Friday, June 30

Dyeing wool with acid dyes~


I have been taking a few hours each week to felt repurposed wool.
I am able to make new colors by using some of the dye that bleeds off.
Summertime is my planning & gardening time.
I will hopefully have all of the colors needed to rug hook
some new projects once the snow files again. (Not in any hurry for that) ;)

This week was my first experience using acid dyes!
We used Jacquard brand... perfect for small batches.
Success!


I had gathered these small jars 10+ years ago for
dyeing some of my wool roving to needle felt~


I will make a small swatch of the colors & make notes of mixes.

We followed all suggested safety precautions.
Dust masks, rubber gloves, proper ventilation & separate pots & utensils.
Followed the simple directions on the package.
There are directions on their site, too.

Jacquard:  https://www.jacquardproducts.com/acid-dye.html
How acid dye works: 
http://www.dharmatrading.com/home/did-you-know-how-acid-dye-works.html

I think I will be trying for turquoise and aqua next...
Some sunny yellow and deep golds!

Hope you have a wonderful weekend, Friends!

Friday, June 23

Pen & Ink Pincushions


 

Bees, feathered friends, harvest perches and patriotic themes~


Pinkeeps!
Pincushions!
If you remove the pins they are fun to hang on a cupboard pull~


Teddy bears love to hold hearts in their laps, too!


Chickadee and bee are discussing their sewing project~


This bee stopped by the firework daisy!


How I love bee skeps~
Hives of all shapes & sizes!


I love to draw bees in straight lines, too~
They are flying off to work together!


I bet these little friends sing, "Whistle while you work!"
They each have their yellow-topped pin...
They're off to help in the studio~

Wishing you a wonderful weekend, Friends!

Thursday, June 15

Wool dyeing from clothing scraps~


Something blue from something old!
Something old~ can become something blue?
Giggle...
I had a few 5" x 5" pieces of navy blue wool suit coat.
I put them in a stockpot to boil & felt for rug hooking.
The secondary dye that bled off made all of these blues!


There was a lot of blue dye remaining. I put a piece of black & white
houndstooth type plaid in the stock pot to pick it up~


It hooks into such a beautiful texture!


The palette of wool that I came up with last week~
I wanted to come up with some muted plum tones for my
'I Love You to the Moon and Back' design.


I t would be fun to bring all of my punch needle patterns to
wool hooked rugs~


I cut some of my pattern colors in advance~
I like to have projects bagged and ready to go for when I have
a  little bit of time to relax.


When I have a good amount of plaid, pattern etc. I like to 
add them to my swatch chart. It helps me when planning a rug.
I like to add texture without having to change colors.

Hope you're having a great day, Friends~
Thank you for stopping by!

Sunday, June 11

Flag Day


'Uncle Sam Sampler' copyright 2004 Michelle L. Palmer

We have had several days of sunshine and warmer weather~
The gardens are drying out and the vegetables are starting to shoot up!
Peonies are fragrant and full~ filling the air!

A little bouquet to share with you~


Solomon's Seal


Fleablane


Columbine


Spiderwort


Peony


Early Chives


Columbine


White Campion


Hosta & Poppies~


Variegated Periwinkle Vinca


Blue Flax


Geranium


Honesty

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend, Friends~