without further ado

the bundle.you can bundle things too, even if using chemical dyes （｀ー´）

 the grand finale
wOOt!!wOOt!!

















neki desu

relief

that's what i feel as the season closed until next year. tree down and recycled, the last of the fruitcake gone and back to the old routines. i don't say this very often, but i missed those old routines.

the scarf went through the first dyeing, the color's less red and more indigo. nice, but boring.

the intention was a first layer in dark blue then twist and bundle for a black overdye. this afternoon will find me at the dye pot doing a first time lanaset dyeing; living dangerously here. have to get glauber salts first.

yes, girls and boys i'm not doing natural dyes this time. 

neki desu
 

madame gets lazy

not quite, but sounds like a self indulgent title. after years of working on this scarf, and this is not a figure of speech, see this, this and this and this. the aizome layer has no post therefore it goes unaccounted for.

after all that time spent weaving, dyeing-note the spelling- stitching, dyeing and overdyeing it still needed punch, but madame wanted a shortcut. i had surely worked for one!

enters alum mordant painting and alginate painting resist.

then cochineal dye, almost a lake because the alum water practically evaporated. paint paint and cure. more tomorrow and we shall see if i can call this done or quits.

notice how come  september -october and i go non stop?  because it's not hot.

the red  idea comes from susan who inspired me to go this way.

neki desu
 

good news

for dyers. jenny dean's blog is up again!




neki desu

trooping the colors again

not all has been wining and dining in my household. there has been some working too. tackled the cherry baths that had been previously heated and the green matter discarded. the baths were kept outside with day temps around 10-12ºC. no odd growth was noticed.

 bottled water was added to the twig bath then heated until simmer for almost two hours. the resulting color  was very concentrated! then i added   two skeins of alum mordanted  tram silk . they both came out as nº 1. so i took them out, split the bath in two and to the second one i added half a teaspoon soda ash.i got nº 2, a very rich sienna.

nº 3 is an odd warp chain of silk doupioni, no mordant.  although the bath still had some color it was not as bright and saturated.i have another silk skein languidly dyeing there with no heat.

today i am mordanting  2 skeins of silk organzine that  are going to be dyed in the other half of the bath without soda ash.and threading some more. the warp is roughly half threaded!

happy new year to all!

neki desu

the color of things

some windfall lichens picked up almost 2 years ago at my sister's right after a storm.

finally got to soak them in ammonia waiting to see what color i get.been soaking for 2 days and  it seems i'll get a yellowy beige- with luck. the color is not terribly exciting so far so i'll leave them  alone and wait.

general strike  in southern europe today. as if frau merkel cared. 

neki desu
 

if you follow this series

i promise  entertainment ^_^





neki desu

the reds

 

and lots of patience. patience to extract the dye, to age the mordanted cloth to dye slowly.to re dye and age. not mentioning the loom controlled shibori; the tieing, drawing tight the cloth, untieing. no one would pay for all the hours spent.that's why i do it for me.

 

some considerations: the cotton didn't shrink as much as intended so the cloth is pretty open, almost like a gauze. i'll have to line the garment if i don't want to overexpose myself.
i'm pleased with the color shifts a result from mordanting with alumn and then painting with iron in certain parts.


the pattern and the pleats. don't know whether to iron it flat or not. it will not hold the pleats forever and sewing will be impossible for me.


on the thyroid front i was prescribed eutyrox50. will be making merkel labs richer.i read that people on it put on weight. as if i hadn't put on enough. holding back until i get another opinion. looking for a doctor that listens and then prescribes. feel  like Diogenes with his lamp.



neki desu

dyeing variables

dyeing with natural dyestuff  is both irritating and fun. not to mention unpredictable.

proof is in the photo. the silk yarn on the left was from the  alum mordant batch  dyed last year using pomegranate rinds and left seeping in the liquor for some unaccounted time.

the one on the right was mordanted using liles method of alum, cream of tartar and tin all in one pot.he says is very good for yellows so i gave it a shot. the color it gave me is not ugly, but can't compare to the one i got last year.

there are so many variables to consider besides the mordant: the water, this year's crop of fruit, the time spent in the liquor , the quantities of dyestuff used.

it's a well known fact that overdyeing is a cure for disappointments.

happy monday!

neki desu

non finito

lots of stitching happening in this household. the laptop went to the doctor and it looks like it's terminal.

we'll see if it's more cost effective to get a new one and buy an adapter to change usb to com port. have heard lots of predicaments so i am  already turning blue from holding my breath.

