power

It was an eventful weekend.  Most mornings, before I get on the computer, I spend time on my computer.  It was very dark Saturday morning and I went to turn on my light near my chair.  It would not turn on.  I checked that it was connected to the outlet.  It has been pulled free in the past.  Then I realized the ceiling was not moving as fast as it should have been.  No power.  A tree had fallen on the power lines a couple blocks over.

Since I was in the house I am used having power in, my first thoughts were along the lines of what am I going to do now.  It just threw me for a few minutes.  Then it was time to just go forward.  It was not very hot out so I did not feel like I needed to track down air conditioning.  I had enough gear from camping that cooking was not a problem.  I did not have bread rising so there was no need for the oven.  Later in the evening would be when I would need to worry next.

I did take tea the boyos.  I got asked how I made tea.  My response is I camp a lot and I am more addicted to tea then you are.  It was funny.

I had gotten my autumn quilted basted that I am making as a wall quilt so I started working on it.  I had enough light from the window.  It was a good head space.  I really liked the quiet that it caused.  Usually there is some electric humming noise as back ground.  

I was wandering around in the apron I had printed.  It looks like a dark splotch from here but if I looked down I could see where I printed acorns.  It was cool enough that it did not get warm wearing it until much later.

The power did come on late afternoon so my one worry about lights was not a worry.  It would have just meant an early night which I need many more of.  Power being out changed all my plans for Saturday, and in some ways, the weekend.  But you know, I did not mind.  The days were excellent.  Calm is good because my thoughts are still whirling and I am having a hard time calming them.  Quiet is good.

All the twirls

I know.  I said I would write out how to print with plants.  I will get there.  Right now I have three things I printed in the washing machine.  I kind of want to see how they printed before I started that post.  It is still very much an exploration.

Of all the sites that are considered social media, Instagram is my favorite.  It gives me more ideas.  Which I truly do not need.  I went down a rabbit hole recently and found shapes of clothes I really liked.  Actually, shapes on some of those things were shapes I have worn a lot in the past.  I have pulled those dresses out for printing before I ever went down that rabbit hole.  Koda Bear and the longer skirts did not mesh very well.  I have to keep up.  

Back to shapes.  There was full circle skirt in linen with pockets that I really liked.  It was longer but not too long.  Just short enough?  I looked at my stash and I had some grey linen that was of length that would work.  I had given a friend all the makings for dyeing linen for a costume she was making and sent off a piece of linen with it.  I had this beautiful grey piece to play with.

With a bit of pondering.  A bit of measuring.  Sewing a lot because the seams and hems are just that long, I created a skirt.

A skirt that twirls!

I am now of the opinion that every person, no matter what, should have a skirt that twirls!  It is so much fun!  I get laughed at.  

Is there anything I would change?  I think I would raise the side pockets by an inch.  Another thing I really like about this skirt is that it lends itself to mending.  I can mend with patches or patches and pockets.  Get to five pockets in a skirt that certain wise woman suggests.  I would feel very witchy! 

I am also very aware that this is a light grey and I could easily stain it.  I have multiple solutions for that.  There is dye.  There is printing.  By the end, this skirt may be very one of a kind.  I have a feeling that it will be a tatter skirt in the end.  I actually have a skirt that is in tatters that wanders around photoshoots currently.  Though the Kitten would say it is her's and not mine now.  

This is a soft linen and it works for me.  I have a stiffer black linen that I may make up into something similar.  I am also thinking about dyeing and printing some fabric to make some of the other shapes I saw.  And I a cardigan shape I liked.  My best friend and I were chatting last night about how we need a month someplace off grid, off reception and just get a chance to work with yarn.  

My life!  Too many ideas.  Too many projects.  Just the right amount of happy!

more nine squares

Life is very good and I am very grateful.  It has been mentioned that I need to rest.  Which is hard because I feel like I am standing in place and exploding with ideas at the same time!  I actually got pictures from teaching my friend how to ecoprint.  I will share them and share what I do in my next post.

But because it has been mentioned that I should rest, I sat on the floor and laid out a quilt.  Which is really, really hard for me.  Even when I am sitting I usually have work in my hands.  I am both crocheting and hand stitching two different dresses for myself.  Let alone I am making Koda Bear a sweater and I am making myself a sweater. 

