a participant in a recent workshop has suggested via email that there may have been a hidden ingredient in the dyepots used by the class, as said participant has apparently had difficulty in replicating class samples at home
it was even implied that the eucalyptus leaves i had brought from home had caused the results to be brighter and richer than might otherwise have been possible
said participant had made samples from leaves she had brought to the class herself. the samples were really very beautiful.
the really funny thing in all this is that because the leaves i had brought with me were quite dry, ecoprints from them were mere shadows of what they might have been [although when brewed in the usual way they produced the anticipated rich orange-red] and were far eclipsed by the ecoprints produced by our friend.
i have only once before carried dye materials from home and that was specifically in order to demonstrate the difference that the water used as a substrate makes when extracting dyes from eucalypts. the sample from home was a deep rust red, the sample produced at Hyderabad for the UNESCO conference was a mustard yellow. same leaves [picked on same day from same tree], same merino jersey, stainless steel [non-reactive] vessel, but different water.
so, what have i learned from this exchange? i've learned to practice what i preach..use only local materials and DON'T bring dye materials from elsewhere, it only leads to confusion. i'll stick to what i have done 99% of the time and just work with what i find available near the workshop location
there really ain't no mysteries to what i do, folks, just the simple magic of leaves, cloth and water
oh, and a few muttered incantations learned from an ancient crone in the shadow of a crystal boulder by an enchanted lake in a mysterious forest... east of the sun and west of the moon
what gorgeous reds India. I am itching to keep experimenting :)
ReplyDeleteI used to conduct work shops which in the main were good fun, but there was at times an misunderstanding that not enough was conveyed. This in turn was due to the another misunderstanding, which is that most of the particular maker's skill and craft cannot be conveyed. This is because the skills were earned by the maker's hands involvement. A workshop will teach some techniques,but the magic will be revealed in the doing, the commitment, the mind of the maker (attitude)and the continuous (aware) repetition. That and your ability to stop listening to your head-chatter and learning to listen to your hands' language. Plus watching those mis-takes. enough.
ReplyDeleteWhat marvellous colours. Your book is a constant companion, however I lack to courage to begin the journey. I go to Adelaide a lot and hope some time I might meet up with you for a lesson and gain that ourage.
ReplyDeleteI left the "c" off "ourage" oops!!
ReplyDeletemaybe it is magic when you believe in it it happes like storytelling like meditation like living
ReplyDeleteLove Eucalyptus and what a beautiful piece you show there. I'm experimenting everyday and find each leave different, so every print is different. Naturemagic!
ReplyDeleteXXXm
India, i always say to my students, i can give you the tools but concentrate on the magic in your own hands.Chelodonium majus growing in my garden gives beautiful color but I can't get the prints (is it too soft?)
ReplyDeleteI wish it was 2010.....
ourage sounds like a really useful new word, magic requires belief, every print is indeed different just like every fingerprint is different...and cheladonium majus is not only good for removing warts but also does make a lovely print..either beaten in by hammer, or [for an eco print] allowed to wilt slightly between the pages of ma book for a few days [so less juiciness] and then bundled very, very tightly
ReplyDeleteso nice to keep in touch with all my friends through the interpixies!
The spirit of the plant will release it's knowledge to those who are ready to listen.
ReplyDeleteps I knew you were a witch x
aaah, late-night typos...i meant to write "a" book, not "ma" book.
ReplyDeleteand Twisted me dear, i recognised you as a sister straightaway...
ah the vicissitudes of botanical alchemy.
ReplyDeletethis looks really beautiful! Do the colours stay on the fabric- or are you supposed to dry clean it? I'm saving your picture as inspiration for a future dress!
ReplyDeletethis non-reproducable character of eco-colouring gives me every day a new present, so neverever a boring moment xDorie
ReplyDeleteThe sight of dyed cloth riddled with stitch never fails to excite. I love blogs (although tedious to maintain sometimes) yes, love them cause I feel like I am on your journey with you India. Witch ... maybe in the nicest possible sense, like the stitch witch perhaps?
ReplyDelete"...and a few muttered incantations learned from an ancient crone in the shadow of a crystal boulder by an enchanted lake in a mysterious forest... east of the sun and west of the moon"
ReplyDeleteI KNEW you had some kind of mysteriousness going on there!
India, how beautiful the natural colours are! The reds are fantastic!
ReplyDeleteDo you mordant or premordant your fabrics at all?
ReplyDeleteJust had a week of said magic and spells of trust and wonder were prolific. I hope a little magic has rubbed off. Now to try out the local produce.
ReplyDeleteThis is the link of the amazing rug maker I was telling you about
ReplyDeletehttp://www.peaceindustry.com/film.html
thanks for sharing that link Pam, it's wonderful
ReplyDeleteand no Anaka, i NEVER dry clean anything [it kills fabric as well as people] - eucalyptus dyes on wool are colourfast and all my work happily undergoes handwashing [simply treat it with the consideration you would give to your own hair]
nor do i use traditional mordants, Kathy [with exception of a pinch of alum to fix ice-flower dyes]
it's all just nature's magic
How magical, surely something I will delve into! Something I really would love to learn :-D
ReplyDeleteThe piece you've featured here is so intriguing. As Rachelle commented...."dyed cloth riddled with stitch" is enchanting.
ReplyDeleteThanks India- I know dry cleaning isn't environmentally friendly.. but what do you recommend for silk fabrics- especially raw silk like tussar that tends to form a lot of fibre (silk lint) on the surface if you keep washing it? I wish there were more textile craftsmen experimenting and researching the use of various natural resources.
ReplyDeleteAs a side note doesn't the eucalyptus tree consume a lot of water and nutrition from the soil? (I know that's still nothing compared to the chemicals used in dry cleaning and other textile manufacturing processes....)
what are you suggesting we plant instead of eucalyptus, Anaka? they're native to this country, for a start.
ReplyDeleteand if we don't grow trees, the rain dries up [deforestation as well as air pollution are two of the major causes of 'climate change'] and the soil blows away
look what happened to the region once known as the Fertile Crescent...
when the oil runs out there won't be any dry-cleaning fluid either.
i don't have all the answers, but i'm doing my best.
Relax! I wasn't trying to point a finger at you or say that your methods aren't great. I think your work is really creative and that you are doing exactly the kind of research large textile producers should be doing. The comment about eucalyptus was just meant to be that- a side note like I said. I know what deforestation is- but thanks for explaining the major causes of climate change.
ReplyDeleteBut I was wondering, since you are a lot more knowledgeable than any of my other resources, if you do know of a safer way to clean silk fabric. If you do have any recommendations, I'd love to hear it. Thank you.
as i wrote in an earlier comment [above] treat silk the way you would treat your hair
ReplyDeletehand wash in a pH neutral wetting agent, rinse well, condition [by rinsing in water with a splash of vinegar], spin to remove excess moisture, dry in shade
if ironing required, works best either on slightly damp fabric, or put fabric in plastic bag in freezer for 5 minutes, then iron [no idea why, but it works]
Thank you India! By the way, if you'd like to give me your address, I'd be happy to mail you some swatches of tussar and eri silk- they are raw silk fabric handwoven in India and very often when you wash them it tends to develop fibre on the surface. For mulberry silk of course, hand wash works fine. That's interesting about the freezing having a good effect on the ironing.
ReplyDelete