I wandered down the way to this little coffee shop in central Phoenix called Lux and boy is it a beauty. They not only are purveyors of delicious coffees and baked goods, but have a legit food menu and a real bar with serious mixologists.
I’ve spent the greater part of my afternoon here and am wondering if its happy hour, yet?
It just never.gets.old.this.cactus.thing. Swoon.
This is my first attempt at solar dyeing wool. I’ve thought about it in the past, but never actually tackled it. Given that I’m in the mecca of sun for 2 weeks with plenty of free time, I figured the trip afforded the perfect opportunity to try it out. The first step was to skein my bare yarn (5 skeins of merino DK weight wool and 2 skeins of fingering merino superwash wool) and soak it in warm water for 20-30 minutes so the dyes evenly penetrate the fibers.
After reading a piece on solar dyeing with natural dyes in the recent summer issue of Knit Scene, I figured I’d give the whole natural dye thing a whirl. I followed Caitlin French’s instructions pretty closely, but decided to try a few different items on for color size, namely dehydrated red chilies and black beans.
After steeping my items to help release color, I prepped my quart sized bell jars with mordant (I chose Alum powder, per French’s recommendation for its more environmentally friendly rep), hot water, and a bit of vinegar to alter the water’s PH. I kind of just gambled on amounts, but measured my 2-3 teaspoons Alum per 100 grams of fiber. Otherwise, it was all guesswork.
The mix of chilies also has little nylon sacks filled with tumeric as well, to try and create a less “buttery” yellow and more of a rich one. And in another jar, I combined both black bean water (they steeped in water for about 12-14 hours in the sun and overnight) and onion skins to see if the combination would create a richer blue/green/brown.
I’m headed to Northern Arizona for the weekend, so they have plenty of alone time in the sun. I’m hoping the longer I let them sit, the more rich the color. Please cross your fingers that this diy adventure is more successes than failures.
Whilst I am in Phoenix and these ghastly hot temperatures, I figured I’d try my first go-around with solar dyeing wool with natural dyes. Step one was to take a risk and use what’s local. These dehydrated chilies were left in the sun for a few hours to draw out their color. It worked, but fingers crossed its enough to penetrate my fibers.
I could get into this.
Sean took me to this delicious little spot in central Phoenix called Pane Bianco the other day. A nice, quiet little midday date. Doesn’t happen often.
Just me, my shadow, and some gorgeous cactus. These plants, bestill my damn heart.
I’m in Phoenix for two weeks visiting my guy; he has to work for most of it, but he did leave me a gorgeous ruby red and a pot of brew to kick of my morning.
Little things.
I never used to knit with it because its price tag intimidated me. Now, I can’t imagine ever not knitting with some Madelinetosh. It’s so gorgeous I just want to smother myself in its beauty.
These are 3 skeins of Madelinetosh Merino Light for a new sweater project in the Antique Lace and Betine colorways. Aren’t they beauties?
Since I snapped this photo of the nearly finished body for the Lush Cardigan, I have since completed everything but one button band. It was a really quick knit, I was surprised, given the lace panel’s need to be blocked before joining to the yoke and sleeves, etc.
I highly recommend this pattern; its so easy but interesting, and doesn’t get tiresome. I knit this up using Madelinetosh Tosh DK in the Norway Spruce colorway and she is a beauty.
Snaps of the finished product, soon.
I sewed a tie; I didn’t realize how much hand sewing was involved; there’s barely 4 machine stitched seams, a ton of ironing, and plenty of blind stitch. Still, they are easy, and I am pretty pleased with the results.
First of the summer season; lemon. Damn, so good.
Every so often, I get a hankering for a classic coffee cake. But, living alone, I end up having to dole it out to friends and coworkers because I can’t sit there eating an entire cake for 4 or 5 days. It’s a travesty, really, because it makes me bake less often than desirable.
This coffee cake hit the spot. Some days, you just need it.
