Friday, January 21, 2011

Long Days


When I finished exploring techniques in the studio last night, I glanced up at the clock and was shocked to see that it was 7:45!  I had worked nearly straight through from 10:00 AM, taking a very short break for lunch, and another for a cup of hot tea late in the afternoon.  Fortunately C was gone most of the day and off at an evening meeting, so he wasn't chomping at the bit to eat dinner.  I put on a pot of brown jasmine rice, popped the Tandoori-marinated chicken breasts in the oven, and jumped in the shower.  When he arrived home, he was none the wiser, and I was ecstatic to have enjoyed a great day with dye and fiber.  I realize now that I can no longer call it play, and perhaps exploration is a better term.  I'm working hard, but it really doesn't feel like work, and I'm learning a tremendous amount.  Key to all of this is taking notes and keeping fabric samples.


Above is a scarf that I completed yesterday.  You may remember it when it looked like the second photo in this post.  I like it a lot more now!  I did a lot of stamping with potato dextrin and then overdyed it all in a couple of gradations of red.  Here are a couple of detail shots:





I'm now in the process of adding a background layer to a couple more pieces, and can't wait to see how they come out.  To share how excited I am about what I'm doing, I'll tell you that I woke up at 6 this morning, almost leaping out of bed so that I could begin the washout on the piece above.  It's so much fun to see what will happen!  Even though I have a better idea these days, I'm still never really certain until the piece is washed and ironed......so that's why I keep notes!  


It is still very cold here.  In fact, even now there is snow piled along the sides of some of our streets!  My snowdrops had just begun to bloom before the storm hit (almost 2 weeks ago now):




Only one blossom was lost, which surprises me.  They are very sturdy little fellows!  Oh, and the weather folks are forecasting MORE SNOW for our area on Monday!  ARGH!!!


Another favorite tree:




There is a beautiful old oak along my drive home from the gym.  I must remember to take a picture of it to share with you.  I need to refresh my brain on how to PhotoShop out the tree branches to the right in this picture!


PEACE

6 comments:

Eva Hagbjärn said...

Lovely colors on your new scarf!
We have had a little bit warmer weather here the last week, so most of the snow went away very fast, but now it's colder again. Hopfully we don't get any more snow this winter.

Kram

Jeannie said...

You are certainly in the flow of creativity. I love the subtle textures and the colors. I love days like you had and I am amazed at how it is a different kind of tired at the end of the day. Have a great weekend.

Diana Angus said...

I have converted to note taking as well. Still do not cut pieces of fabric to add to the notes. I vow to do this more.

You inspired me to buy Lisa K's DVD. I just watched it and my brain is exploding with ideas! I will have to go down to my studio (near the furnace in the basement) and start making potions!

Your scarves are beautiful enough to dive into! Thanks for sharing all that you do!

Diana in Ohio

Vicki W said...

It sounds like you had a perfect day! The scarf is beautiful.

Carol said...

Lovely scarf. So nice to see snowdrops, especially today when the temperature is unbearably hot. In this country of mine where huge parts are flooded, I'd love it to rain, just a little bit. xox

Linda’s Textiles said...

Gorgeous scarf - well done you!