First Foray Into The World of Dyeing

I purchased a starter kit from DT Crafts way back in December 2005, when I first had the urge to create my own personalised yarn. This, typically, got shelved and packed away - until now. Resurrected and used... however, things didn't turn out quite as initially planned!

My initial idea was to create skeins of duck egg blue with chocolate and some undyed bits, plus an alternative of pale pink and chocolate. Colourways which are much easier to find nowadays then they were even just 2.5 years ago - but that wouldn't stop me trying now.

I very carefully read the instructions, carefully measuring and noting all I had done (creating a stock solution of 1% of the turquoise and of the dark brown) and decided on using a turkey baster to add the dye to the presoaked yarn and then microwaving it.

First mistake: too much dye. No undyed bits remained.

Second mistake: was it me, or was it the long timespan since I purchased the dye, but the dark brown came out maroon! I decided to limit myself to two colours initially so the red wasn't used at all.

The yarn was rinsed until water ran clear, then hung to dry and re-skeined to mix the colours more evenly in the skein. I love it! Not what I had planned, but a great start nontheless with many points learned already - main one: leave the gorgeous colour dyeing to the professionals! Posh Yarn and Fybrespates cannot be beaten - but it's nice to try, even if it's just to know how time draining and complex the whole process can be.



I'd love to try natural dyes, but step by step, let's get this one right first...

Waiting (impatiently)

I absolutely adore books. I think I may have mentioned that before?

To have a book full of information is pure knowledge and with knowledge comes a feeling of empowerment. I hesitate to say a feeling of power because that sounds a tad megalomaniacal! I have always had the feeling that if I have the book, then I know how to do whatever it is the book is about - sometimes without even reading it, which is a bit daft... but the mind is a strange thing.

I glance at my bokshelves - which are a bit thinned out from our previous move as I had waaaay too many (much to the despair of himself) - and I get a feeling of joy to see such a varietey of subjects: complementary health (human and animal), jewellery making, quilting, calligraphy, knitting and crochet, marketing, Greek art, cookery, the list goes on...

I ordered a book online a couple of days ago which I am hoping will arrive today, by an author based in the States but with the most gorgeous rhythmic Icelandic name: Lotta Jansdotter. I love her work with textiles, very scandinavian (of course) and inspirational - taking me away from the cutesy Cath Kidston style popular for so long. It's a book on printing. I enjoyed printmaking and fabric printing during my years in school where I focused on all things art and it is something I would love to get involved with again.

But maybe not right now, with so many other things happening?!

Here's a pic of something which reminded me of Lotta's work, a silk cushion from Rockett St George with the most delightful printed motif - what do you think?

Enough to make you want to crochet...

Aren't these absolutely beautiful? Pics taken at the Contemporary Craft Fair at Bovey Tracey recently and appeared on the Selvedge stand (boy, I love that magazine - textiles galore!).

These stunning pieces are created by French designer, Sophie Digard, and sell for quite high prices - although the work that goes into them, with the yarn being hand dyed and crochet up with an extremely thin ply, you can understand why. I have seen them for sale in Honfleur in Normandy and loved them at first sight - I would love to own one of these... but more so, I would love to try and crochet one myself!  Perhaps one day...

Time Flies!

Gosh, I didn't realise how long it has been since I last updated my blog! So, a quick post with some pics from the recent Contemporary Craft Fair at Bovey Tracey.

I had time to attend on the first day, the Friday, in the afternoon and was lucky to be part of a workshop held by the fabulous Alison Willoughby of the fantastic skirts fame. Alison was fab - so quirky and outgoing, I really enjoyed a couple of hours as part of a group of 6 lucky peeps. The workshop made me feel like a 5 year old given freedom with a sewing machine! Great fun to have this freedom - it's not something we as adults often are able to do so, if given the opportunity, grasp it with both hands... enthusiastically!

Here are a few pics from the day, finishing off with my creation, modelled by Alison...




this one isn't mine (above) but an Alison W creation, showing the detailed rosette motif she uses.

More pics from the fair another day...

Still Alive... Still Struggling :-)

Yes, I know, my blogging hasn't been too good for the last year or so. Hey ho, I'm not going to add more to my Catholic ingrained angst, so I'm not going to worry!

