The Yarn Tree

Ta-daaah! Here is the final result of my botanical screen print on naturally dyed cotton fabric. The fabric was first mordanted and then dyed in Thyme Extract. I scrunched up the fabric in the dye pot to give it a subtle variegation. I made a printing paste from Palo de Brasil. Steamed the fabric to set the paste. So happy with result.

The first milkweed pod has burst open. The milkweed floss is attached to the seeds and can be carried long distances on the wind. Milkweed floss has many uses - it is lightweight, water repellent and lofty. It is sometimes called vegetable silk and can be spun into yarn for clothing.

First test on the Thyme Extract dyed fabric. I made a botanical screen printing paste using Palo de Brasil from Mexico. I am loving the color! The printed fabric was heat set, washed and ironed. The paste held up very well!!

Sunflowers are composed of hundreds of tiny florets. Each floret is a tiny flower that contains a drop of nectar much loved by hummingbirds. I have had so many hummingbirds visit in the last few days. It turns out they show up for the late blooming sunflowers. What a pleasure to see them peacefully coexisting with the Gold Finches!

Here is the result of the Thyme Extract - a beautiful soft buttery yellow. I am so happy with the color. It is going to be the perfect ground for my botanical paste. It is hard to see but I didn’t want to dye the fabric a solid color, nor did I want the look of Shibori. So what did I do? I had the fabric in a too small pot, stirred often, pushing down, scrunching up until the pot reached temperature, turned off the heat and left over night. This gave a subtle variegation throughout the cloth - perfect!! The thyme extract is available Thank you for another great product!

My Indigo Rose cherry tomato plants from two years ago self-seeded and I ended up with three very robust plants this year. I have a new helper in the garden! It looks like one or more deer jumped the fence and trimmed back the plants! They didn’t touch the cherry tomatoes - they only wanted the new leaves and flowers. They worked their way around the plants and reshaped them, giving them a very nice trim🤣🤣

Testing out the new Thyme Extract on mordanted white cotton fabric I am looking to get a base color for some botanical scree printing!
I know I should be watching the pot but….I can’t take my eyes off the Gold Finches feasting on the Sunflower seeds in my garden.😊

The moon is in the waxing gibbous phase and will be full tomorrow! This moon is a supermoon, a blue moon, and known as the Sturgeon Moon. what a beautiful sight as it rises above the clouds!

Morning sky at sunrise! What a difference from yesterday’s foggy start.

Good morning! Summer sunrise on a very foggy morning. Fog brings an eerie quiet.

A new natural dye product - Thyme Extract from Occitania in Southern France is manufactured from local by-products of the sector for Perfume, Aromatic and Medicinal Plants (PPAM). This 100% natural dye is prepared from thyme stems and leaves. It contains flavonoids and plant tannins extracted with water. A great example of co-valorization and upcycling!
Use at 3-10% WOF (weight of fiber).
Lightfastness - very good. https://www.theyarntree.com/collections/tannins/products/natural-dyes-thyme-extract

Summer afternoon!!

Now available - Pressed Calendula flowers. These beauties are organically grown and handpicked from my dye garden in Roanoke, VA. Perfect for eco-printing and paper crafts. https://www.theyarntree.com/collections/pressed-and-dried-flowers-and-leaves/products/natural-dyes-calendula-pressed-flowers

That old adage - the right tool(s) for the job! I was able to cut a 3 inch section from one of my student grade squeegees and it was perfect for my small frame! Here is a second test on a cotton bandana. Each flower is printed one-at-a-time. Some come out lighter and others darker, just like nature.

The best garden visitor!! I am so happy to see this Praying Mantis among the Sulfur Cosmos. The Praying Mantis is a beneficial insect for the garden as they eat many garden pests! Also seeing a Praying Mantis means good luck or good fortune.

Doing another test with my Maya Blue screen print paste on a bandana. Testing the feasibility of using my homemade screen on a larger piece fabric. I just need to make a better squeegee. The possibilities are endless😊

Good morning!

