Fleece!

A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to go and see some friends sheep have their haircut! And to be given EIGHT fleeces...! 

Me with April - a rather LARGE lamb...!

Ian and Neroli have ten sheep - a mixture of coloured Ryelands (the brown ones – with black tongues!) and Lleyn / texel cross (the white ones). I've never seen this being done up close before so was really interested in the process and how long it takes. 

The shearing process. Richard, who has been shearing sheep for the past eight years, wears special moccasins during shearing as they are softer and offer a better grip. This means he actually has a better sense of the ground and where the sheep is that he's shearing. He and his partner, Lisa, have around 90 customers.

It was pretty quick!

They seemed much happier afterwards - the sheep that is - as it's been VERY hot the past few weeks, so I'm sure they must be pleased! I also took a short film - 

Here’s what I found on wiki about Ryelands: 

The Ryeland breed is over 800 years old and the wool from the breed is known as ‘Leominister Ore.’ 

The Ryeland is one of the oldest of British sheep breeds going back seven centuries when the monks of Leominster in Herefordshire bred sheep and grazed them on the rye pastures, giving them their name. It was introduced into Australia in 1919 and classified as an endangered breed by the Rare Breeds Trust of Australia and also are one of the nine heritage breeds[1] that were the foundation of the sheep and wool industry in Australia. 

They were considered to have the finest wool of all British breeds of the time. Queen Elizabeth I was given 'Lemster' wool stockings and liked them so much that from then on she insisted only on 'Lemster' Ryeland wool. 

An Elizabethan observer wrote that 'among short-wools, Ryeland has pre-eminence with Leominster as the centre of its trade'.

And a bit about the Lleyn Sheep (from the Lleyn sheep society) 

Lleyn sheep originate from the Lleyn peninsula in Wales and until recently were a relatively unfamiliar breed of sheep in the UK. Over the past 10 years the Lleyn breed has caught the eye of many farmers, and now Lleyn sheep can be found almost all over Britain & Ireland.

Farmers soon find that the Lleyn is an ideal ewe, quiet in nature, prolific, has great maternal instincts, milky and will not eat you out of house and home. The Lleyn fits in to many situations and its versatility suits both lowland and upland grazing.  (Makes you want to rush out and buy one!!)

Since getting the fleeces, which wouldn't actually fit in my car!! (I had underestimated how big they were). I have so far washed five of the eight. I won't lie - it's hard work. I’ll do another post on that as I think it warrants one.

So what exactly am I going to DO with these fleeces?? 

Well I’d like to convert some to wool and then make a jumper, use some to weave with to create some cloth and finally make a rug for my home! (that’s the plan anyway!!) 

some interesting facts about wool..Thanks to Twitter and Campaign for Real Wool!

• The Country that producers the most wool is China, with Australia close second. 
• According to IWTO Statistics the UK exports 13 million kg and imports 16 million kg annually
• Fleece weights are normally between 2.2 –2.5 kg each, 2.2 kg being a good average but the weight can vary from 1 kg to 6 kg 

Oh yes - I also milked a cow!! ;-0

And finally - in this clip. Boy are they noisy! Listen out for 'Korma's' baaa. Sounds like he's a smoker...!

It was a brilliant afternoon and I'm really grateful I had the opportunity to see it happening!

A Dinner to Dye For

or - why just eat your local veg when you can dye with it too!

on Saturday 01 June I was lucky enough to get myself a ticket for ‘Dinner to Dye For’ – a natural dyeing workshop and dinner in Bethnal Green, London– (which I’d heard about after meeting a lady in Frome earlier this year).

The event was held in Oxford House, a real gem of a building, we were right at the top – in the old chapel, which made for a magical location. 

Oxford House - up in the chapel. The location for the event...

The event, which was part of The Chelsea Fringe, is the brain child of Katelyn Toth-Fejel, co-founder of The Permacouture Institute. Katelyn is on a mission to show the world just what can be achieved by using natural dyes. 

Its something that everyone can have a go at, as you can create colour by using items in your kitchen. Onion skins being a prime example. These papery sleeves can create the most amazing yellow. Not what I expected at all! Just seeing the variety of colours all laid out for us like jewels was exciting – and we’d not even started the workshop yet!

