Yesterday morning I heard that Keith's brother had died. He had gotten very weak, and finally succumbed to Sepsis. He would have been 88 this year. That suddenly brought back losing Keith of course, so it was a sad start to the morning. Gabby and I will try and get across to the funeral, but it's in Essex - HATE the M25 bit of the journey.
Anyway, I was glad that Tam and I were meeting up for our Bundle Dyeing afternoon in Aberystwyth. There were half a dozen of us, and we had a lovely time. Some garden flowers gave amazing colours - Scabious Black Knight (purple), and Cosmos sulphureous (orange).
In the picture, dyestuffs - Rosemary, Ivy, Cleavers (Goosegrass), Brown Onion skins, Rose petals. These gave shades of yellow, the the petals, a pink. There were red Onion skins too and they gave a more tawny browny yellow.
We used wool skeins and strips of old sheeting, pre-mordanted with Alum, to lay out and decorate with dye plants. The bright yellow on the piece at the back is Daffodil petal pieces.
Other dyestuffs on offer were Hibiscus flowers (gave a red), Buddleia leaves, Eucalyptus leaves, and Yarrow.
This looked so pretty even before it was rolled up. My table-neighbour's 2nd piece.
My first attempt produced muted colours. I used Ivy, Cleavers, Yarrow, Brown Onion skins, and a little Hibiscus. Seen when not through a camera lens, it has a little more colour.
For my 2nd attempt I went for colour:
Guess who went shopping this morning?!
In the evenings I am now working on the Rowandean Rosebay Willowherb kit.
The dark leaves are nettles (worked in dark blue wool). Now I am on the French knots for the Willowherb flowers. Such pretty pinks in this.
Hoping you have had a good weekend, and praying that friends in America are surviving the awful winter storm cutting a swathe through the country, and those of you in Australia aren't in the areas affected by bushfires - well, hoping anyone who is can get out safely.
After a very late start, I began to think it would miss us. I went back to bed and woke up to discover it hasn't missed us at all. It will be a lot of shoveling. The hydraulic pump on the tractor went. No plow.
ReplyDeleteI signed up for a class yesterday too. How to grow your own mushrooms. I have tried before.this time I will learn from a professional. Your class looks fascinating. I would have enjoyed it too.
I just saw a photo taken in Toronto - blimey! Makes our couple of inches most times look pathetic. What rotten timing on the tractor hydraulic pump.
DeleteEnjoy your mushroom growing class. Next class is watercolour painting.
So sorry for your loss, yes, it will bring things back so soon after Keith. Sepsis is a dreadful thing and seems to fall into that category of things overlooked during diagnosis.
ReplyDeleteThe weather has eased up here now, but my oh! my, we had a good old hoolie with Ingrid. I think she swung further north than originally anticipated.
It did for all of us. My b-in-law was taken in to the Hospital for end of life care last week so I think they had perhaps diagnosed him at home.
DeleteThe West Country certainly had it bad with Ingrid. I wouldn't care for such a good sea view that the sea comes in through the windows when there's a storm like that!
That's interesting how you die cotton, does it was out over time? Long tome since I went to Essex and that was to a funeral of a mate of mine near Borham, Don't think there is any easy way other than the M25 north from the M40, cutting across country takes longer
ReplyDeleteNo, because the yarn (and the backing fabric we used) had been mordanted, the colour stays in and doesn't wash out. I have come back from Essex via Aylesbury and the A40 before, but my daughter prefers motorway driving and is a very good driver (gets it from her grandad who used to demonstrate sports cars on Pendine Sands in the 1930s and also drove at Brooklands).
DeleteOh no. I hope you just have the snow and cold (bad enough) and not the ice storm and downed power cables. I always feel so sorry for the poor chaps who have to go out and restore power even when the storms aren't totally died down. Same for the Lifeboats - going out to try and save lives by putting their own at risk.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your GYOM class! I really did enjoy my dyeing class yesterday.
Sorry - this was for you Debby, and I remembered writing it but it didn't tie up to your comment.
DeleteThey dye class looks interesting, if a bit messy. Wish I could you a bag of black walnuts--the hulls stain everything they touch a deep earthy brown. Its never too early to start thinking of seeds and plants for spring.
ReplyDeleteRe the loss of Keith's brother: it seems that nearly every week brings notice of the passing of some old friend or acquaintance; we've reached that age of partings.
We didn't get dirty. Slightly discoloured finger tips from the Scabious and the Hibiscus, but everything else pretty well gave a yellow dye. The walnuts would be great for the linen dress Tam found me just in case I decide to join the re-enactment group at Tretower - I WANT to .. .
DeleteYes, on the same day Keith's brother died, I messaged his elderly cousin's daughter, to find that her husband's father had died the same day and they were on their way up to Lancashire because of it.
