Happy New Year…New Hope…New Work…

Hearts are common motifs on early works in textiles, clay, paper, wood, metal and stone.
A frequent element in my work, I pleased to offer some new pieces for sale.

Timely for Valentine’s Day gift giving, to me hearts symbolize so much more than love & friendship.
I see empathy, gratitude, kindness, self-care, sympathy, unity…all good qualities to cultivate in these tumultuous times ♥

I’ve got some larger scale work in progress, but I seem to be favoring smaller pieces these days. Find these and more here Many Thanks for taking time to read my little note!

Wishing you and yours all the best in 2021 ♥

Be Well, Be Kind ~ Laurie

A lovely surprise…

A few days ago I was tidying up the bottom shelf on the potting bench were I do my backyard dyeing. My nest of old enamel pans needed a good scrubbing…

Now, I admit to being so consumed these past many years with caring for may Mom & Dad that many things just were left untouched…and my memory is a bit foggy…but I don’t think I’ve touched these in a couple years! 

What a delightful surprise in the bottom pan… 

5+ ounces of lovely dried marigolds! 

I do remember dropping a handful in the pan after a walk thru the garden and dead-heading. But usually I have a basket or handful of mixed blooms… zinnia, marigold, coreopsis and rudbeckia 

  and that is what I’d toss in the old hen basket! 

Again, I have no idea how long this mess has been accumulating… 

So it was definitely time to stew it up! 

Oh so lovely… 

  Today I’m firing up the pots to stew up the old marigolds… 

Hope you will visit again to see the results…

Be well, be safe, be kind, be creative ~L

Another Tuesday from the backyard…

Hello Everyone…
We’ve had lovely…almost “fallish” weather here on the northern prairie…
A delightful break from the hot and humid!

I’ve spent many days in the backyard…dyeing, gardening, hooking, reading…
our winters are so long, I like to take advantage of every moment outdoors…
to store it up…to savor it.

I was responding to an email form my friend Kris
(many of you have met her…she’s my right-hand at many events)
She’s not on social media, but I think occasionally pops in here to see what I’m up to;)

Usually by this time of year we would have had many coffees, lunches, garden tours, road trips and a few dye sessions together…
But, then, these are not USUAL times.

Anyway…as I typed my note to Kris, I realized it would be a great recap to share with you on the blog!

“Yes, I’ve been playing in the pots. My friend Karen sold her house. I was helping her pack and move. I’ve become the foster yard for her eclectic statuary and odd garden art. While hauling it out of her yard, I step on a walnut…then I saw them all over the ground! Isn’t this WAY EARLY?? I took half of a 13 gal kitchen size plastic bag…hoping the bag wouldn’t rip. Interesting shades from these. I’ve done both no mordant and alum/cot…then…
decided to cut down the stinging nettles I planted in the older washer. They were starting to flower and didn’t want to risk missing it and letting them go to seed. Enough for a tiny skein of super fine merino (alum/cot)…then did an iron after dip…on a tiny black walnut too…”

“I finally got around to stewing up the Tansy you gave me…gosh I don’t remember how long ago…”

Am I the only one who loves the smell of Tansy?
…it’s delightful.

"And the Japanese Knotweed is waiting…When can you come over to play?
This is one pot that I couldn’t find room for in the beds!"

I’ll be listing plant-dyed wools in the Etsy Shop soon…I working on some sweet bundles!

Stay well, stay safe, be kind, be creative
~L

A Little Backyard Dyeing...

One of my favorite plants to dye with is Coreopsis.
This is "Solanna ~ Golden Sphere"...not as hardy here as Tickseed, but it has the loveliest blossoms and I adore the colors it yields on wool.

Today I've been mordanting more wool fabric and yarn...

I use Alum and Cream of Tartar as my mordants on wool.

I'm still boiling up Black Walnuts...it's been a good year
tho' it seems so EARLY this year...
nothing is normal;)

simmering some wool fabric and yarns in black walnut, along with some osnaburg and cotton velvet I plan to use for eco-printing!
I'll show you those when they are dry...so stop back!

My bench box and pattern book arrived today...

All the patterns are WONDERFUL...
and the quality of the bench box is amazing...
I'm thrilled to have contributed to the ATHA Biennial KC 2021 Fundraiser!

I've had my pattern drawn on linen ever since I submitted it for the pattern booklet...
I need to get hooking.

I know that i'm using Black Walnut dyed wool for the background...and I've got some scraps of my Attic Blue...a mix of Saxon Blue...a weaker indigo and Cutch...maybe some paisley...

So please stop back to see my progress...
~ Laurie

PS...If you are interested in ordering the pattern book and/or bench box...see my previous post...or see the August/September issue of ATHA magazine!

Stitch Therapy…My Changing World

There is something healing about stitching…or really any handwork.
Something about busy hands that free the mind to wonder
…to meditate…to pray
tiny stitches…like tears…

This piece, also known as Mending a Breaking Heart
began by stitching leftover scraps from my natural plant dyed wool journal
in a mosaic fashion onto a Osnaburg and cotton batting base.