Katelyn, originally from Portland, Oregon, founded the institute with a friend in San Francisco after studying textiles and happening upon the magical effects of natural dyes during one of her projects.

Katelyn (right) and Anna (who was assisting her) -
explaining how natural dyes work

Katelyn had been questioning the sustainability and environmental impact of synthetic dyes and was surprised that even though the question of where the fabric was coming from, not many people on her course were actually looking at how the fabrics were being dyed and the impact of dyes. So after discovering what could be achieved using plants alone, she decided to learn everything she could about using natural dyes and that’s how it began.

To start we were given an introduction to the history of dying and how up until 1856 only natural plant dyes were used. A chance discovery by William Henry Perkin, while searching for a cure for malaria, actually discovered the first synthetic dye stuff "Mauve" (aniline, a basic dye) and a new industry was begun and everything changed.

A table of exciting and colourful samples!

As many of the original dying recipes were closely guarded secrets, a lot of our history and knowledge of recipes for natural dyes has been lost as they weren't passed down, or even written down – so a lot of what is know today has been as a result of re-learning and experimentation.  

We learnt that you can achieve many more colours that you would expect (the preconception that they will all be 50 shades of brown – was quickly dispelled – as Kathryn showed us a colour chart of natural dyes, and just looking around at the samples on display it was clear to see that there was actually a huge scope for experiment! *hurrah*

Samples..

Then came a demonstration of how to dye our fabric. We were all given some ‘wild’ silk as apparently natural plant dyes work better and give a stronger colour on natural animal fibers – so silk and wool. You can dye cotton and linen but that requires a slightly different process which we didn't really cover on this course.

A number of large pots were brought in, each with a different dye bath – Yellow Onion skins, Elder leaves, Dock Root and Marigold flowers. Then it was time to have a go!

Getting stuck in!

We used Allum as a mordant – this ‘fixes’ the dye to the fabric, although some plants are natural mordants so the addition isn't always required. Rhubarb and Oak are just two examples.  Also learnt that oak used to be used to make black ink!

My silk piece dyed with yellow onion skins. I was impressed with the colour

An example of marigold flower dye on silk

Examples of what was created!

After having made some testers, we went out on a walk around the local park to see how many things are available to dye with. And there is a surprising amount. Here’s just a short list of what can be used. Of course don’t go pulling up wild plants without permission if not in your garden, and also if using bark – look for bark that’s on the ground – and don’t peel it off a tree as that will actually kill them eventually. ..;-( and we love trees!

• ·   Onion skins – bright yellow
• ·   red onion skins – olive colour
•     apple bark & leaves –  various greens
• ·    lichens – various yellows and greens
• ·    elder leaves – bright greeny yellow
•      dock root – pink colour and is photosensitive so the colour can be changed with the addition of either an acid e.g vinegar or alkali  e.g soda crystals (very cool!)
• ·   Hawthorn leaves - green
• ·   Silver birch - pinky

The list is actually pretty long and it is also possible to dye in different ways . Either creating a dye ‘bath’ where you heat up the roots/bark/leaves in water as we did on the workshop or by using whole leaves and actually getting a ‘print’ from the leave itself, a technique used by artist India Flint. I’m looking forward to trying that!

On our return we were greeted with a delicious elderflower cocktail (the elderflowers having been picked only the day before) and the workspace had been transformed into a beautiful dining room. We sat down and were then served the most delicious dinner created by Johanna and Bogna of Soppka. It was a feast for the eyes as well as the mouth! Delicious...

Dinner time!

The menu...

So beautifully presented.. and my so tasty!

I met so many great people during this workshop and dinner and learnt so many things to try out for myself. As a result I’m now looking at my garden and the landscape around me in a completely new light and asking each plant or tree I see – What COLOUR are YOU!?

Watch this space for my own experiments! I'd love to hear about any of your natural dying experiences? What's worked - what hasn't? and any books that you'd recommend? 

I have found these interesting links:

http://www.straw.com/sig/dyehist.html

Natural Dye artist – India Flint

Half way!

Wow. so half way through a year of not buying any new clothes. Whoo Hoo! 

MASSIVE well done to every single one of you also taking part! 

So how's it going?

Well, some ups and downs.