That was a very clever way of dyeing without water and soaking etc.
ReplyDeleteHope your seeds grow you some lovely plants to do it again
I think I will need to widen the long bed to make room for these! Though the pot Marigolds go in planters.
DeleteYes, this was definitely a good way to dye the yarn, and you got a bonus bit of printed back fabric too.
Sad to see family members go.
ReplyDeleteI don't know whereabouts you will be heading for in Essex...but you don't have to go for the M25...
I went to Colchester for a funeral last year...you'd go across on the M6 then the A14 to the M11.
If you put Aberystwyth to Essex in goggle maps, it is actually quicker, shorter and cheaper going that way.
It's just beyond Colchester. I've been the A40 Ross - Oxford - Aylesbury and onwards way before, but it's slower. Gabby prefers motorway driving too.
DeleteIf you are happy with motorways that's fine!
DeleteEnvious of your dyeing class, I used to enjoy it to. Such pretty patterns introducing different flowers when you rolled the material up.
ReplyDeleteYes, I have now blown the dust off of 4 dyeing books and wish I hadn't gotten rid of the Medieval dyes booklet I had for years (only passed it on to the charity shop last year).
DeleteI think we are at that age where we hear of relative/friend's deaths, more than marriages and births. Although I have been on a hunt for a 50th Wedding Anniversary card for friends. We share the same date, but we are 2 years ahead. I can remember doing tie-dyeing many moons ago, very messy. We had a lovely trip out to a garden centre near Ashbourne, only because they sent me a voucher for a free pot of tea and the only thing I bought was snowdrops. Xx
ReplyDeleteYes, I always felt sorry for people into their 90s who had probably lost all their contemporaries and perhaps grown children too.
DeleteI never did tie-dyeing but can remember when it was all the range. Snowdrops are a good thing to buy in January.
I remember Gran saying she had no one of her generation left when she was in her late 80's. She was the last of 4 and the only one to have a child who reached adulthood. Good friends are always a blessing. Xx
DeleteWhat a great class to take!!! I really like the muted colours of your first go.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Yes, I hope that Maeve will be doing some more similar classes.
DeleteI'm sorry for your loss, how sad.
ReplyDeleteThe natural dyeing project is lovely, fascinating. Are the colors at least semi permanent or they d rinse right out? And--what then does one do w a couple yards of hand dyed yan.
The storm is here, it's snowy. My fear always is to lose power when i is so cold, 11*F/ sub zero windchill, wind right now is 38 mph. My doors have deep drifts, my dog is perplexed and unhappy not to play in the snow. Recently I bought a couple of chemical lap throws, like handwarmers for hikers' use?--in case the power does go out. We can have a power failure any random time, on a nice evening w bright sun in June, as well as in a storm, so I admit to being nervous.
He was a lovely man, and like Keith, very intelligent (he was a Pharmacist). The colours are permanent. A couple of the other ladies were going to crochet coasters with them, using Linen stitch I think it was called. A dense close pattern. Also known as Moss Stitch (though the knitting Moss Stitch is different I think).
DeleteI see you got the storm too. If you do lose power, there was a tip the other day - put two candles on a firm base and above them, put a dutch oven (well, any cast iron pan) and this will heat up and maintain the heat from the flames, and keep the room at around 65 degrees. I hope I will never need it, but good idea. Can you invest in a small generator for the future, to cope with any power cuts?
Great that the dyes ae permanant.
DeleteHow does one suspend the dutch oven over the candles? No generator, they run on gasoline and need ventilation space I don t have, plus when there is no power [and roads are closed] one cannot get more gas. Gas pumps need electricity to run. And who wants to store [unsafe] many gallons of gasoline. After H Sandy evryone I knew w a generator got rid of theirs.
That’s a lovely neat way to dye things. I wonder if you could tie-dye fabric like that. So sorry to hear about your brother in law, our families are shrinking around us.The forcast weather here for tomorrow is extreme heat,we have smoke blowing in the air but it’s coming from too far away to be a danger to us. The loss of wildlife will be horrendous! Best wishes JennyP
ReplyDeleteOh JennyP - from one extreme to the other. It sounds ghastly to have such extreme heat, and then the fires which will do such damage to wildlife and any property in the way.
DeleteSuch sad news to wake up to, it was good to have something to go out and do. Especially something that you were learning, using the brain like that can really help can't it. I am now picturing all the flowers in your garden quivering as you come round with your little snips to steal their perfectly blooming flowerheads in Summer.
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't totally unexpected - I had spoken to Danny the previous day and said should I post on the cheque that Keith's brother sent him for Christmas but he said he would be over soon. I nearly said, Rod could die any time . . . I must have known - that 6th sense again.
DeleteI think the flowers will only get picked at the end of the summer . . .