Indigo intermission

Uncovered - Banjara blocks, 

hiding in a basket.   

I just love these little pieces.  They are completely

covered in hand stitching, not a peep of foundation

fabric.   Top right is about 4" square, stitched with

chain and close herringbone stitch, with the

addition of tiny white beads.

Pole wrapping

Indigo sessions still ongoing.  An hour or two every day, 

preparing cloth in between times.   The vat is a good one,

producing some very nice cloth.

Samples of pole wrapping

very fine

wrapped with hairy string

the back is interesting too

It's late afternoon, the vat is ready to go again and I just had

to prepare another piece for hairy pole wrapping.

off to the blue yonder

Blue

blue flowers

blue vat

set up in the 'blue house'.   This morning was warm and bright,

then cloudy - would there be a thunder storm?  Just in case,

 I chose to set the vat under cover.  When I finished for the day

the temp inside was hot, hot, hot, and not a cloud in the sky.

at the end of the day

still doing their thing on the washing line

I have a pile of stitched, bound and wrapped cloth to sort

in the morning.  Also dyed were six damask table cloths,

plus two vintage linen cloths, with embroidery and lace.

I like this

One vintage cloth on the line.  The lace is over the line.

Nice image with the sun shinning through the cloth.

Despite trying not to get covered in indigo, I did, especially

my feet.  Will I ever learn?  Probably not.   Out with the

scrubbing brush, we have been invited out tonight.  

e is for elephant

Last week I spent most of the time just stitching.

A small bag for a workshop in September at Hansons,

Sturminster Newton.  The first thought was machine

applique, though this could be a problem for students

not familiar with free machine work.  This little project

will take a while, and there is absolutely nothing wrong

with that, except  sometimes students want to go

home with a finished project.  Not possible!

Hours of enjoyment ahead.

Freezer paper applique, ages since I have been so

precise, really works well with this little elephant

shape.   The whole bag is covered in hand stitching,

one shisha makes an appearance and lots of sequins.

It's finished off with a strap and tassels. Ready to go,

but first I must write up instructions.

Next up stitching cloth for the Indigo vat.   The sun 

programmed to shine  and the temperature is perfect.

Must take advantage this week, the weather might

just change, after all we have Easter weekend, then

The Wedding, plus two Bank Holiday Mondays.

All events add up to a recipe for a downpour of 

the wet stuff.

On Saturday it was the first of the summer workshops.  

Last year students requested a workshop on getting to know

your sewing machine.   Such a voyage of discovery!  

Now to grab a length of cloth, needle and thread.

Spring

and with it comes the usual desire to clean and discard

It was a hard winter although, amazingly, the garden is bursting out

all over.   All the plants are putting on a grand show, maybe in 

celebration of the turning of the season.   The weather is fabulous,

too nice to stay indoors.   I spent most of last week weeding, 

tidying, enjoying the spring flowers, and noticing the new 

new growth all around.   Repotting my orchids, a job that

really needed doing - they are looking very happy now.

Then there are the car boot sales.   Grand to be sitting in a field.

 in the sun, selling 'stuff' we have inherited over the years.

There's the bone chine tea set that belonged to Keith's grandmother.

It lived in a cupboard, waiting for a special occasion.  Over the years,

in different cupboards, the tea set came to rest, in a cardboard

box, in our garage.  It has never seen the light of day, let alone

a splash of tea, or a crumb of cake.   It was bought by a

gentleman who is getting married in the summer.   The

reception is to be a 'Mad Hatters' tea party.  What a great

idea, and what fun for the lonely tea set.

The house and garage feel 'lighter' already.  I dream of

finding even more stuff to get rid off. Having said that, the

Big Shed has enough full cardboard boxes to keep us in

in car boot sales for weeks.

I am pleased to say that, thus far, I have only made one

purchase - a beautiful old garden trug.  That's not to say this

will be my only buy.   Trying not to investigate other people's

tables is a tough one! One man's junk is another's treasure etc.

So.......another sunny day in a field.