 

 

this piece is strange, i don't do pretty, but it came out pretty.wonder why. this is reclaimed cotton from a much loved dress with a bit of reclaimed silk shibori. note the repetition of the word reclaimed even  some of the threads are thrums form this warp. still not sure whether to turn it into a book, hence the title.

in the news depatment this link came to me via fabienne felter extraordinaire. too bad she doesn't have a blog.yet.

if you ever wanted to dress like a frans hals paining :) here you have instructions. there are also great tutorials on smocking and period embroidery.

neki desu

holey grunge

finished. throwing the shuttle and pondering about the color. kakishibu? lichen? combined dyeing or straight ?

today i followed a lady for 3 blocks pretending i was going her way and not stalking her.  i really had to pay attention to my walking pace keeping a prudent distance  and to my hands which tended to fly towards the garment and touch it .

she was wearing a knitted tunic and with my present abilities i can make it. 2 long rectangular pieces folded creating the front and then stitched together on the back  with sides stitched together. one long band shaped  as small shawl collar then narrowed to create front bands for the garment. basically the long rectangular things i can make, but as they say over here with a little bit of story  (^_^)

oh daring ignorance!

 while on the subject of stalking this web page is worth every minute. the most gorgeous yarns and threads to be seen. fabulous metallics, specialty yarns and much, much more. there is a photo essay on linen spinning process and another on  silk spinning process. very timely as we were commenting about them yesterday!  

i found  the place  while searching for  fine linen 30 or 40 grist. anyone knows places for fine linen here in europe?

neki desu

not only music, but also wood

the linen stole aka raindrop stole has been steeping in brazilwood for 5 days now. i did a alum tannin alum  mordanting process with some required washing soda.

according to my reads the brazilwood is supposed to yield a clear red on alum and indeed the liquid from the alcohol extraction was almost annato orange. if you're familiar with latin cooking you know what i mean, almost phosphorescent. but i forgot that my water is extremely alkaline and didn't use bottled water.  the combination of water and  the washing soda still attached to the fibers gave me the dark raspberry above. 

at first i was mildly annoyed as it didn't meet my vision, but  after a day or two it grew on me and i started to like the color. it's still developing in the cold dye liquor and will remain there for the rest of the week.i'm not sure i'll try doing a color shift with an acid.

 

my environment limits me, can't go to the woods and gather windfalls branches and barks.
i depend on my good chemist around the corner for mordanting stuff and i'm thankful he's knowledgeable as well as well stocked. i got two choices for tannin. one which is chestnut brown, dissolves in water and for the love of dyeing i can't find the pack now. and the one on the right much lighter in color which dissolves in alcohol. evidently this is the one i used for the linen double mordanting. it does color the fibers a bit, but nothing dramatic. i've looked around for references and could not find any info about the alcohol tannin therefore i'm running some sort of blindfolded experimenting. until i find the other pack i'm going to keep on using this one.  it's a good thing i am a well known customer at the chemist because i'm going through liters of alcohol !

neki desu

two looms and stitching

the two  looms are beamed and sitting prettily. the dobby's waiting for the heddles to arrive.

the table loom with the white overtwisted cotton is waiting for me to make up my mind for the threading. this project has to be simple because the looms is hand manipulated. i've always refrained from textures as the main point in a project  because i think that's a no brainer in weaving. but this one being an overtwisted warp it fell  in that category. the quesion now is whether to keep it relatively simple and then dye afterwards or go along the woven shibori path. i could get two colors with woven shibori.....

not liking to be idle i'm continuing with the knitted samples pieces. this one is two different swatches dyed and pieced together. if i remember well the dyes were artichoke leaves and purple cabbage wrapped in the silk and left lying around. don't remember how i got the tans. then on to  some machine stitching . was having some issues with the hand stitching and decided to go for the solvy stabilized as a backing. when dissolved it will help the piece keep the soft drapey shape it has.

