two greats together

2ºC!! we are in desperate  need of warmth. could not think of anything better than gilberto and stevie.
have a warm weekend!

neki desu

patterning

my pal rubi sent me in the pattern world direction. interesting how much you learn when you focus in on something. or maybe it's because the ever obsessive in me takes precedence. still remember when it was gardening and bulbs, then mexican food, then dyeing, then.....

therefore without much more delay let me share some of my findings.

• bought the above pants which will be turned into a skirt here. 
• i can go from their shape patterns  in any direction, cool, but stylish.
• gorgeous vintage patterns here and also here
• classic contemporaries here simple flattering styles for grown up women
• this one has lots and their fitting and sewing tips are an excellent source.

 OT. my indigo vat reached 95ºC!! bcse i was abducted by webs offering patterns.contrary to what it's said it din't turn into a frog, still dyeing well! go figure.

neki desu

early stages

still a long rectangular thing. the silk twists like crazy so after 2 false starts i designed  a contraption to make the yarn feed without twisting. ah! the wonders of divergent thinking.

while on that topic,  the purists would wince at this and call it cheating. i think it's pretty cool.

neki desu

can't weave no mo'

 

a nice view from the back beam the finishing line. impossible to keep going because one gets floating shafts :(

fabric off the loom, what a beautiful sight! total length 335 cms. width 69 cms.feeling satisfied with the outcome woven on my 12 sha table loom. it's 80cms wide, but the lifts for  the 335 cms were done by hand! the structure is an advancing supplemental  merino weft on a wool plain weave ground. it's the same principle as a loom controlled shibori, but this time instead of gathering the supplemental weft it is going to be shrunk for texture.  see partial draft here.

wet finished mega beauty. 30 minutes in very hot water

and  liquid savon de marseille in my mini washer gave these soft ripples which a better photographer would have captured.. 

i could go for deeper furrows sacrificing width. right now after wet finishing i have 300cms in length

 and 65 cms wide.

would like to find one of those waste free patterns and go from there whether to full more or not.

on to pattern hunting now.

neki desu

pictures of the floating world

time long gone.
have a good weekend.




neki desu

some punch

silk scarf dyed in eucalyptus. subtle colors and some leaf patterning.

same one here with an ai punch. much better.
speaking about punch :
this
this
this
and definitely this
 constance howard's legacy






neki desu

doing the classics

the quick vat was total success,) but in the middle of the enrapture i heard the keys turn!  i was not going to stop so honey, bear with me. you see why we have to move to oviedo asap? i can have my wet studio outside the living quarters,said she.

from yesterday's comments i am not alone in sensitive smell husbandry :) i am in rather good company!

some photos here. no photofun this time because the blues were gorgeous, especially the nettle page.

i had a cotton practice strip from the dark ages which was found in the bottom of the mythical drawer and put it in the vat with good results. the ombre scrim piece came out well too.

i also dyed a scarf which will be  the object of another post.

 with the one on the right i figured i could not go wrong because it was one of those disasters  which  had been lying around being shoved from one table top to another.

the background was shiboried  using procion dyes. it was then partially discharged to a blah result. clamped between boards and dipped twice in the vat the result was more than adequate.

i'm on my last 20 cms of the weaving and as soon as i finish i have  the knitting machine waiting with some silk that will go to the vat when finished.

speaking of knitting, for those of you who do hand knitting this link  will be of interest. have never seen such an assortment of novelty and ruffle yarns.

neki desu