Tuesday 8 March 2011

Who says natural dyes are boring?!




I stock some yummy fat yarn, a single so I suppose really it is a giant pencil roving, that I dye and sell to knitters and weavers who want a fast result! I am often asked what it looks like knitted up and began a blanket, in log cabin style, to have as a sample on display. As I was making it, a friend fell in love with it and so I finished it to fit her when she was lying down, toes covered at one end and reaching generously to her chin at the other. Friends and colleagues at Duchy Square began referring to this project as 'Blankie,' and progress was watched with interest. Blankie is pictured above with some dyed yarns


Moving on a year, I had a burning desire to try weaving Blankie 2 - the warp is on the loom now, slightly more progress than you will see in the photo of the warp raddled. The dyes are cutch, madder, dhak and a mix based on weld extract. I hope to have some woven fabric to show later this week but realistically I have very little time as I will also be preparing for the annual teaching trip to The Netherlands with my good friends Alison Daykin, Amanda Hannaford and Helen Melvin. We are all getting excited now, and I think I can speak for all of us when I say that these visits are inspiring, exciting and all round positive experiences. Can't wait!