yesterday treated myself to a flick and saw inside job. came home to read this

neki desu

we interrupt annotations

 

interrupting the annotation series to announce that spring is here. don't want to be pesada, but at last temperatures are milder and days are longer. my cervicals are better, thank you. three friends are going to be visiting, i have 2 skeins dyeing and i've finally mapped out how to integrate all those knitted samples into stitch work.there's no question i'm a spring person!

a piece of medium heavy  cream colored indian silk wrapped in plants and let alone until the stains took. liked the resulting texture so the stitching is trying to highlight the texture by creating some narrative, frayed edges and all.

the knitted linen was hunted from a pile of tension samples and i think it works here  with its kind of here but not quite presence. the stitching started in autumnal colors but took a life of its own developing into springy colors.
it was delightful to take the materials and let them all flow into one piece of work without really doing too much thinking.

neki desu

the internet sisterhood

 

thank you all for your good wishes,  made me feel  accompanied in my predicaments. the incredible deb lacativa sent me this link with a simple exercise which cured my discomforts. i can now wait for my appointment with the osteopath without feeling miserable.amazing how such a simple, absolutely non invasive treatment can be so effective. look ma, no pills!

some stitching being done and lots of other activities that imply head down. like giving a go to the knitting machine.finished the silk bourette scarf above and i'm waiting for dyeing inspiration for a shibori dye number.

and the while waiting :) found this one that was stopped after it grunged out, meaning dropped stitches and holes.then  tried the ai vat last summer and came out less than satisfactory.

it was already so grungy that a bit more wasn't going to make a big difference.so i jumped on the bandwagon of wrapped leaves and stuff. and something always comes out of that. it's a good size sample so let's see where or how it ends.

can't stretch computer time too much or i start getting discomfort signals. off i go before signals become pain.

neki desu

pumping the red

lemon float

well, if murasaki shifts towards the reds if lemon is added, let's try it with chestnut water.it gives a red kick, but warning! do not expect the above as it  is poetic license.

some silk dyed in chestnut water. 

i feel terribly macrobiotic because i'm using seasonal products(^ _^)

i'm preparing the colors for a silk warp and it's going to be for a summer top. there's plenty of time, but as you know fashion works at least 6 months ahead of the calendar (-_o)

on to other  things. thanks to all the wonderful folks who replied to  last week's plea on jiggery. 

and last but not least the warp problems have been solved and i'm happily weaving again. 96 picks=5cms, roughly 2 inches. i'll be doing a lot of weaving!

neki desu

a reeling mind

shown are: Amla,Catechu,Turmeric Powder, jiggery,Tea Leaves,Tamarind Paste , Dried Ginger.

did not find information on jiggery. does anyone have information about it?any leads will be welcome.

beware of turmeric as it is extremely fugitive!!

have a fun weekend!

neki desu

some thoughts on dyeing

a silk skein is seeping in the murasaki dye.  another one will be steeped in alum for the second time. the difference,not a banal one, between seeping and steeping is that of temperature.

which brings up questions. if the dye is not rendered  permanent is it well dyed?

there is a certain expected fading, we all fade.desirably fading should be achieved with grace and elegance.

but if the dyeing is not properly done  it would be a dis service to handmade and i would be playing in the h&m and zara league  with a huge disadvantage.

if i chose to make things by hand it was to honor a certain way of doing ,of respecting times and procedures. and personally i would feel uncomfortable asking money for something that will not hold up, that albeit being  handmade it would be use and toss.

i tend to side, for more than the obvious reason, with the japanese way of  natural dyeing. letting things rest for a period of time and slowly building on them.  for example, the woven scarf  in the image was woven last  april and the dyeing took place between may and june and then put to rest to let the color develop.

now i'm stitching a mokume pattern and then overdye the woven scarf  with either logwood or walnut and put it down to rest  again.

i could and do resort to synthetic dyes if i need/ want quick results . i have no problems with that. but i feel that in  natural dyeing other parameters rule.

 what are your thoughts on the subject of dyeing and permanence? and of natural vs. synthetic dyeing?

have a good weekend!

 

 

neki desu