This was really a “therapy stitch”...quiet, tiny stitches
as I contemplated my Mom starting hospice and my son graduating college and moving to NY.

These are the hands that taught me everything…

It’s just over a month now that Momma’s been gone…
so many changes this year…for me
and many in my circle…
some happy…some sad…some both at the same time.

and so I’ll continue adding stitches…
♥ ~ L

Ah, Spring...fresh wools...

just add to the Etsy Shop...
my naturally ~ plant hand-dyed wool...
marigold...goldenrod...fustic...saxon blue...brazilwood...lac...madder...

...and looking forward to a new gardening season...
this past weekend I planted seeds for this year's dye garden, still to early here for getting in the beds... but soon little sprouts will appear under the grown lights:)

Until next time, Laurie

Waning Summer Days...Autumn Hook-In info...and more...

Our weather is shifting...
I was lucky to escape the city heat this past weekend and spend time with my dear friend at her cabin. The butterflies...and bees loved this sedum plant.
The lake was warmer than it had been when I was there in July and we spent a lot of time in the water!

Yesterday another sweet friend brought me some of the bounty from her fabulous gardens...

Here is some Hops I started simmering this morning. Isn't it a pretty plant? I've never liked the smell or taste of beer ( now wine is another story! ) I'm so glad it smells like green beans cooking.

Looks like it will be a soft apricot color on the wool...but we will see;)

After the storms that blew threw yesterday and overnite, our weather has shifted towards Autumn...time to finish the scrappy quilt I've been hand piecing while sitting and visiting my folks at the nursing home. I have to keep my hands busy...and so, this is kind of my therapy blanket!

Between checking the dyepot and packing orders, I've been pressing the quilt top. I've picked out a soft antique-y cotton flannel for the back. Once I get it basted with a lightweight cotton batting, I will hand quilt it with Valdani #12 Perle Cotton.

If you are near, I hope you'll stop by and visit me at the Autumn Valley Hook-In in Stillwater, Minnesota on Saturday October 6th...

Wishing you all a wonderful last week of Summer, Laurie

Bee Runner Finale and Morning Visitor...

One of the HAPPIEST rugs I've ever hooked. I designed Bee Runner as a showcase for the my adventures in natural dyeing.
A much softer palette than my normal work...I'm embracing and loving it!
Linen patterns for Bee Runner will be in the Etsy Shop and on the website later TODAY;)

Well hello...

a morning visit from this 4 Horned Sphinx (Elm) Moth Caterpillar...
Wishing you a lovely Saturday, Laurie

Happy Independence Day!

My post today is not about fireworks, picnics or parades…
it’s about the magic in my dye pots…

Natural dyeing…or as I prefer to call it Plant Dyeing is a SLOW process, often spanning several days. I want to coax every bit of loveliness nature has to offer out of each plant.

To begin, I mordant the wool in alum and cream of tartar, then wash and dry it to have ready for the gardens bounty. I harvest a bit each day and save until enough for a dye run. A good ratio of plant material to wool is 1:1…so to dye a fat quarter of wool it takes about 3 to 4 ounces of plant material…that’s a lot of blossoms;) The 1st run gives rich, saturated colors. Subsequent runs yield softer values that sometime shift in color. Playing with modifiers often dramatically… magically changes things.

I’ll be back soon with results from run #3

Wishing you a magical, safe and happy 4th
~ Laurie

Morning Harvest...

Evening WOOL...

~ Laurie

Merry Solstice...

A quick peek of what's on my rug frame...
"Thank the Bees" runner...
I'm hooking it with my naturally, plant-dyed wools...
Thank YOU Bees:)

Hope you have a beautiful day...I'm heading back to the gardens!
~Laurie

After the hook-in...

Autumn Valley Hook-In
Stillwater, Minnesota
Saturday October 7, 2017

I didn't have time to take photos, but Cathy over at Orange Sink came, she's a great photographer...see her post here

The past few days have been spent unpacking and putting things back together in the studio.
It's tight here...I've still got boxes of my folks stuff to sort through...they are filling up our very limited storage...
but...I'm making-do;)

Last evening I began listing my new, Hand-Plant-Dyed wool in the Etsy shop.
I'll being listing more wool over the next few days!

Dyed in small batches, these gorgeous fat quarters are truly one of a kind and won't be listed on the main website, just in the Etsy shop...or in person at the studio.

The studio is open by appointment. I'm still not able to have "regular" hours.

We got a bit of frost overnight...glad I picked the last of the peppers

...it was an amazing plant yielding over 20 peppers

Some of theses are tiny compared to the ones I've been eating this past month...but they are still sweet and delicious!

I'll be back soon...
I've been invited to teach at Rug Week 2018 in Sauder Village...I'll share all the details in the next post!

Thanks for visiting ~ Laurie