Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Dyeing continued

Yesterday was the mordanting with a bowl on top to keep the fabric under water.




Then today I did the first stage of the dyeing, using the whole sheet, just poured  the powder among the folds. After simmering for probably a couple of hours, it came out a lovely pale green, on the blue side of the spectrum








Then I tore the fabric  into four parts, three for future use in various plans, one for the current work.


Then I folded the current piece, top to bottom, concertina style, and banded it tight at intervals


ending with an overhand knot.



Tomorrow when the second stage dyes, the natural ones from the freezer, have thawed, I'll do the next stage.


These dyes are a mixture of dark gold, reddish and brown. It's all going to be the background for the stitched appliques.

I have to guiltily admit one advantage of the isolation situation: no interruptions by friendly neighbors of my train of thought. This piece is benefiting from it.

11 comments:

  1. It's nice to be able to work in peace and stay on one thing. Love that you're enjoying your crafting time. Very, very cool.

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    1. Isolating seems to suit me, Calmer, nightmares gone. A lot of my stress comes from other people, I guess. So im freed up better. It doesn't hurt that it's now socially approved, in contrast to be considered a character flaw.

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    2. I've never considered spending time in peaceful quiet, away from the noise, a character flaw. And for anyone out there, who has made you feel that it was a character flaw, to me, that's their problem. That's on them. That's an issue they have with themselves.

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  2. This will be excellent, and I applaud the lack of interruptions.

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    1. Yes, it's great to count on being alone. And thank you for the nice words.

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  3. Looking forward to seeing how this all turns out. :)

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  4. I dislike being interrupted as well, either I lose my concentration or I'm a space cadet because my mind is still on the project.

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    1. There are times when an interruption is welcome because it rescues me from a hard bit! This is not good for the work or my concentration. You have to go through those baffling, annoying, hard parts to make art.

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  5. Such a lovely soft colour - I don't know why I'm surprised because when I saw the initial sprinkling of blue and green I thought the result would be more intense.

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    Replies
    1. It takes a lot of Kool aid to get an intense color.

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Thank you so much for commenting! it means a lot to me to know you're out there and reading and enjoying.