Sunday, September 11, 2011

More, more, MORE!

Saffron to Red!  Yep, got it.  Mala project, next version.  After the yellow got overrun by everything else with the first run, I decided to do another set.   (I need a direct pipeline to fabric from Dharma -- I'll be ordering more soon!)

This time, I decreased the concentration of the red and added 2 cc increments (yes, using a syringe) to each bag.   As you can see the first and last colors are very different, but the in-betweens are a gentle gradation.  Exactly what I wanted.

Last weekend, I had an A-HA moment.  Most weekends, I have dinner with my best friend, and we watch Netflix.   But I had become intrigued with a story I read on line about the Nangchen Nuns of Tibet.  These Buddhist women have an incredible story, now a feature-length documentary entitled Blessings.  As I watched this incredibly beautiful story, I realized that the colors I was seeking are the colors of their robes, which made the project all the more special.  And the next day, I dyed them.

Now to complete the saffron to blue run.  The first one was a bit too yellow, so back to the dye pots today.  Stay tuned!

Saturday, September 3, 2011

More Hand Dyes....

Last weekend, I started dyeing fabrics for a new project.  Being in a new office building certainly requires a new quilt (at least in my mind!)... and since our focus walls are a warm grey/blue, I want to bring some yellow in for a pop of color. 

The gradation was supposed to be more yellow based but the red and blue overran the yellow in a big way!  The photo shows 20 gradations, but no yellow to be found, even though it was the base of each mix.

Back to the dye pots today.... more yellow, less red and blue.  Actually the colors are great, but not what I intended ...  oh, yeah, they will get used....

My last big dye run (20 yards) is finally almost used up.  With the help of a friend, we dyed 20 yards of blue yellow gradations for my labyrinth quilt....  this year, our guild had a mystery quilt and I used most of the leftovers to create "Green Nebula" -- 66 x 66" and I thought I would never finish it!  Its hanging at the county fair right now, then it will be for sale.