And my best friend just sent me tempting links to more yarn today.  Rustic lovely wools.  Especially lovely for a pullover for a long dress to tramp in the woods in.  I find when I am collecting plants for dye or foraging, long skirts or pants work really well.  And in some ways, long skirts work better because I can use the skirts as huge pockets to carry my bounty. 

Totally off topic, I just read a bit from India Flint that she believes every dress should have five pockets.  Aprons should have five as well.  My carpenter dress is a fine example of that.  I am trying to figure out where I would want more pockets in a long skirt because there is so much truth in that.  There is a vest pattern in Taproot magazine Issue 28 that has that feel.  Pockets big enough for a ball of yarn or cord.  Add a crochet hook, scissors, a notebook.  I could think of a few more things.  India Flint makes sure that there is one for a poem.  That is not so much me but maybe something similar someday.

I am really babbling!  My head has been exploding with ideas recently.  I keep picking one or two and moving forward.  I hope to write others done so I do not forget.  But any project I make at my sewing machine, I make nine squares for quilts with left over bits and pieces.  A bit of rest was sitting and laying this out.  

Too soon I will have two quilts to baste!  My autumn quilt and this one.  I told my Beloved that he fell asleep before me last night I was going to make things.  I just got laughed at.

autumn quilt

Since I made the Christmas Tree quilt and the Sew Scary quilt, I have talked about and pondered making an autumn quilt for my wall.  More of a tapestry.  But everything I make to hang on the wall I make to see have the possiblity of a quilt.  Though the Christmas Tree quilt still has its lights pinned to it.

Two of my favorite shops for buying cottons for quilts are in Washington.  I stopped in Quilting Mayhem and picked up many fabrics for Christmas presents.  But I also picked up fabrics to make an autumn quilt tapestry.  Then I took the ecoprinting class.  

I combined the fabrics I had purchased with the prints I made to make this quilt top.  It is difficult to get a good picture of it because it is very similar tones.  But that was always the idea of an autumn quilt.  I am very excited about this but I will probably not have much time to work on it until Sunday.

Saturday, I am teaching a friend how to ecoprint.  I do not know how long that is going to take so I may or may not get to this space on Saturday.  I hope to take pictures this time!  I also need to go foraging for some of the greens I want.  And cut out pattern pieces.  I am going to print fabrics for clothing gifts.  Or maybe just some dresses for me. 

India Flint prints her aprons.  I love white aprons but you can always see stain unless all you do is work with flour.  I am thinking about printing my white aprons as well.  I may become a walking plant print!  I feel like I am having too much fun to focus.  It just makes me smile.

ecoprinting

This has been an interesting week since I have been home.  The weather has floored me.  We did not get as much rain as expected but the pressure front moved through in such a way that I was in a lot of pain.  My main reaction was exhaustion.  I spoke to someone else with arthritis and she said she had had the same reaction.  Doing basics was about where I was going with everything. 

We may have a cold front at the end of the week.  I am hoping I do no have the same reaction.  I am truly looking forward to some cooler weather.  It is one of the hard bits of being back.  I am ready for cool.

While I was in Washington state, I took an ecoprinting class at Ragfinery.  I was very excited about it.  I follow India Flint on Instagram (@prophet_of_bloom) and just have fallen in love with what she does.  I did not realize was the one who pioneered this technique.  I had watched what she had done enough to get an idea of maybe how to do it but Ragfinery was offering a class during a time I would be there.

While I was working with the scythe and chain saw, I was also collecting plants for using in dyeing.  Both for the ecoprinting and to come back and dye ribbons.  I have so much fun work to do that I feel a bit pulled in many directions.

I came out of the class with a knowledge of how to do ecoprinting.  I also came out of the class with two silk scarves, multiple strips of cotton, and a silk dress printed with plants.

Opening the bundles are like opening Christmas packages.  This is the back of the dress I printed.  I do not like the front as well but I can reprint it.  Which I may do Saturday.  I have a friend who is an art teacher who wants to learn how so I am going to teacher her.  It will also let me get pictures of the process.  I got no pictures of the process while I was in class.  It was too much fun!  I think that is the best compliment you can give a class.  Too much fun for pictures!

I want to go foraging!  Plants for prints!  I am actually planning some Christmas presents using these techniques.  I will see how it all turns out.