Lovely piece on Buaisou!

Innovating Indigo - The New Japan Blue: Kaji Kakuo / Indigo Farmer and Dyer - Direct Talk | NHK WORLD-JAPAN Kaji Kakuo is revolutionizing the 400-year-old tradition of Japanese indigo dyeing, breathing new life into the deep hue known as Japan blue. He shares his thoughts on innovating indigo.

So a couple of weeks ago I showed you some fabric in the dyepot. This is lightweight, handwoven cotton fabric that I carried back from India. I dyed the fabric in Cutch, a much used natural dye in India. The garment is based on the Mexican Huipile (a women’s top). The center panel was screen printed with a natural screen printing paste I made from Indigo (from India) and Pericón (from Mexico). This garment is inspired by two countries that I have had the opportunity to spend much time in!

The storm has passed, the sky is turning blue and the sun is beginning to shine! The tallest of the sunflowers survived the wind and rain and the fifth bud bloomed - what a resilient plant. Others did fall, some bent and some even got tangled up. Once things dry off I will detangle and try to upright the fallen plants. The rest of the garden is fine - all the beds got a good soaking.

Tropical Storm Debby is on the way!! It is already raining. We are expecting the worst of it on Thursday & Friday!
I wanted to share this picture I took just before the rain began. This Hopi Sunflower is close to 10 feet tall. It has four flower heads and a bud ready to open. Not sure if it will survive Debby’s wind and rain!

Playing with Maya Blue screen printing paste on cotton fabric!!
Fun Sunday afternoon!!

Today I began selecting which sunflower heads I want to save. 1-gallon paint strainer mesh bags are perfect. The mesh bags will protect the heads as they continue to mature and the seeds ripen. They let in the sun, are breathable and I can reuse them next year. I am saving the largest heads, but the majority of the sunflowers will be for the birds, and bees, and butterflies😊

Picnic table!!!

Yesterday in the late afternoon, I watched the Gold Finches from my kitchen window as they flitted in and out of the Sunflowers! Here are some fun pictures showing what tidy eaters they are. The first one I took this morning and the others in the early evening. Look at the beautiful structure of the sunflower.

And here come the Marigolds!! These are Mexican Marigolds or Aztec Marigolds (Tagetes erecta). Not yet ready for harvesting- the flowers will reach 3 inches across when ready. I dry the petals and soon they will be available they make a very strong dye!

Here is the result of yesterday’s dyeing! Again this is Cutch Extract on handwoven cotton (muslin) from India. How did I get this color? Cutch does not need a mordant, but you can use a mordant as a color changer or assist. After scouring I soaked the fabric in Aluminum Triformate for 3 days. It didn’t need to soak that long - it just kept raining!! After rinsing the fabric it went into the fridge in a plastic bag while I waited for the rain to stop. Finally I could begin to dye. I made a very strong dye-bath and after two hours removed the fabric, added hydrogen peroxide and reintroduced the fabric to the dyebath. The hydrogen peroxide deepens the color. My plans for the fabric will be revealed soon😊 Cutch Extract is available https://www.theyarntree.com/collections/natural-dyes-plant-materials-bugs-and-extracts/products/natural-dyes-cutch-extract

Over the last few days between rainstorms and sometimes in the rain I managed to put up 66feet of fencing to support the sunflowers!! As the heads get heavier they need to be supported not only could they fall over but the stalks could break! There was already a fence one side, now the sunflowers are well supported!!

Finally a day without rain! I can do a little backyard dyeing! I love being able to work outside - so nice when the weather cooperates.This is for a personal project. I am dyeing very, very fine handwoven cotton that I carried back from India. I am dyeing it with cutch. That is all I am saying for now😊

The Gold Finches are here! Difficult to photograph - this pic is from last year. The males are the colorful ones. They have been coming in pairs, and may be building nests nearby. When they fly across the yard all I can see are streaks of bright yellow! - they are quick!