I’m sneakng in a little natural dyeing and printing between getting Wilde Thistle ready for opening. These are a few of the silk scarves and shirts we will offer for sale.
natural dyeing
Silk, Silk, Silk!!
A quick trip into Goodwill today yielded a silk wedding dress! Nearly all wedding dresses I find are polyester. So, to find an all silk custom made dress is a real treasure. Even the lace overlay and bustle are silk. I’m not a lace girl but who knows how this will get used? And the best part is they had thrown it into the costume category so it was only $10! I have big plans for this pile of silk!
I “FELT” a chill in the air
I rescued a sadly felted pure wool blanket at the thrift. Ron thought I was cazy as I danced to the car. It was sweltering out but I felt a chill coming.
I cut it into shawl, scarf sizes for eco printing and natural dyeing. This one was bundled with fresh leaves and put into a logwood bath. Love the way it turned out! I’m thinking it will go in my Etsy shop soon.
Time Out for Natural Dyeing
There are always lots of projects beconning to me. One that hasn’t had any up close and personal time lately is natural dyeing. I told myself I need to use the dyed fabric from last year so I would walk by the dye studio and wistfully whisper …next year. But then the flowers and leaves are ending their cycle for the year and I caved in to the magic of nature. It had to be now or way too much later.
I don’t chase a perfect leaf imprint like many natural/eco print artists do. If they happen amid the marbling of color created during the process, that’s a bonus.
There’ll be some Blue goin’ on
My Japanese indigo plants are doing great. An online friend shared seeds she gathered from John Marshall’s indigo garden. The pot is living under my weeping pussywillow tree. It gets filtered sun and it looks pretty happy!
The bottom photo is my woad. I transplanted it out of the pot when it was blooming. SEEDS! I have lots of seeds. I gathered half of them and let the rest self sow in the bed. Originally the bed was going to be weld and woad. Right after i sowed the weld the power company decided to replace a pole right next to the garden. When they were done, all the ground had been turned over and those tiny weld seeds were no place to be found.
Word has it that this lush 2nd year foliage on my woad doesn’t have much pigment. Will that stop me trying it out? Not a chance!
JP Dawes Contemporary Artist 