WARNING: Rant Contained in this Posting

Forgive me fellow bloggers, but I'm having a "pissy" day today and feel like having a good old fashioned rant. About what? Name it! Coworkers who could make a professional athelete blush before their expertise at the run-dodge-and jump efforts to avoid dealing with conflicts? Or, perhaps excellence in the ever popular sh*t toss. How about being stuck in doors with computers that are "upgraded" on a nearly weekly basis, yet manage to crash with increasing frequency at every turn. Technology is NOT my favorite word these days. Run faster, work harder, do more with less... the mentality is exhausting.

I find myself feeling almost desperate to step away from the rat race and find a simpler life for myself and my family. Grow our food and barter for what I can't grow. Build, make or create the things I need with my own two hands, and give what I'm able freely to family, friends and neighbors. To share what I can with those less fortunate than myself. I would like the time to reflect on the people, places, times and events that add value to my life.

I would like to cook with fresh ingredients more and use commercially prepared foods less. I would like to have more conversations, and watch less tv. I would like to play games that encourage thought, and encourage interaction with other living breathing human beings.

I didn't make new years resolutions this year. I make them and forget them. But I've reached one of those critical points in life where the decisions you make will alter the course of your life. This is the year I'm going to simplify. I'm going to work hard on removing the clutter in my home, my thoughts, my relationships, and in my life in general.

The seed has been planted. Now is the time to help it grow!

Thanks for the listen,

Leah

Spring is in the Air

It's that time of year again. I've been looking at the various seed catalogs all winter long, and now its time to prepare to plant the garden. I've found that I'm producing WAY to many vegetables for my husband and I to eat, so this year I'm doing something different. I'm planting a "double" garden. Part will be a Salsa Garden (Tomatoes, onions, peppers, herbs) so I can put up the seasons salsa supply. The rest will be a dyers garden. I haven't gotten my camera out for the 'before' photos (but will before the plow comes).

First, I took stock of what I already have available to me, either in my gardens already, or in the woods and fields near the house. As I try the item I'll replace the * with what I was able to produce: (* indicates I haven't tried using this yet)

White Birch (Inner) Bark* Aspen (Cottonwood) (Med. Brown)

Rhubarb Leaves and roots* Assorted Fruit Tree Twigs and Bark

Queen Anne's Lace (pale moss green) Sugar Maple*

Coffee (Deep tan)

Balloon Flower (Blossoms and leaves)*

Burdock*

Bindweed*

Milkweed (Rich True Yellow)

Goldenrod (Brilliant Yellow-green)

Jewelweed (Pale peach to deep orange)

Maximilians's Sunflower (Non-descript yellow)

Next, I took stock of what I'd like to try, but didn't have available. The following items have been ordered as seeds or plants: (I rationalized these purchases to my amazingly tolerant husband that they'd also provide beautiful cut flowers for the table)

Deep Orange Safflower Dyers Coreopsis

Indigo Black Eyed Susans (Wildflower)

Peppermint Marigolds

Black Hollyhocks Dyers Coneflower

Hopi Red Dye Amaranth Hopi Black Dye Sunflowers

Madder

Last, but not least, were the items I plan on using (or have used) that I'll have to purchase ready to use:

Logwood, Anatto Seed, Black Beans, Sandlewood, Osage Orange, Lac, Cochineal, Brazilwood, Madder (for the next few years at the very least) and other items I'm unable to grow or wildcraft.

I'm slowly developing a library of dye books:

The Art and Craft of Natural Dying: Traditional Recipes for Modern Use (J.N. Liles)

Dying the Natural Way (Frances E. Mustard)

Indigo, Madder and Marigold: A portfolio of colors from natural dyes (Trudy Van Stralen)

Dyes from American Native Plants: A practical guide (Lynne Richards & Ronald J. Tyrl)

The Rainbow Beneath My Feet: A Mushroom Dyer's Field Guide (Arleen Rainis Bessette & Alan E. Bessette

My copies of A Dyers Garden and A Weavers Garden have mysteriously dissappeared and will be repurchased. I also plan to Purchase Eco Colors (India Flint) and Wild Color (Jenny Dean).

I also admit freely that I rely heavily on the experience of dyers from the Natural Dye Forums on Ravelry. If you work with fiber in any way sort or form and have access to a computer (which you must if you're following this blog) I STRONGLY recommend you consider joining!

More news to follow!

Leah