A Little Eco-Printing

I've been a bit preoccupied with natural dyeing this summer and going into fall. I love using local plants and extracting the dye from them and getting them to print onto textiles. I've been printing on linen, cotton, silk and wool.










I've also been using repurposed silk and linen garments to print on.

And some new socks. Aren't these fun?

Sumac, goldenrod, biddens, Queen Anne's Lace, leaves from various trees have been used. Like I said, I'm trying to use local plants to see what I can create. In the midwest, we have many plants that give color. I'm sure this winter I will be going further afield and using madder and indigo.

Above is sumac and wild sunflowers. I love how sometimes the sumac has lavender color tones to it.
Below is a sweet gum leaf. One side is more black but the other side printed a bright yellow.

I must tell you that these are some of the best prints of over two months of work. Yes, months! It is not expensive dyeing except it is labor intensive. Gathering, gathering, gathering. But I am enjoying it.

One thing that has thrown me off recently is new cria babies. Most years, I will breed 6 of my girls and 2, maybe 3 will breedings will take. But last year, all 5 of the girls I bred took! Yikes-a-hooties Batman!! I have been on baby watch. Here are the first 2 girls.

My son is a film student and is taking a photography class. He is melding his love of the packies with a new passion for photography. Here is one of his photos:

I am so looking forward to seeing more of his work! This weekend is the Weavers' Guild of St Louis' Annual  Sale and alot of my work will be offered this year. Check out their web site if you are interested in attending. Talk to you soon,  Tammy

Tequilla Sunrise

Tequilla Sunrise is the name of this tunic I made for the fashion show at Midwest. It is wet felted wool on silk in the nuno felt technique. I used up cycled silk for the trimming and vintage bakelite buttons. The china silk and silk gauze were dyed by me.

I am pleased with how this one turned out, too. The name came after the dyeing. Remember in the 80's, ok! dating some of us! when a tequilla sunrise was a fashionable drink? Doesn't the color remind you of one? It does me! lol

The back of the tunic. I used an
inverted pleat for some shaping.

A close up of the detail and the bakelite buttons.
The loose fitting wrap around tunic is fun to wear and very 'flow-ee'.

I'm thinking I might be keeping this one for myself. I need a new frock.

And lastly, the matching fascinator sitting on the front of the tunic. Yep, a hat to match.


Talk to you soon,  Tammy

 

Midwest Fiber and Folk Art Fair

So far it has been a crazy, busy summer. Things are normal
around here!
Its been hot (heat index over 100) for days now and much of our time is spent with the animals outside. Although it is hard of me physically, coping with the heat, it is a bonding time for us with the packies. They are so appreciative of a water shower!

I have had some bluebird issues. I have a few 'up-ity' sparrows that keep taking over the bluebird house and running the bluebirds off. I finally have a pair in the house by the barn but they are elusive and I have not been able to capture a picture. The house by the kitchen window remains empty. sigh.....

I have a drop off cat that has claimed me as hers. no, really! She follows me around, comes in the workshop and hangs out, in the house, out in the pasture, back in the house. She jumps at the front door. Jumps straight up about 3 feet high so she can look in the door's window to see me. Yeah, I have a cat now.




This is my latest nuno felted dress that I worked on this spring to enter in the Midwest Fiber and Folk Art Fair's fashion show. It is made with over 8 yards of silk gauze and china silk that I dyed. The corsage is felted into the dress using up cycled fabrics. It has an empire waist and I put a zipper in the back.

Here is a close up of ruffles and corsage.



It did not win at the fashion show. sigh....needle felted wool on silk garments won.

It is not that I don't think the winners are not good felters. Their color and design elements were exceptional. I feel they are inexperienced felters. Its just that wool needle felted onto silk is not stable. It will pull apart easily. Needle felting is one stage in the process. I own a rolling machine and a needle felting machine that I use regularly. But not exclusively. My dress is still awesome and will be able to be seen at the Weavers Guild of St Louis' Annual Sale. Yep, I'm putting it in the sale. and now she steps down from the soapbox......

I have been working on several projects and will be sharing with you again. After surgery, while recuperating, there is a lot of down time to think of all the things you want to do again. And I am now starting to do them!

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

If It Weren't For Bad Luck...

