PROGRESS REPORT 31

A L I S A

I've been working on a bunch of stuff lately. Some weaving (you can see some of it in the background of this picture), prepping for some cool classes I'll be teaching starting in a few weeks and dolls. The dolls have paper heads and I use weaving, hand-sewing, crochet and embroidery for the bodies. I'm trying to add some birds and reptiles to the bunch. I'm also thinking of making some of them into hand-puppets.

J E N N E

Aaannnd we are back!  It has been a record hot summer in the Pacific Northwest and we moved back here right in the middle of it - it has been great for starting some dyeplants in the garden to quickly harvest and dry to work with when the rain comes (and rumor has it thats tomorrow.)  I took a natural dyeing class from farm to field with Local Color Fiber Studio on Bainbridge Island a couple weeks ago in which we harvested from the dye fields in the morning and dyed in the studio in the afternoon.  I never really had the space to really get into dyeing anything until now in our new house, and this class renewed my intense love of playing with color and learning about what can be grown here in this usually short growing season.  Already planning next years dye garden in a borrowed plot, indigo and other things but for right now just cutting and keeping dahlias, marigolds and rudbeckia for days.  Heading out on a hike to look for hawthorne berries and oregon grape tomorrow, hoping to forage some to try too.  

PROGRESS REPORT 19

J E N N E

Finish what you start...9 years later.  I handspun the green and pink and white yarn in 2004, and started this little sweater for a little girl who just started 6th grade this year.  Ahem.  I have made Elizabeth Zimmerman's Baby Surprise Jacket many times in the past, but in this one I lost track of where I was and it sat in a box for a very long time.  Lately I have been super busy with the daily tasks of life and not able to do anything in the studio at all, save for pick up on projects that I can work on where I could figure out where I left off and work on around my daughter.  With a little improvising I finished this sweater which is more like a short sleeved vest now for my daughter (yes, the intended recipient is in 6th grade!)  but I feel really good about at least getting this project off the needles.  Finish what you start.  To celebrate I started a few little felt strawberries that M is going to help with "do the stuffin's" and little leaves on top.

A L I S A

I spent a whole week last month at the Haliburton School of the Arts.  This year was all about spinning silk, exotics (camelids, pet, bunny, etc.) AND dyeing with indigo. Learning about indigo blew my mind! It is the dye that has THE most superstitions, secrets, mystery and value (historically) in all the world in all time. I guess I'm including woad in this factoid too… So, my class cooked up 7 different indigo vats. My partner and I had some trouble with our vat at the outset - it wasn't blooming and the PH was really off. We decided to try it anyhow and it worked so well. I've worked with indigo before minimally, but after this class I can totally appreciate the magic and mystery surrounding indigo dyeing because it IS magic! In Japanese culture, a kimono is often dipped first as a symbol of good luck. So, I dipped a paper kimono in my vat - perhaps that's why it worked???