Do You Crochet?

Just the other day we were having this discussion about crochet vs. knitting.  One of our gals said she was going to learn to crochet--now, to find the perfect pattern for her to do--something easy but elegant looking.  I found it!  Moogly Blog has the perfect crochet pattern for her in Branching Out Shawlette

We are beginning her on an adventure she will enjoy for the rest of her life!

30 Days Of Quilt Tutorials!

 

Longing for some quilt time?  How about 30 days of different quilt blocks with easy to follow directions?

Well, if you head over to Piece N Quilt you can find all this and more!

 

Happy stitching!

Mother's Day...........................................

Mother's Day has rolled around again!  I being a mother myself like the day so I can be pampered--breakfast in bed maybe...................................

Or maybe, it will be a day of nothing to do but read a good book................................

Or maybe, I'll take a walk or a nap..............................

I don't need flowers, candy, or gifts--just give me a hug and "I Love You!" and I'll be happy!

What are you doing for your Mother this day?

How are you celebrating your Mother's Day?

Happy Mother's Day!

 

Some Stitching Is Involved

 

Continuing with our indigo dye day, Connie had some old cotton shirts that she took apart and was doing some stitching on several sections.  She used a loose long stitch--here is where the design element comes into effect.

 

Connie is showing Susan how stitching will give you interesting look on cloth.

She used regular needle and sewing thread--although a heavier cotton thread would have been stronger

 

 

Now, it is time to pull up the threads.

 

Connie pulls each section slowly in order not to break her stitching thread

She continues pulling

Then she ties off each section with a surgeon's knot

Each section is tied securely

And now it is ready for the dye pot

Before the fabric hits the dye pot, Connie wets the piece thoroughly.

Into the bath it goes

After sitting for a few minutes allowing the dye to penetrate through the layers of stitching, Connie slowly brings the cloth to the side, squeezing out the liquid as she slowly raises the cloth to the surface--no splash back allowed.

Connie allows the fabric to dye completely before she takes out the stitching--I'm always to inpatient to wait!  Here she has removed the stitching and she has a wonderful design element where her stitching was

Shibori Techniques--try it!  You might like it!

It Was An Indigo Day

Our group of weavers, spinners had a good day for dyeing with indigo.  The skies were that wonderful clear blue which meant we'll have no problems.

 

 

We had this set of instructions.  Everyone's recipe differs somewhat but this is a basic recipe for today.

We are using natural indigo powder.  We are using 1 Oz of powder into the solution, along with Thiorea Dioxide (I use color remover for this) and lye.

and here is our stock solution--ready for the dye pot.  We had a large stainless steel pot with temp at 100*--it works well if the sun is shining on your pot too, but today was breezy so we used a electric burner in order to keep the temp constant.  A portion of the stock solution is added to the water in the stainless pot

First timer Susan was using one of Connie's fancy clamps--look closely at this--you might want to add these to your tool box!  This is one dip into the indigo pot

 

I did some overdyeing on this scarf.

I had some men's cotton hander kerchiefs to dye, which will be used as luncheon napkins. 

Another one of my cotton scarves to over dye

Susan's silk/wool blend took a nice dip

Connie had a white shirt that she didn't like so into the dye pot it went!

This will be fun to wear!  As always, indigo dyeing is magic--

Selvedges in Sewing

Okay, We've gone through Selvedges in weaving and knitting, how about sewing?  Did you know that those painted dots on the selvedges of fabric contain some valuable information?  What is a Selvedge anyway?

"Definition: The selvedge refers to the edge of fabric as it comes off the bolt. The selvedge is the edges of the fabric which has manufacturer information. This area of the fabric is usually a bound edge that does not fray.

The selvedge of the fabric may also have color dots which show the colors used in the fabric and lines to indicate the repeat of a print on the fabric"  About Home   Interesting information, huh?

Now, let's look at more information on sewing with Selvedges Sewing Selvedges     


and to make sure you have a straight of the grain fabric, here is a video to give you that info.

You tube Selvedge info

 

And if you are like me, I cut off those selvedges, toss them in a box and keep for future projects.  check out how you make interesting things with those selvedges.

Sew Mama Sew

And if you need more inspiration, check out Pinterest!

Oh, yes I've used my selvedges for creative projects--just need to buy more fabric to get more delightful selvedges!

Warp Speed Ahead..............................

What are you doing this summer?  Need a kick in the pants for some inspiration?  Then this conference is just right for you!

Contemporary Handweavers of Texas are hosting their bi-annual conference in Austin, hosted by

Weavers and Spinners Society of Austin.  The conference will be held June 24-28, 2015 at DoubleTree Hilton
@ 6505 IH 35 N
Austin, TX   78752

There will be pre-conference workshops, seminars, vendors, fashion show, exhibits, opening ceremony and closing event by Jana Vander Lee.  Check it out and register!