cochineal is a good friend

it is the gift that keeps giving.still have two jars of full strength dye in the fridge.trying to keep them usable for next module.i have gained not only understanding, but also respect for all those little bugs and plants that give color. all the effort they make to produce the coloring substances so that we can dye.

never again will i throw away remaining dyes or make careless use of them.

 

masking areas and painting with mordant paste. this will be overdyed with logwood.hope it looks good.

neki desu

 

cochineal

is beyond awesome.  less than five minutes in the dyebath and the printed mordant has already taken lots of color.

my cochineal is of the vinage sort  (￣ω￣ ) got a whole kilo a long time ago  when husband-san had a project in the canary islands and traveled every week. after some research a producer was located and he sent me a kilo!! w /out even including a bill!! goes w/out saying i contacted him and transferred money. those were the days.

anyhow as it takes so little to get saturated color that i still have a lot. the bugs were plump when i got them , now they are like currants, but still operative.

this background will be cleaned along w the other pieces. i really have to plan the use of electricity because our bill has doubled. i rather eat than dye-mind the spelling-if i need to choose.

turning a page i started tai chi yesterday. was really looking forward to it but getting up earliish and not being able to have a leisure breakfast has always been hard on me.i need bround three hours to  do the stretching and  wight exercises eat,read the papers,now include wordle both in english and spanish, now i have to rush out of the house.it's a good thing is  just one street away.

neki desu 

 

after two days of jamón and wine

back to work. our nephew and his wife's visit was indeed too short,but terrifically enjoyable.

 the maiwa course has me bouncing off the walls.💖 everything about it the content, the way it is presented, the clear explanations.

already started working with printing with mordant paste.interesting that there's no universal reecipe for the printing surface, one has to try what works with the different tools. wooden blocks -at least mine- like a firmer surface stencils on the other hand profit from a less firm one.

i am being incredibly judicious following instructions, taking all kinds of notes, cleaning the brushes, urfaces  and tools right after finishing working. the cleaning part is a major feat as i tend to leave that for mañana but sometimes mañana doesn't come.    (シ_ _)シ.

this is medium weight cotton sheeting dyed with carrot tops

already dunged to clean the background .there is stenciling,block printing,foam stamp printing and foam roller.

i need to concentrate more on the processes and less on the results, but all in all it has made impact on my practice. seems i'll be bidding farewell to the kamikaze dyer.

neki desu