A few years ago I asked readers what topics they would like me to address and several mentioned crafts from the garden. You might know that I am a needle felter (see
www.needlinaround.blogspot.com) and that I am studying botanical illustration at Lewis Ginter Botanical gardens (
http://www.lewisginter.org/adult-education/adult-educationhappeningnow.php) . Well these hobbies have crashed together with a class I am taking "Painting Plants that Paint" on dye plants. We will sketch a dye plant, learn about them and make a solar dye from some of them. I thought it would be fun to dye some needle-felting wool using solar dyeing and here are my first three attempt using plants from my garden, left to right in the photo above: red hibiscus, fig and woad. Mother Earth News has an article from 1983 (!) on one method to do this:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Do-It-Yourself/1983-03-01/An-Easy-Solar-Dye-It.aspx which I am trying, and I will also try a more traditional method. Stay tuned for another Wednesday lagniappe for the results in two weeks!
Update: Three more solar dyes: Left to right: Hopi Red Dye Amaranth, Muscadine grape skins and turmeric!
Happy gardening!
No comments:
Post a Comment