December Silks

Posted by laura bellel on December 28, 2017 | Add new comment

December has been filled with beauty and busy-ness. Happily, I've been able to squeeze in some of my favorite projects, including the dyeing of more silk threads.

After soaking in alum

Indigo

Indigo and weld

Cochineal, madder and indigo

Baby pastels (indgo, madder, weld, walnut)

More madder and cochineal

  Coreopsis flowers, weld and madder

Walnut hulls

Cochineal and madder

Walnut, cochineal and madder

Cochineal and snow

 

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Wool Pot holders

Posted by laura bellel on August 11, 2017 | 9 Comments

Undyed wool loops

Years ago, a dear friend shared a huge 5 pound bag of pure wool pot holder loops with me.. Little did I know at the time just how valuable and hard to find these would become. I dyed the loops with natural colors, and made potholders for gifts and for sale.

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June Inspiration

Posted by laura bellel on June 22, 2017 | 2 Comments

II've been dyeing silk threads in colors inspired by the velvety shades of  petunias

Combinations of lac, logwood, madder and indigo

 The milkweed flowers have begun to bloom. The air is filled  with their heavy sweetmess. The tender, muted pinks seemed like the perfect color for some handspun wool yarn I've been saving.

Milkweed  (Asclepias syriaca)

Handspun wool yarn soaked overnight in alum.

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Summer

Posted by laura bellel on June 20, 2017 | 8 Comments

Officially Summer today, though to me summer really begins on June 1st.

Ripe!

The squirrels and blackbirds keep knocking them down.

Raspberries beginning to ripen

Milkweed

Madder stars

 

Milkweed and madder in a friendly competion for sunshine

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Madder roots and silk

Posted by laura bellel on May 27, 2017 | Add new comment

Madder patch May 2017 (rubia tinctorum)

I've used and re-used all of last years' home-grown madder roots so many times that now there's barely a whisper of pink left.  Although they still look rosy- red, I don't know if I can coax any more color from these roots. They're so pretty, I don't want to compost them yet. I might just dry them once more for a future experiment.

Old madder roots from last years' garden

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May color reminders

Posted by laura bellel on May 19, 2017 | 9 Comments

To celebrate the beautiful rich shades of the May garden, I've started a little purple, pink and indigo dyeing project.Yesterday I mordanted some silk scarves and wool with alum. After soaking overnight, they were ready to drink up the colors. I'm using madder, lac and indigo.

Pansies

 This is my favorite weather for gardening and dyeing - fresh and damp without harsh sunlight.

Pink, purple,and indigo in layers of wet color

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