Dye pots calling

It feels like years since I've eco printed anything. There are several reasons I now have time and energy to get back into my craft.

Somewhere on the net I saw a post showing the results of dyeing wool with new tansy leaves and adding iron.  I have a tansy plant now in my emerging dye garden and it had enough young leaves to raid.  Also I rather favour my old rusted steel pipe as a base to wrap on - so that sorted that combination.

India Flint, my teacher from many years ago, mentioned water lily leaves print well - our fish pond has an over abundance of water lily pads - so that was that sorted.

A year or so ago I bought a slubbed silk wedding dress from the local Salvation Army family store and it had literally yards of beautiful fabric.  Textured silk is always a great favourite of mine, so I unpicked the garment cautiously ( and it was beautifully sewn and hand finished ) and found I have three panels I can use.  I am only using one of the smaller widths for this dye bath.

My final joy was to haul my wonderful old copper pot out of storage, fire up the BBQ gas hob which is supported by a stout piece of forked driftwood and let the magic happen.

As an aside, I raked all the kowhai flowers as they fell this season and dumped them in my BIG copper pot with rainwater.  That has been brewing away for quite some time and is now a dark and sultry brew.  So in went the tiny pieces of wedding dress that were the shoulder straps and they will sit underwater without heat until I remember to take them out......I don't know what colour I'll get - but a mystery is always good fun.

The last little pieces I tied tightly in a random fold and shibori style and plunged into the pink solar dye that's been quietly doing its thing on the deck table in the warm summer sun.  Again a mystery - it smells divine as the rose petals I used are from my new red climber Double Fragrance.  I'll just have to wait and see.....

I'm Back

well you know what they say......

and YES I'm back because my feet have finally touched the ground and I am permanently settled in beautiful sunny Tairawhiti

it's a treat to finally have a home of my own - dirt, flowers, trees - including a kowhai that was full of tui in the Spring and a fish pond with large healthy multicoloured fish

You'll be hearing more from me as my wonderful new life unfolds.....

Ka kite ano

Gypsy Day June 1, 2014

We've been given notice by the farmer who owns the house we live in.  He'll be putting a full time worker into our home

......so in 6 months, if not before we'll do it all again - the packing, the dumpster, the garage sales, the truck and the boys, the cleaning......and at the other end of however long this piece of string may be........the unpacking

 

 

 

 

I'm digging up my 4 year old madder bed and will harvest 24 kgs of good thick roots to cut, dry and share with friends.   I need to do that NOW while the plants are just thinking about sprouting and before the spring growth takes off.

 

My granddaughter Lily Maria said....."But Mormor, you'll have to leave the GINGKO tree behind."

I've no idea where we will end up.....is this the start of a magical new journey? 

From Spring in Denmark to Winter in NZ

 

I'm back

 

 

Man made colours

 

 

 

 

and Nature's palette

 

 

 

a year has gone by

Who would think a year (almost) has been and gone.  What has happened? 

My grandson now has two new bottom teeth and a gap, waiting.  My granddaughter sat transfixed on my knee during the Steiner school dragon play.  I have a puppy, Miss Pip (Pippi Longstocking) - she's just over 3 months and a wonderful footwarmer as autumn days draw in.

My daughter is part way through her university studies and will have her first solo art exhibition in June - a combination of photos, prints, ecoprinted pieces....

My son is engaged and he and his fiancee will slip away to a tropical island "somewhen" for a private ceremony.

I am off to Denmark in June to visit friends - 7 weeks and 1 day.  It will be worth the 19 hours to Singapore and the 6 hour layover and then the last 6 hour leg into Copenhagen.  It's been 9 years since I was last there.

And here are a couple of pieces that have happened over the last little while.  In between trying to finish masses of bookwork to gain my Adult Literacy tutoring qualification......

she's a Schnoodle - that terrier hunting instinct is already alive and well

 I'm starting to learn patience - merino around copper pipes - dried for a whole week.....that's the secret

who would think ladder ferns could make such a lovely green

and today is my younger sister's birthday

Happy Birthday

a moment of perfection

My bucket list for the winter

As I watched the weather report the other night, I was struck by the powerful line of arrows showing winds, rain and storms heading inland in sweeping unison from the western ocean.

I am in a direct line for any battering the winter may send. 

Already I'm hunkering down, sorting my workspace and my office and thinking about unfinished Things.

One is a quilt I have pieced and stashed in my blanket cupboard.  I made it for my partner - it has been in the making 4 years and all I have left to do is the binding.

He particularly asked for post and rail.  A strong uncomplicated pattern.  All the fabric I had at the time was in red, gold and purple - so we agreed that was a reasonable compromise

some of the pieces I had handmarbled at a long ago class. 

he chose the backing which was a stretchy deep rich brown/maroon fleece fabric.  At the time I knew very little about quilting and this fabric was a challenging choice.  The joins of each patch were tied by hand in the corners with a soft muted maroon Shetland wool - the fabric wriggles too much to join the top to the bottom any other way.  There is no wadding - it weighs a ton as it is.  The nude was painted by my daughter when she was 16.

I can't say my sewing room is now as orderly as when I began the project.  The table is covered with collage and half finished ecoprint ideas.....my aim this morning is to clear it, put everything I'm not using NOW away, and then have fresh snapper and avocado on toast for lunch.......