I feel I wouldn't have any luck at all! That old Buck Owens song has been playing in my head lately. I have been feeling a bit out of sorts for awhile. Then on April 20, I went in the hospital for emergency surgery. It was my appendix, I guess that is how it is spelled. lol  I was having trouble walking. Lots of pain. I had been  rowing down that river of denial all week. Ya know, who has time for this sick crap? Not me!

And I still don't. But life sometimes catches up with you. And not only taps you on the shoulder but knocks you down with a 2 x 4. During my healing time the past couple of weeks I have been doing some knitting.

This knitted vest is called 'Harumidori'. I bought the pattern on Ravelry. I could say it was a quick knit for me but that would be far from the truth. It took me every day, all day for a whole week. Yes, I was working with a handicap. Pain killers. They mainly killed my ability to count.

See that cute, cute hood? It took an entire day picking up the stitches for it and the button band. I'm not kidding! I couldn't count to 26. The pick ups were in sections (thank goodness or I may still be working on it) and one time I'd pick up 23 and have to frog it and the next time I'd pick up 28 in the same space. I guess it turned out to be good therapy for me. Or possibly just busy work to keep my hands busy.

I put horn buttons down the front. And it has useful front pockets for busy little hands. I am imagining my grandson putting toads in them. I'm sure I'll hear about it if he does. Well, back to the couch for me.

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

Little Feat

That was a great band I enjoyed in my youth. Maybe you remember them? If not, look them up on youtube sometime. I've been working on a little feet myself. I've been doing some sock knitting in various sizes. They are nice, portable projects.









and little feet like to wear them.

even if grandma doesn't like to waste yarn and makes them so they don't match exactly!

The other 'Little Feat' I have accomplished are these DinoShoes. Two different sized pairs, they allow the wearer to have his own Triceratops on his feet. They were very detail oriented. But adorable.

This picture is of them all wadded together. I haven't decided if I'm going into production of these yet. Or how many hundreds of dollars I would charge per pair. I'm sure I'll be making more this fall as little feet continue to grow.

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

Maya

I'd like to introduce "Maya". She is Aztec's daughter and
quite a beauty! She was born on Jan 2 (yes, an unplanned birth. I thought I bred Aztec for a Dec 1 baby but obviously she was bred during one of the boy break
outs last winter. sheesh....) She spent her first night in the house because of the cold, cold weather. Aztec was so mad at me for taking her that she kept looking in the kitchen windows at me with her ears back and a scowl on her face. Remeber the old Kujo, the evil dog horror movie? I was having  flashbacks to it during the night. You

see, during the drought last fall, we put up red neck fencing around the back yard to the house to give the packies more grazing room. With the house itself being one wall, the packie girls can literally look into the kitchen windows. It was all fun and cool until the night I brought Maya into the house. One second Aztec would be looking at me through the window with an ugly look on the face, then I'd call to my hubby that she was there again and when I'd look back she would be gone. It started creeping me out! When I took her back out to the barn in the morning, Aztec's lip curled up when she saw me. The two of them have been together ever since. Happy and healthy. Thank goodness! Still not sure who her daddy is for sure, but I have an idea that it is Blizzard. I'll keep you posted.

I'm asking that anyone who reads my blog and like it to please 'follow' me. I have people comment on it and tell me when they see me how they enjoyed it but I have only 1 follower. (and thank you Cathy!) It would lift my spirits. Thanks. 

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

Its been awhile..............

Yes, its been awhile. Depression has an ugly head and comes around for different reasons. and when she comes she usually stays for awhile. I had a very nice and quiet Christmas with my family and it has helped to lift the spirits. Nothing helps brighten me up like babies do. Grandbabies and alpaca babies and I had both coming around to help cheer me. I'll start posting again and post some cria pictures. I don't feel clever or witty yet so please bear with me and my 'maybe not yet clever or witty posts'. They will improve and then one day I'll write something totally awe inspiring.

I have been doing a little knitting. and felting. I have turned in some class proposals to teach at some fiber events in the midwest so if I get accepted, I'll post about it.

Lots going on with the farm. Mostly day to day stuff. Some new stuff and some old stuff. Oh! we now have a llama. I'll write more about her. She is awesome!

