Workshop: Natural Dyeing

Far away to another Island in Washington State magic was recently made under the tutelage of India Flint.  I was lucky enough to be there.

Arriving the day before the workshop began, I got to meet some of the local residents...
 

...see some of the sights...

 ...and wander through the hedgerows of this beautiful place.

 Lopez Island abounds in small farms...

 ...and fresh produce.

I got to feast on delicious local beets on several occasions.

 The workshop was held in a garden Alice in Wonderland would have been at home in.

Flowers as well as vegetables in neat rows exuded gorgeous aromas.

One of the first activities of day one was labeling our silk, cotton, and wool with our own mark.

 The initial bundles were made with a plant the Lopez dye group had not been able to achieve color from.  India accepted the challenge, made some helpful suggestions, and set us to work.

The contents of my first bundle included both green and 'toasted' leaves.

 Our bundles went into the pot of hot water to simmer.  It would be the next morning before we got to open them.  When we woke on day two, it felt like Christmas.

 The first bundles were so exciting, I nearly forgot that we had two more to open that morning!

 

 

How it was fascinating to see the diversity of our bundles.

We hung our newly-dyed treasures on the lines outside the workroom and went back to bundling.

 When the cloth was dry, we stitched our pieces together...

 ...and enjoyed a splendid exhibit of Lopez-dyed art cloth.

I had such a good time, learned so much and met so many kindred souls.

Thank you to Christie, Patsy, Raiti, Suzanne, Lisa and most of all, Favorite Bear, for giving me the time of my life and endless inspiration.

traveling tomorrow

part of my recent exhibit - work squeezed onto one wall now

I am getting ready to leave Mitkof Island tomorrow morning heading for Lopez Island and Wayfarer's Windfall Workshop with India Flint.


Last Friday evening was the  opening of my solo show at one of our local galleries.  The event was well attended and exciting, and I spaced taking pics so will just share a couple taken the next morning after the gallery put all the work together on one wall.

sorry about the reflection on the glass... poor photos, I know

I am traveling light and may be taking a week off from posting here - you can find me on Instagram in the mean time.  Peace be with you.

Completion/Anticipation

The past several studio weeks have seen (among other things) the completion of a whole stack of new work for my September show at one of our two local galleries.  Last Saturday all but four of the remaining pieces were delivered for framing.

It's a good feeling, having everything signed and titled, ready to go.  

Now: complete the last of the stitching.

Then:

on to the next project!
What are you looking forward to?

Eco-dyes Unveiled

On Sunday I unwrapped the silk scarf and onion skin bundles rolled up in early May.  One scarf had vinegar mordant, the other was mordanted with salt water from the Wrangell Narrows right in front of our house. 

Silk scarf dyed with onion skins and vinegar, cold-bundled for two months.

Close-up of the vinegar scarf - a very pretty light apricot hue all over with wonderful textures from the yellow and red onion skins the silk was bundled with.

 This is the scarf which had saltwater mordant.  The silk stayed white but the onion skins gave exciting textures in beautiful shades of amber.

Saltwater mordant scarf up close

 Here are the two side by side.  A subtle but noticeable difference.

The saltwater scarf is in the center, flanked on each side by the vinegar scarf.  I followed India Flint's simple directions for processing after un-bundling, merely shaking off all the plant material, allowing the silk to dry and then steam-ironing using a pressing cloth.  

Although I don't favor subtle colors, I am thrilled with my first-ever onion skin dyes.  What are you experimenting with this summer?