yellow/gold

There's something about the perfect yellow. Fustic, osage and cutch...

the craft fair of the southern highlands: july 2012

A successful show!

shakerag workshop with michel garcia: printing on textiles with plants

Just returned from taking a week-long workshop at Shakerag in Sewanee, TN. I feel very fortunate to have been able to attend Michel Garcia's workshop—his knowledge of plants and dyeing and printing with plants and mordants is brilliant! I'm looking forward to incorporating the new techniques I learned. Here's some photos from the workshop...

Michel Garcia

 

Screen printing with thickened mordants

Block printed silk

-Plain Al mordant/dry...

Dyestuff, mordants, caster oil, and Michel's cigarettes

Gathered Sumac prep for dyeing

Nine mordants, one dyebath!

Amazing color from printed mordants!!

It all comes together

madder

There's something deeply satisfying about dyeing cloth red. When I remove fabric from the dye bath and it's the perfect shade of red I know I'm going to have a good day!

madder root extract

dyed silk

dyed + block printed with ties

indigo

Learning a new technique is both exciting and frustrating! Though feeling like a beginner again, I welcome the challenges of discovering the many nuances of indigo blue...

Yesterday Catharine Ellis stopped by to check the ph of both indigo vats at the studio—one vat is made with fructose and the other with henna. The ph was good but we added more henna to the indigo/henna vat. Catharine is teaching a dyeing with natural dyes workshop here at the studio on May 5.

Here's a few pics...

tools + ingredients

fructose + henna vats

indigo dyed samples in cotton + linen

perfect!