New Pajama Top

I had less than exciting results from my leftover dyeing experiment. I got lighter colors than I expected, and the color didn’t show at all on my skirt.

The shirt dyed okay, but the embroidery seems out of place now. After I got the dye rinsed, I found a small hole near the center of the shirt. Too small to show in the photo, but noticeable enough in person. I think I will patch the hole and turn it into a pajama top.

The rest of the dye will get tossed, and I will start fresh the next time I do some dyeing.

Dyeing Experiments

I dyed a skirt a few years ago, and have hardly worn it. It’s a bit bright, and the colors are uneven and splotchy without any distinct patterning. I thought maybe I could improve it with over-dying. I should get some vertical patterning the way I’ve tied it.

I thought I might also improve this shirt. I think it’s probably a cotton/poly blend. I’ll see what happens.

I’m also testing out leftover dye from April. I thought maybe it would still be good. I’ve read that dye has a pretty long shelf life as long as it isn’t mixed with soda ash. But then I noticed an ammonia smell which wasn’t there in April. Info found on Paula Burch’s website says an ammonia smell means the urea has begun to break down and the dyes are no longer useful. I will find out tomorrow. I will likely need to do it all over with a fresh batch of dye.

Succulent Persistence

Succulents tend to be pretty hardy, often thriving even when they don’t get the best of care. Despite their hardiness, I managed to kill off a small potted one a few months ago. The top rosette still looked like it had some life left in it, even though the roots either rotted or dried up. I tried rooting it in with a different houseplant. My attempts at reviving it failed, so I threw away the dried up leaves. I seem to have missed one leaf. Look what’s happening now, with no help from me except some occasional watering.

Gluf is Born

Gluf is another creature inspired by the “Stupid Sock Creature” book. Camilla created him last week. She learned to use the sewing machine to sew the long seams on the arms. The rest of him is hand sewn. He has four arms, three eyes, and a wacky hairdo made from toe socks. He insisted on a hat made from leftover sock fabric.

The green pillow behind him is one I made about 30 years ago when I was about Camilla age.

Block of the Month & Strip Quilting

This month’s block of the month for the Piecemakers guild was to be done in gold colors. I stayed with a relatively “safe” color scheme this time. Last month one of my blocks did stand out quite a bit from the others (I wonder if it will be used). I played around a bit with the arrangement in anticipation that I might go home with the blocks. Set together in straight rows and columns would result in a diamond pattern. Offsetting the columns by half a block creates some interesting possibilities. Someone else went home with a dozen or so blocks.

We played “strip poker” at the meeting this week. This involves no stripping, and it isn’t even really poker. Everyone comes with a set of 2½ inch strips of fabric. A very simple card game is played, which involves absolutely no strategy. Everyone has fun, and everyone goes home with an assortment of fabric strips.

I found a few strips from last year to re-play, and had to cut a few more to go with them. My daughter came with me this month, so I had to cut some strips for her also.

I decided to actually do something with my strips this year, so I began piecing some blocks. I found some more strips after I began, so I have quite an assortment of strips. I don’t know yet how big it will be. I will stop when I run out of strips, or I decide it’s big enough.

Pincushion Wildflowers

I was surprised to find large drifts of purple wildflowers in the local hills. They are mostly dry brown grass by June. I think these are a variety of pincushion flowers. This spot is just a short drive away, and was a nice weekend stroll.