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

The Days

The days have been hectic around here. I've been traveling around a lot attending classes and coming home and trying to catch up. I got in new hay in large round bales and the alpacas are very happy with me right now. When I am home anyways. I have been a 50% rancher this month and I'm feeling  a bit guilty. But the packies don't mind as long as the hay holds out.

I'm still training my next-generation farm manager. His sessions are going well and now he is telling me how to do things. lol  The girls like him alot, too.

The temperatures have moderated a bit but they are still in the mid 90's and the packies get hot. Some of them, like Vienna pictured here, like to drink out of the hose. Eagan thinks it is so much fun when they do!

One of the summer's big jobs on a farm is scrubbing out the water tanks. It is a job to take seriously and my new manager does. He is all about the work.  I am thankful for the help.

This is a nuno felted silk scarf that I made last week in Ohio with Sachiko Kotaka of Australia. The class was hosted by Marlene's Felting Madness. It was a rockin' class and I learned a bunch of new techniques that I am looking forward to using in my felt work. I love Sachiko's work and working with her. I hope she makes it to the States again and I am fortunate enough to be able to attend one of her workshops. Well, I've still got lots of catching up to do around here!

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

not into it

I haven't been into my blog lately. As you can tell from the lack of posts. I think its because of that d**@#$
fox. Every time I think about blogging I remember my little hen and the pictures of her that i posted. Then I
think about the loss of my little brown dog, Max. Then I get mad all over again. I think I must be starting to
get past it because I am ready to tell you about it. That must be progress, right? I hope so because I do not
enjoy living with resentment. I don't want it to become part of my nature. That happens too easily and too much in the world. imho. (ok Darrell, that is 'in my humble opinion') So in my quest to rid myself of these
feelings, I am off to embark on a week long get-a-way with my friend, Bonnie, to Ohio to take a rockin'
felting class with Sachiko. If anything will lift my spirits and get me back into the swing of things, it is this class! I have been waiting for 6 months to take it! So, off I go to take an adventure. Me and Bonnie are bound to run at least one tollway and run into at least one karaoke bar.

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

It Arrived!

Here is my new baby! It is a needle felting machine. I was gone last week to Madison, WI taking felting classes. One of the classes I took was on this wonderful machine. The instructor was Margo Duke, who has two books out on this subject. I enjoyed this class so much! It was Fascinating Fascinators. Let me show you one of the hats I made:

This class was a great shot in the arm. Better than any vitamin B shot I ever got! I am a little over whelmed at where to start. I mean, what project to do first? All I know is, this felting machine will help me be more productive and not wear out my back as much. And for that, I am so grateful!

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

Summertime...and the livin' is ea----

no, no! is HOT! We are in a horrible heat spell. still. We are all drinking out of the hose when we go outside. So far, we are managing the heat. The only way to manage it is with water. On and in the bodies. I have been blessed with a little helper this summer. He is a hard worker and turning into an alpaca whisperer! lol

 

Drinking out of the hose is one of the fun things about summer. And being a kid in the country.

As you can see, my grandson takes his job very seriously. The girls like him, too. Georgie is doing her happy water dance. 

He has been at the farm enough this summer that the packies know him. And they know he is all business when it comes to spraying them off with the hose. 

Even crabby Canela comes around for him. Alpaca girls are usually particular about who is accepted when caring for them. Canela won't come around my hubby when he has the hose. She is still not sure about him. I've only had her about 6 years. I don't have to worry about anyone coming on my farm when I'm not home and stealing any alpacas! 

In our work day, we took time to stop and smell the roses. or zinnias in this case.

I have been in a blue funk this past week. Last week, I lost a chicken, 3 cats and our little brown dog. All fox related, I believe.

Yeah, a funk.  I've been spending alot of time in the workshop. Not getting alot done, though. Some wool washing, some carding. Some beading. Next week is the Midwest Felting Symposium in Wisconsin and I'm hoping that will lift me back up. I'm taking an Eco-dyeing class with Pam De Groot of Australia. Should be fun! 

I'll be leaving the farm in the capable hands of my farm manager

. 

This is a resisted dyed, embellished pin I made.

It is about 2 inches long. I like those colors

together. 

