It would be this one

This shy beauty was found among a bed of irises along my driveway. Some of which had been transplanted 2 seasons before from my backyard. I’ve never seen her before, but she is stunning, and the nicest surprise.

It is also amazing what has grown from a handful of seeds, haphazardly tossed in the side yard 2 seasons ago.

Funny how big this guy grew, happy as a clam in this crappy, unamended, compacted soil, from questionable seed, and the pots I purchased from the garden center 2 years ago- died the first year.

What’s nice is this one has a bunch of friends in this bed. Maybe it’ll take over the whole side.

And lastly

This lilac hasn’t bloomed like this in the almost 3 years we’ve been here. It smells DIVINE.

Well my friends, clearly there hasn’t been much dyeing going on. Lately I’ve been reveling in the color in my yard. That’s where I plan to stay as long as it’s sunny out.

Categories: Uncategorized, velvet
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It was a busy day Saturday and Sunday. Some much needed laundry folding happened. Errands were run, comic books were purchased….and:

a bunch of dyeing got done!

Silk Chameuse 12 and 19mm scarves, and a habatoi all were immersion dyed, the pink to be backgrounds for various designs. Probably going to do some monoprinting and shibori.

Printing and wrapping will most likely happen next weekend. Not enough time this week.

Categories: Etsy, Uncategorized, dyeing, shibori, silk, velvet
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So I spent the better part of yesterday early a.m. putting 5 velvet, 5 charmeuse, and a couple of crepe de chine scarves in their various dyebaths.

I played loose and fast with the rules. (time, temp and so on, wasn’t paying close attention.)

And I lost.

The silks were all in acid dye baths, small containers, and nuked for at high for 4 minutes, one minute intervals, then left in their closed containers, steaming happily for the next hour until I was ready to rinse. I used some older dyestocks that couldn’t really be used for alkaline processing, as I had read you can still use them, even if they’ve been sitting on the shelf a while. I had just used these the day before with not problem.

The velvets were also lwi, but alkaline processing, sitting in their containers. Fresh dyestocks.

I don’t know if it was the temperatures, wrong PH, or a combination, but the Blue in everything seems to be washing out. I’m guessing temps and not enough time. I got impatient and started rinsing after 3 hours.

Actually no “seems” about it. 3 Silks were a beautiful mottled deep teal (less pronounced patterning intentional) I wanted to then pole wrap and discharge. They are now the palest sage green.

The gorgeous plum scarves are on the violet side of fuschia. Kind of “barbie” fuschia.

The browns are less gorgeous and the mottles have a more pronounced fuschia and yellow lines. Not the deep earthy variations they were.

DANG DANG DANG.

I have been hot washing (after they all had preliminary rinses in cold water) all yesterday and today, and I still have “muddy water”.

Hopefully I can overdye the velvets. The silks are practically white so i know I can do those again.

I guess the “fun with shibori” will have to wait till tomorrow.

Categories: arashi, dyeing, shibori, silk, velvet
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