My husband and I are really enjoying making the most of the National Trust sites near us, on our days off. We have never had a pass before, but think its so worth the money. Even in Autumn and Winter the flora is pretty impressive at some of these places. Here are just a few snippets of our recent trips out.
As I mentioned in a previous post I was looking into plant dyes. Avocado pits were next on my list to try - so here we have the results. I have to say I did not use any mordant ( like Alum) on the fabric beforehand. I have heard it would still make a difference in light fastness with the project. However the good thing about Avocados is it is a natural mordant!
I used 2 different pillow cases, some old bedding linen, plain spun sheep's wool and raw sheep's wool.
The results were pretty and interesting!
The pillow case on the right also had baking powder added to the dye which made the colour more orangey/ peachy and brighter.
I have been mordanting some fabric ready for the next big project - ECO PRINTING. ( treating it so the dye from the leaves will be permanent)
Another little project I did recently was plant garlic. I put a garlic bulb in some water for a few days in order to grow some roots. Then separated them into garlic cloves, and planted them outside. Shoots are coming up so I imagine in a few more months there will ( hopefully) be more garlic bulbs underneath!
Last little project I will post about is titled " I just held the ladder!..."
My friend Kim enthusasticaly came to me a while back and told me of her inspiring idea to do a Christmas window in our church, as it looks out onto the town square.. I said "Brilliant - you've got the job!" I love hearing people get inspired, and I love seeing it put into action!.. So she gathered everything together, and I basically held the ladder! It was so nice to have someone else do the "I've got an idea thing!".. and watch it come to fruition. It has a timer to come on just before sunset and go off at 12am. I think she did a brilliant job!.. Maybe you are in a season of 'holding the ladder' for someone, so their gifts or vision can shine.. its ok, the ladder is important, the person holding it is kind of important, so the fabulous person doing the project does not fall off!...and something beautiful comes out of it..
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