Thursday 25 February 2016

it hasn't exactly been a quiet summer

two weeks have just vanished somewhere,
never to be seen again.

i madly dyed scarves and packed cards
and took them to the Post Office where 
the kindly Postmistresses managed to get stamps on to the boxes
(most of them, anyway)
and send them on their way



i made a dress for a friend
and dyed a kimono for her as well


unfortunately the kimono apparently picked up a somewhat 
smoky smell from my studio
which i didn't notice, being accustomed to the slight smell of bushfire 
that seems to hang around the cauldron
but which intensified in the humid climate of the east coast

happily she was able to neutralise the aroma by soaking 
the offending garment in water with a 
teaspoon of eucalyptus oil added. phew.

i sent another dress to a new home in Victoria
(fingers crossed it arrived safely and fits, i haven't heard yet!)


and dyed some cloth for Poet's Ode (to be made into cushions)

in between i was taking care of my granddaughter
while her parents kicked up their heels in New Orleans

she's been handed safely back now.

running errands today i noticed the tree loppers had been at work





so i gathered up a pile (never let a chance go by) 


after dark i layered leaves and cards
sandwiched them between two bits of brass
and stuffed the bundle into a wee pot i picked up in New Zealand last year
 

i particularly like the bakelite handle.
back in 2007 i had a bigger version of this
and used it in a summer school class i taught for Whitireia at Kapiti.
unfortunately the one student who needed to leave early 
to attend a yarn fest somewhere (while we were on a field trip)
mistakenly took my pot with her (she had a similar smaller one). 

win some, lose some.
at least i have a baby pot now!


while on the subject of winning and losing
it seems the ink on the wandercards is by no means as stable
as that on the sample i had originally tested.

as you can see
'in the armchair' has pretty much been scrubbed.
so if you have invested in these cards, 
please only dye the blank ones
otherwise you'll lose a lot of information.


you can still colour them,
by beating in leaves (hapa-zome)
by grinding leaves and flowers in a mortar and pestle
and brushing the colour on
or
by rubbing colour in from petals
or just using your watercolours.
 
(i'm so pleased with this post-consumer recycled 
paper stock that i'm going to order a quantity of blank cards
just for dyeing)

 
lastly i'm delighted to announce that a three-day version 
of being (t)here will be held at Poet's Ode on the long weekend in April.
if you want to take this class in Australia
this is your last chance for the year
as the one at Beautiful Silks sold out before it was announced
and
the class at Scott's Head filled within days

otherwise
you'll have to hop the ditch next year
and join me in the lovely Ludd Valley instead!


12 comments:

  1. hapazome it will be then :) glad you found out!

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    1. Maybe it's going to need a year of curing...but at least you can print the blank ones. Those purple plum leaves made an extraordinary green.

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  2. ow my!!! I just wrote today about making myself a kimono! Now there is no doubt in my mind about it, after seen this beauty!!! xxx

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  3. yes you have been very busy , and the wandercard , i think maybee you after also could write with ink you have made if you have written the word down , or could it bee possibel maybee if you wait longer time the ink has been" hardened "on the card , glad to hear you have such good possibility to work south good luck with all

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  4. I am so, so happy with my dress and kimono - and the tip about soaking in the eucalyptus oil worked a treat! Didn't want to have to part with it!! Thank you again India - looking forward to our next meet up. x

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