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

The Widower Little John

I have been dreading writing this blog for almost a week. Do to the missing Mrs. Little John, I have to rule Mr. Little John a widower. It makes me very sad and it makes me angry. But I will save the angry blog for another time. For now, I have to focus on helping Little John be a single parent. It is not an easy job and he is resisting it. I can't seem to get him to focus on parenthood. I went to to his sisters and each of them were either too busy with their own families or were 'career women' with no maternal instincts. So, I have set up Hotel Brown Box in my workshop to raise the orphan. When Little John was a baby chick, I knew he was a boy and named him Little John. I just knew it. I look at this chick and I don't know if its a boy or girl. I am calling it "baby". In about a month I might be able to discern the sex and at that time I will rename "baby". Until then, it will be Baby. Wish me luck and send me all your positive thoughts.

Talk to you soon,  Tammy

Yikes! There Is A Fox In The Henhouse!

How many times have you heard that saying? lol  Well, we really do. A red fox has been taking up residence at the Fort, next door. Many have seen him. Every day. He is becoming used to humans. I tried to scare him out of our backyard a couple of weeks ago and he just ignored me. He is either very wily or sick. Either way, he has got to go! I know, I know. There are those of you who think he should just be left alone. That to see a red fox in the wild is an awesome sight. A fox is too small to be a threat of any kind to the alpacas. And you are right about that. There are all sorts of rabbits and mice in the prairie grass around my house for him to hunt. And you are right. He probably wouldn't bother our kittens and cats. Although I am missing a couple.... Visitors to the fort getting to see a red fox walking along the stone wall is something they will always remember. A red fox is an animal you don't get to see very often. They are fairly scarce. Even though the hair is standing up on the back of my neck every time I see him, I will leave him be. 

Then yesterday, I walked through the barn and saw Mrs. Little John with her new baby chick. (yeah, chick. she was setting on 1 egg. all through the record breaking heat she sat vigilant)

Then, I rounded the corner of the boys' barn and saw this!!

Yikes! that is a lot of feathers! What happened? 

Wait a minute! I took a closer look at Mrs. Little John:

                                                          Her whole ass end is gone!!

That poor thing! She sacrificed her butt to save her baby! This means that *^#** red fox has to go! He could be out hunting rabbits. But no! He has decided to take the 'easy' way to a meal and go after my chickens. When I look at her, well--I am so mad at that fox. Bye, Bye Fox!


                     Now, let's review. This is what a hen is supposed to look like in the back end:

                                                    and this is what Mrs. Little John looks like:

                                              Thank goodness she is a scrappy little hen! lol


                                                         Talk to you soon,  Tammy

Monarch Of The Garden

I have been asked a lot, "why do you grow that plant?" That plant is bronze fennel. This picture doesn't do it justice. It has been a very hot and extremely dry summer and all the herbs in the garden are showing stress signs. It is a fernlike, lacy plant that has a licorice smell. It has seed heads on it like a dill plant. It resembles a dill plant with a bronze tint to the leaves. It grows more than 4 foot high and in clumps with several others can look like an exotic grass. It reseeds freely and I have them all over the yard. Some people do not like the free form seeding. The same people do not like hollyhocks for the same reason. I enjoy it. I design flowerbeds around them. Or should I say I move my flower beds each year to accommodate them. And I do it each year and each year I have some people ask me why.

And then I get this! Look closely. My fennel has been infiltrated by pests! No wonder it looks sparse and thin. These things are eating it down to the stalks. This is the only plant these things/worms are eating. My beautiful bronze fennel! Take a closer look at these worms:

They are about 2 inches long. But the color! These pictures do not do them justice. The lime green, dark black and the bright yellow. They are beautiful! And they are all over the fennel.

These caterpillars, engorging themselves on the fennel, are Monarchs. They will eat and eat, then spin themselves into cocoons (which they haven't done yet) and emerge as beautiful butterflies. They are the reason I let the fennel free seed. And I let them eat all they want. Soon, I will have a garden full of the most beautiful butterflies you have ever seen! I'll get pictures of them for you. The fennel grows back every year. They do not eat it until it is dead. And the more fennel I have, the more caterpillars I have and then more butterflies. I found out about them about 15 years ago when I tried to grow brussel sprouts. They love brussel sprouts, too. And I have been feeding them ever since.

Elle is still loving the hose. She is getting pretty good at  drinking from the hose. She is a sweetheart!






Talk to you soon,  Tammy