Shibori Bubbles & Lace Dyeing

So it's 10:21 on a Sunday evening.

I am determined to start getting up earlier (than I have been) in order to make better use of the day. 

we'll see how it goes. 

But for tonight, I've been prepping for my Monday dye day. 

I need to come up with a fancier name than

Monday Dye Day though. But that's what I do on Mondays.
Dye

This May (it will be here before we know it) 

I'll be teaching a 4th class in my series of 

Natural Dyeing Collaborations

here in

Portland.

Last week I picked up the piece of lovely silk fabric from Mary 

at 

Z Fabrics.
where the 2nd part of Natural Dyeing for sewers will be held. 

Tonight I'm prepping the cloth so that it can soak over night. 

I used linen string but you could use any strong, yarn or rubber bands.
I also used button but I usually use rocks from the road.
I love the organic shapes they make.

I thought a bit about what design to do on the scarf for the class sample. 

I thought about doing something fun with a needle and thread to create binding and wavy lines.

But you know, again I went for the bubbles. 

I LOVE creating round bubble like shapes with shibori

and in my watercolors. 

There is just something about circles, bubbles, and the general roundness of objects that I am drawn to. 

Maybe it's because I've got some of that going on myself. General roundness here and there. 

It's ok, I like my roundness and I'm proud of it.

I also opted to use up an old cochineal/ acetate dye bath
that was occupying my shelf since July.

I kind of couldn't get over how red it still was.
I had about a gallon and a quarter in various containers.
Acetate is a mordant recommended to use with plant based fibers.
But I didn't hesitate to use in on the silk.
I wanted to use up what I had and I wanted to see what would happen.

 (the reflection here in the pot is funny- not something I noticed until just now)

This was just after 5 minutes of being in the bath.

I cooked it very slowly and for a few hours with temp reaching
about 160-180 over the course of a few hours.

I let it sit in the pot over night and
in the morning, I hung it up over the sink so
all it could drip back into the pot.
When it was dryer, I tried soaking it in the sink
but so much dye was coming out.
After a few rinses
I changed course and brought the fabric down to the washer.
That's right, I thew it in the wash with a little
sprinkle of my home made laundry soup.
Which I love.

I was little started with how much it lightened up,
but, it's still beautiful.

Having still more dye left in the pot, 

I added this shirt I thrifted.

I have a thing with lace. 

If you haven't noticed. 

Again, it's lighter then I imagined but 

it's still lovely.

Just a few shades pink.

It will headed to my etsy shop next month:) 

I went ahead and added fiber to a 3rd bath (really a 4th if we count the 1st one in July.

What I've got here:

white Maine Finn wool

yak/silk roving

soy silk

silk hankie

irish texel wool i dyed with indigo

I also threw in some skeins of brown wool.

They are sill hanging out in the dye pot.
I'll up date how the turned out
here.

I love using up dyes but it's often I always underestimate
how much I will be dyeing.
I never quite know how far a dye bath will go until I get through the first one.

That's one of my favorite things about natural dye baths
is stretching it further and further.
Especially when they are plants that I find
unlike this pot which was cochineal extract.

Umbrellas and Indigo

Last Sunday I attended a free tutorial at Z Frabrics on how to make an umbrella. I love umbrellas and was intrigued. In a nutshell, you use an old umbrella, a cane style, not one that is compact. You remove the nylon fabric being carful to save at least one panel. You use a seam ripper to obtain one panel and that is your template for all eight panels.

Small O rings are used at the top along with some clear chalking gel from the hardware store. The best fabric to use is that lovely newer laminate cotton. It's more flexible than oil cloth and is BPA free. You can use regular fabric and then either use some sort of spray to seal it or not. You could also use lace for a parasol... Oh the possibilities.

The next day I found this cute umbrella in Salvation Army for $2. It was made in Japan and was a funny compact umbrella, folding upwards. I figured out how to not fold it all the way so it's compact but just fold it part way. It works! I got to work.

I still need to seal the top but for now I just like opening and closing it and scrutinizing my seams. I bought the rain drop fabric at Z Fabrics a while ago. Maybe a year? Maybe more? The small polka dots I got at a shop in Cliften, Connemara, Ireland. The two work well together. This Sunday I'll be stopping by my favorite flea market for more umbrellas and then I just need to find the right fabrics. Look for them in my etsy shop soon:):):):):)

I was planning on inserting the link here but once I got to the website, I could not find the pattern anywhere. I assume it was a free pattern as we all got hand outs at the tutorial. However, after doing a quick search for other umbrella patterns, there are a ton out there including one by Martha Stewart. But really, if your crafty enough, and determined enough, you can figure it out. All you do it take a part the old fabric, form the 8 panels, and attach them back on the same way the old fabric was. With the addition of the sealing on the top, it's really easy.

Since I've been home and in preparation for teaching at Medomak in a few weeks, I've been itching to start indigo dyeing. Two days ago I created my vat using a super easy recipe from another fiber artist here on the Island. If you'd also like the recipe, let me know in the comments and I'll happily email it to you.

I gathered a huge pile (probably too much) of bits and bobs that I wanted to give a face lift to.

I even tried my hand at Shibori. A lot like tie-dyeing if you ask me. Speaking of which, I'll be going to my mother's for a family fun day on Sunday where we and all 6 of the littles will be tie- dyeing.  I'm going to give this technique another go.

Lots of old white or fugly handspun I've had for years. I also have LOOOOOOADS of linens I've collected and that my grandmother keeps giving me.

Really really pleased and happy with the results. Stay tuned to see what I'll be doing with all these bits and pieces. Also more dyeing to come.