I started with LOADS of energy and really got into it, but by February must admit to having worn myself out just a tad. 

I've made somethings which I wouldn't have if I'd not started this project. And even though I might not have made as much as I would have liked to - I'm still going to congratulate myself for what I've done so far. 

It is so easy to focus on the 'have nots' - but scrap that *$%*£!$ - lets see what's good! 

So here we go...A top 10..in no particular order!!

1. Made a nightshirt - which I still really like
2. Learnt some new skills - inc. using my button foot - hurrah!
3. Made a pillowcase dress for 'Dress-a-girl around the world
4. Discovered I'm a pear shape and had my colours done
5. *Tried* making two dresses - but realised I was being over ambitious so have gone back to basics!
6. Finished a top I'd been meaning to for the past three years..And have already worn it to a gig!
7. Altered a dress I bought from a charity shop last year
8. Started researching Flawns of St.Ives where my mum worked in the 60s
9. Been inspired by the amazing creations by those who are taking part in this challenge - check out the pinterest board: http://pinterest.com/morwhenna/love-what-you-wear-project-i-made-this/
10. Saved money! (am not sure exactly how much - so will work that out!) & had FUN!

I've also created a short 'half-way survey' to find out exactly how everyone else has been getting on and will share their fabulous achievements over the next few days. Hurrah!

Here's a link to the survey: Half way survey!

This is really a short post to stop and look at what we've all achieved so far and to have a think about the next six months - which is what I'm doing now with a glass of wine in hand! 

Finally - Part 2!

The pattern I used

And here's the other project I finished this weekend (after it being around unfinished for the best part of around three years!!) So it felt really, really good to finally get it finished. 

I used a New Look pattern - design E and used fabric from a men's shirt, not sure if you can see the thin red stripes very clearly? See the pocket on the back - thought that added an interesting if impractical detail! Good place for some secret chocolate as Hilary from Lemon Loves suggested! 

And am really pleased with how it has turned out. The bits I had to finish off were sewing in the sleeves and adding a popper and button at the back as the trim I used wasn't actually long enough to make a loop so I improvised. It didn't actually take me that long to finish once I put my mind to it and now I have a new top to wear! Hurrah!

Front and back of finished top! Hurrah!  hmm seems to highlight the fact I've been eating way too make cakes though...! oops! Say why aren't I smiling in this picture?!! ;-0 

I'll certainly use this pattern again - and think I'll make a variation of it, maybe the one without the sleeves as I have some patterned linen that used to be a skirt that I think would work. 

Yippee! Going back to simple sewing projects has given me a perk to get back on the sewing horse.  

How many unfinished jobs have you got lying around? - don't panic - don't mean that to overwhelm you - but why not pick one and finish it? It feels soooo good! 

Finally!

I am chuffed to say/show that I have finally finished TWO projects this weekend that have been hanging around for AGES! In fact one of them was started around three years ago...oops..

The first one I decided to attack was to alter a stripy dress I'd bought from a charity shop last year. I loved the colour and stripes but the shape didn't really suit me..Stick of rock anyone? 

I cut off part of the bottom, using the stripes as a guide and hand stitched (as I don't have a machine needle for jersey fabric yet) the hem whist watching tv!

L-R The original dress, now after cutting off a big piece can be worn either as a shorter dress or as a skirt!

I'm really pleased with how it has turned out. I think I prefer the skirt version - or will at least need something over the top of the dress (or under it for a bit of a 'boost' ;-). I even put my sun hat on in the hope that this will mean we will now get some sunshine!!

In fact I have the large off-cut to make into something else - so will have a play around with that..any ideas?

Off-cut - what shall I make with this?

I'll share my other project tomorrow...can't have too much excitement in one day! ;-0

The Shirt Scarf

My sewing adventures have been perked up somewhat by the arrival on our screens of the BBC2 programme - The Great British Sewing Bee. Hurrah! Are you watching it too? What do you think?

(plus that fact I was going to be giving a talk/demo on 'how many things can you make from a men's shirt?' - to a craft club - so I wanted to make a another thing to go with my current collection!)

So I got my machine out and wanted to have a play around and not be focused on making up a pattern. So going 'Freestyle' if you like!

