Memorial Weekend 2010

It's been a long, hot weekend. But I still managed to do a little dye work, and some garden work. Most of the plants are either still growing (like the purple opal basal, and the purple salvia), or are ready for transplant but still need another week in the house. The Japanese Indigo, and the green cotton head out tomorrow. What I though was madder, was infact black hollyhocks. Apparently the Madder didn't even germinate. I have to order more seed, and try again. I'm very determined that it should work. Ditto with the dyers bedstraw.

Right now, I'm spending a fair amount of evening time processing previously dyed fiber, so it will be ready to spin into yarn this winter. I use the drum carder or my combs while I watch movies on my computer. Works for me.

I'm dying some white alpaca I'd washed using Burgandy Wine. I read about it in an article online, and really liked the resulting color. So, wish me luck! I'll post a picture later.

Happy Memorial Day to you all.

Live well and Dye Happy,

Leah.

Garden Challenges and Successes

Here are the picture updates from what was growing in my last plant post:

Row 1: left- Madder, below: Green Cotton

Row 2: left- Japanese Indigo, Right- Dark Orange marigolds

Row 3: Purple Opal Basil

Not Shown: Broom (yellow and maroon flowers)

Rhododendron, Raspberry (for leaves).

The garden is really taking off now. The wildflowers are coming in strong (about a whole 1/2 " tall!) The hollyhocks are doing well. The indoor cotton is about 8" tall and ready to be transplanted outside. The indigo is about 4-5" tall, and some of the stronger plants have started to branch. The weather is still erratic, so I transplanted them, and will keep them inside another week. Madder is ready to be potted up. Lupines are dying in their pots. Apparently the don't like to be moved once they're planted. I should have started them in larger pots and let them grow longer.

I'm also going to plant the Hopi Red Dye Amaranth, some more Japanese Indigo, and some Sulfur Cosmos this weekend. LOTS of weeding is needed too.

I did have one real disappointment. I'd purchased 2 pounds of AMAZING A/B Pygora Fleece. I washed 1 pound, and put the 2nd aside for a bit (the first was horrible to wash but SOOOO nice to play with). When I went to get the 2nd pound, it was riddled with larvae and moths. Tonight I'm tearing apart my studio, and opening every bag to check them for bugs. What's still good will be double bagged. As soon as I can find out where, I'm sending the whole lot of it off for processing! How GROSS.

We've been having moth problems in the house. I thought they were pantry moths, but I couldn't get rid of them. I think I may have found the source of my problem!

More later!

Dye Happy!

Leah

A Day for Dying

The weather was absolutely lovely. Just slightly cool, gentle breeze, cloudless blue sky. So amazingly rare here in vermont. I'd been gathering LOTS of onion skins, and I threw a bunch in a pot yesterday to steep. I turned on the heat, and simmered them for a couple of hours before adding fiber and yarn. The fiber had been mordanted in Alum/COT, and the yarn was just cleaned (since mordant isn't needed for onion skins).

I dipped them both in all the way, and then pulled them out a bit at a time to create a range of colors. The yarn skein was tied tightly in a number of spots to create bands of undyed or yellow yarn (color varies with how long they were in the bath). I'm not sure what I'll use the fiber for yet (4.2oz), but the yarn is for a swap (just shy of 200gm). Let me know what you think!

More from my Garden

Well, I've been watching my wildflower garden intently, and can't say I see much of anything growing out there. I should have sufficient Rhubarb to feed an army, and today the dark orange and the dark red marigolds popped up out of the loamy seed starting mix. LOTS of action with the indigo. I'll wait another week and then take some more pictures. The cotton is starting to throw its first real set of leaves. I'm planting the peas and beets on Wednesday regardless of the weather. I'll need to start moving some of my starts outside pretty soon. Time to build my hoop house.

I'll take more pictures soon.

L.

Mothers Day 2010

Mothers Day, and the first thought going through my mind was that I may never celebrate another mothers day with my son Jonathan living in my home. He's off to the Air Force Academy in June (21st) after graduating on the 18th of the same month. I was dying in the kitchen, the last batch of springs yellow blossoms, and getting a lovely gold from the deep dye bath. He asked me to help him fill out his security application, and the plastic spoon I use for iron fell in the pot. Still gold, but darker some how. I tried to help him fill out the forms, and felt my chest go tight and my breathing become harder. Panic attack. I put the papers down. I just can't do it. I had to leave the room, and even now my chest hurts. He's been mine for 17 years. This is even harder than when I brought my daughter to Princeton, because I knew I'd still see her. Talk with her. Share with her. When Jon leaves, I won't be able to have contact with him again until September, parents weekend. After that, I don't even know when the next time will be. I remember basic training. It was the letters that got me though. I'll write to him (who knows, maybe someday he'll get rich publishing my letters in a memoire).

My fiber is still soaking in the pot. I'll let it cool overnight. I took a portion of that bath, added ammonia and a touch of iron. I'm looking for a greenish brown color. I'll have to wait, be patient, and see what time brings. I hope I can love the colors.

How My Garden Grows

Outside, I have black eyed susans, queen annes lace, hopi black dye sunflowers, coriopsis (tickseed) tinctora, red clover, a bunch of sets (off my plant) of rhubarb, red and gold poppies and a variety of wildflowers. Inside I have starts of madder, 2 varieties of indigo, more sunflowers, marigolds, lupines, black hollyhocks, and a few others.

I’ve always loved gardening, and now I find I have a lot of materiels to try. Poplar (the one with triangle leaves and flat stems) give LOTS of different colors, as do maples, raspberry leaves and stems, willow, ferns,…. I could dye out of my own yard all season long. Exciting. I'm doing a series of experiments on dying with dandelions. The predominant flower at this time of year. I have a pot of plant less roots on the stove. Roots in ammonia and water in a jar, and i'm going to gather a pot of whole plant including roots for a hot bath.

I cant wait to see the outside plants start growing. I hope they start soon!

Here are some pictures of plants I already have started:

Lemonade Sock Yarn

You may recall the disaster I made of my mixed yellow flower bath in the last post. I've collected another pot of yellow blossoms, but in the mean time I'd desided to make "Lemonade Sock Yarn" (Drawn from the old addage, 'If life gives you lemons, make lemonade').

So, a rehydrated the black goo (which I should have taken a picture of) in the bottom of the pot, and let it set for a day. Added some extra water, and set off to make my sock yarn. Here are the results, called "Gold Lemonade" and "Green Lemonade". The greening was achieved by adding small increments of iron solution. Not to shabby for what I thought was going to be a total waste of both the bath AND the pot!!!

The garden is doing well. All the green cotton plantlets have sprouted as have a variety of other plants. I'll get pictures up later this evening.

Things are beginning to happen!!!

Hi! Things are finally starting to go in the right direction. The green cotton seeds that were given to me by Jillian have all sprouted. I also have starts in Lupine, Hopi Black Dye Sunflowers, and a couple types of indigo. I got the new madder seeds, and I'll start soaking them tonight. I also plan on working on the dye flowers bed tonight, starting the marigolds and hollyhocks, and doing a bit of dying with left over dyes from last season. May as well use them, right?

I decided to "make lemonade" with the yellow flower blossoms disaster. I'd already removed the blossoms when it occurred, so I "rehydrated" the black ooze, and tossed in some leftover annato dye bath for good measure. I'm dying as we speak. Every 15 to 20 minutes I lift a little more out of the bath. So far, I have a gold/bronze sort of color. We'll have to see what happens.

Much to do and little time.

Dye Happy!

Leah 8-)