Picking Up

I have been using a blogger that was part of my old website format... that has disappeared! Good ole Blogger to the rescue!

So many things change so many things stay the same and wait for recognition that yeah still here still just fine. Since beginning this bloggery, I've learned a lot of things that I didn't' realize I would ever,

well. sometimes the thing to learn is what you already know, sometimes the learning is about the same thing from a different perspective

When I realized I wanted to study textiles in a more academic way, along with grabbing yarns and fabrics and making whatever impulsive ball of stuff I had in mind I was using natural dyes. Living in NC there is so much color to see and so many pigments to use though not all are deep not all are permanent but enter chemistry and its a whole jam-packed toolbox of color and fun.

Weaving was line and color, then weaving brought structure and sculpture. Clothing was no

t just something to wear but a statement of hues, weight, motion and presence. Costume is an introduction, a character and can be subtle as a historical garment or dramatic as a moving bit of theatre. (ShaSha Higby comes to mind here.

So while rambling around I hit a fibers program (or four) and learned structure and synthetic dyes which didn't replace all my dyeing but definitely allowed for predictability and time management. And to a degree more safety. When i began working with natural dyes i had limited chemical knowledge. I still have limited knowledge but i learned that i needed to read more before blasting into the dyepot..

I have been using more natural materials again. I have a larger idea of how to use my tools and I may be offering some workshops soon. To that end I've been reading collecting growing sampling and so have a lot of people! There is a lot of information to be found. I've recently read a workbook-style collection of dye information by Joy Boutrup, if you search for it (tho Catharine Ellis is listed as a co-author) I still have my copy of Mary Frances Davidson's Dye Pot and am finding more websites such as Dekel Dyes

I'm trying out workshop names- color garden, earth pallet and scrappy dyes(color before compost)

none are screaming "come to mama" but.. I'm kind of warming to color garden.

It is more of a slow down time stop and think time and a time to decide what to really do next. Weave on!