couldn't help being distracted by this one. it was looking right at me. wrapped around my new pet rock. an old cotton dishcloth mordanted with stale soy milk. better than throwing it out. i am still trying to get away from the botanical print look but still employ the marvelous techniques inspired by india flint, to color and pattern cloth in my own way. a group of beasts is what i am after at the moment. the eyes are coming from marigolds positioned right over the screw that holds the steamer basket together in the center. the butterfly is onion skins cut to shape. the green is from some left over indigo leaves. there are still a few stubby plants outside. as the cloth dried, the brown became a warmer shade. i steamed this one so the bottom of the rock bundle was in walnut and oak juice and the top was above the liquid. i won't be cooking any more of them until it is cold enough to use the wood stove. in the meantime i can experiment with stitch on this one.
i think i answered my own question about why we might dye cloth. for me i think it is about learning more about cloth and perhaps stretching the story of cloth a bit. doing things from scratch helps you understand so many things. the Man asked last night, could we grow cotton here? wow imagine that? still i think a sheep might be easier. anybody ever spin cat hair? ha!
today i really like this, watch the videos...
and this...