However, I have been busy...

Here are a little collection of felt corsages which I made to sell via our local pub. A friend has a glass cabinet in the pub through which she sells some jewellery she makes - we're going to make this a more mixed-media affair and will add some turned wooden pieces too soon. It's not going to be a money spinner, but if I don't stop talking about doing something and get on with it, nothing will change, will it?

We've had a busy week this week - apart from Easter with friends (not good, she's very stressed out and very agressive - but it will ease off and things will get better - I'll just be here ready for her: isn't that what friends are for?) and then took two van loads of kitchen units to the barn in France to reduce the storage costs here in the UK.

We were very pleased to see all was well in our little corner of Normandy - and the sun shone brightly for our al fresco lunch in Honfleur: lovely!

I also have plans on the work front (does this count towards my happiness non-new year resolution? I hope so!) and will have more news soon... have to make sure I have more to write about later this week - bye for now!

Soft Suffolk

With a view to develop the creativity element of my non-new year decisions, I’m developing a little line of textile based items perhaps to sell on-line or through local boutiques, of which we have many here in the south west. I used to make Shaker inspired angels which I sold through word of mouth and through a lovely little gallery in Chipping Camden, but that was many eons ago so it seems a tad daunting.

Anyhow, the picture is of a couple of simple corsages being made from felt which are my starting point for this element of creativity.

At work, I’m searching for words to describe a new tile range we’re launching called Artisan and this has led me onto investigating the small towns of Suffolk in more detail due to the names chosen for the colours – the designer comes from Suffolk and loves the soft clear tones used by artists and artisans in the area. I want to find out more about these artists and the use they made of the soft light in this area, and area unknown to me as, when not in London, we spent time in the west country (apart from a holiday at a very young age in The Wash in the north of East Anglia).

It’s funny how one string of thought takes you down a totally unexpected route – but that’s what creativity is all about!

Temporarily out of action...

We have been homeless for nearly 4 weeks now, home has been a static caravan behind our local pub (not good!) hence the silence on the blog front, my apologies. I'm accessing it from work at the moment so, ssssh: don't tell :-)

Before all our possessions went into storage, I kept some to one side for our creative team to use for photoshoots for new product. A bit of an ego boost when you see your favourite items used in professional photography. Here's my favourite, showing my beloved grandmother's hand-stitched quilt (English pieced, using old dresses: some I just about remember her and my mother wearing: there's even a fabric or two from my sister's and my dresses too!).























We hope to be in the cottage (sorry, should call it farm as that's the official name) by the end of the month but it will only be the three of us: Himself, Carter and me. PC is failing with her kidney disease and we have made the very difficult decision to take her on her last journey this evening. We're very sad. More another day.

Another Inspiration

Talking of being inspired, two of my bestest artists with fabric are the reason I need more space! Well, okay, that's not entirely true - my love of fabric far precedes their inspiration.




The first is Janet Bolton. An amazing artist with a naive yet sophisticated style I would love to emmulate even slightly. I can't wait until next June when I'm attending a two day workshop with my bestest chum in Cornwall with Janet at the helm. I keep jotting ideas and thoughts into my sketchbook for possible Boltonesque pieces but, until now, I've not had the wherewithall to even start (poor excuse, I am aware, but it IS one!).


The second in the lovely Linda Miller. Her creations are in thread and are so textured and scrumptious I want them all. I sat in on a masterclass Linda held at the craft fair in Bovey Tracey earlier this year - and she is a lovely lovely person too!
The subtelty of her creations is fantastic and they look so simple - but really truly they're not... I know, I've tried. Well, I didn't even manage to start stitching because my sewing machine (a fabulous Singer I spent ages finding) won't allow the feed dogs to drop, neither will the sewing foot raise high enough to slip in an embroidery ring.... I feel another sewing machine will need to be purchased... and how do I explain that one away when the current incumbent is perfectly fine for, well, sewing?!



And don't you just love it when your memory drags something up from the depths and you find a relevant link to take your thoughts even further? Here is the fabulous '>Jane and her Linda-Milleresque creations from a while ago.... my goodness, 2005! Oh well, this style has longevity!