Looking at the pile of shirt off-cuts I have - I thought I know! I'll make a scarf! I'd seen some patchwork kinda scarves recently so thought I would have a go at making my own. 

First I chose my colours. I had three to start with - but then decided I would stick to the two - stripes and plain. And would use a nice orange thread to jazz it up a bit. 

What to do with these off cuts?

Then I looked at the scarfs I already had to decide on the width and length. I went for 18inches / 45cm for the width - and length wise decided to see how I went until I got the length I liked - or ran out of material!.

So I ironed and then cut a load of 'panels' of different depths..

laying out the panels

And laid them out in a rough design. Made me think of a cityscape so had a bit of a play when sewing on the panels..

Experimenting with a 'cityscape' design

plus I made it so that it could be worn either way - so one side looks 'deconstructed' so can have two different looks. (I'll post a pic of me or someone wearing it when I get a decent picture!)

Finished scarf - side 1

Finished scarf - side 2

the 'rough' or deconstructed side...

'deconstructed' side

And I used the shirt plackets to add weight and a finished edge to the scarf..

Using the shirt plackets to finish the ends

It did take me a good few hours as I enjoyed trying different stitches and I did press each seam after joining each panel. If everything was cut out and ready then it would be a nice quick project I think! 

Only thing is - I don't think the colours suit me! So might end up using it as a table runner instead...will def make another one now though - using blue stripe shirts I think. ;-)

A date at The Fashion Museum in Bath

The Bath Fashion Museum is 50 years old

A few weeks ago I took myself on a 'date' (if you've read 'An Artist's Way' by Julia Cameron - you'll know all about these kind of outings) They are an opportunity to take yourself off somewhere you want to with only yourself to please!

So I decided to go to the Bath Fashion Museum.

If you are a BANES resident you can apply for a discovery card and that gives you free access to this museum - as well as lots of other things! So it's well worth getting one.

This isn't actually somewhere I would have gone prior to starting this project - but thought it would be an interesting place to visit and see what they had on display. I didn't take the audio tour on this occasion as I just wanted to have a looksee!

The museum is housed in the basement of The Bath Assembly Rooms on Bennett Street and I was surprised by how much there is actually to see there and learn. Seeing that I do have a rather short attention span - I looked at the things that stood out for me this time - and will go back to look at things in more detail! Here's just a few of the things that caught my eye...

2011 Dress of the Year  

The Dress of the Year 2011

The website says: 

'One of the stunning gowns which sparked a media frenzy over who would design Kate Middleton’s wedding dress has been unveiled as the Dress of the Year 2011 at Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Fashion Museum. 

The ivory tulle bodice of the dress is fully embroidered with 3D organza feathers. Each feather is individually hand crafted, fully or partially embroidered with silver and white thread and bullion. The gown has an organza skirt consisting of 31 panels, hand embroidered with miniature eagle motifs using silver and white bullion.'

Dress of the Year 2011 is from Sarah Burton's
Fall 2011 collection for Alexander McQueen
Sarah Burton designed Kate Middleton - The Duchess of Cambridge's Wedding Dress    

It was a shame I couldn't actually get any closer to the dress to really see and appreciate the details - and see what a '3D organza feather' actually is!

17th Century Gloves

These leather gloves also stood out due to the unnaturally long fingers. They are from the 17th century and the exaggerated long, slender fingers were to meet the fashionable ideals of the period.  Those with “average” fingers tend to be functional, work gloves! 

So they really conveyed your standing in society and said that person didn't have to do any work with their hands. 

The gloves are part of a collection currently on display - which all have the most amazing intricate embroidery detailing on them.

There were also shoes and other accessories on display!

1970s Dress

Then I spotted this 1970s dress mainly due to the fact I liked the neckline! And it made me think of the dress I'm currently trying to make and whether or not I can 'mix and match' the patterns to make something more like this....

I've also seen on the website that you can book a 'study session' to look at particular items in more detail which I think would be a brilliant thing to do and something I will do next time I plan on going there.

oooh and I also had lunch at The Bertinet Bakery & Cafe - they do the most AMAZING almond croissants!


A very interesting afternoon out!

I'm already planning where to take myself on my next 'date'!

Have you taken yourself anywhere recently? Where did you go and what did you do?