Return to Happiness or Maybe Hippie-ness?

I thought it was time to introduce myself. Here I am in all my tie-dyed glory. This shirt was the last of the white t-shirts I purchased earlier this year. I had some wonderful shades of red, gold, yellow and blue left over from my last dyed lot. I mixed them all together and came up with this fabulous mixture of autumn colors. (My friends and fellow quilters have gotten used to my rather bright sense of style and color by now.) This shirt was the icing on the cake that restored my spirits (see Color Therapy) just in time for the Madison Quilt Expo.



Speaking of the quilt show, Patsy has posted some gorgeous pictures from the show on her blog.



Here are the treasures that came home with me. I went to the show looking for the Superior Thread booth and I purchased some lovely variegated colors from their King Tut line and some of their Bottom Line bobbin thread. I have heard good things about both and can't wait to try this thread out. The dark hand dyed fabric is from Julie Baird's shop and what would shopping be without a wonderful batik or two to bring home.

I just finished Jennifer Chiaverini's "Circle of Quilters" book and had to wait two weeks for the show so I could pick up the continuation of the story in "The Winding Ways Quilt". It turns out the she was there signing her books and the bookshop was set up a few feet away. I asked Jennifer to sign my copy to our local quilt guild. I will donate my copy to the guild library when I finish reading it. The quilts at this show were amazing. I took lots of pictures but I'm a bit leary of posting other artist's work on my blog without permission.

A T-Shirt to Match

Sometimes the best laid plans go a bit wild, especially when it comes to dying a shirt for myself. I started out with the intention of matching this lovely barrette purchased from Jackie at DogDaisyChains. I think I lost control when I took some old golden yellow dye and threw it into the mix with the sky blue and lemon yellow. They still look great together but I think I'll try again next time with a lighter saturation of dye. I took at least 20 pictures of this shirt in various lights and still could not capture all of the gorgeous color that resulted. There are some really vibrant greens and the yellows are washed out. I have a similar problem capturing fuchsia in some of my photos. Does anyone have advice to offer?

I Do Love Leftovers

One of the most creative times of the day for me is the early morning. Sometimes I just can't stop myself from diving in. At 5:30 this morning I broke out some leftover dyes that had been sitting out too long to be useful for fabric dyeing. I am volunteering at "The Red Door Gallery" tomorrow and wanted something new to wear. This gallery is a local artist's cooperative run by volunteers. I exhibit stained glass window hangings, lamps & my jewelry there.

When it comes to dyeing t-shirts for my personal use I like the old dye and some of the strange colors that come out of the leftovers. Note: Procion MX fabric dye should be used with in a few days of mixing. The dye will weaken after a period of time. You can extend the life of the mixed dye by refrigerating it for up to a month.

Today I used the leftover Turquoise, Cobalt, Hot Pink and Light Red dyes. Old reds tend to separate and "freckle" for an interesting effect. Here is what my shirt looks like after the dye and fixative have been applied. I'll have to wait until tomorrow to see how it turned out. For me the hardest thing about dyeing fabric in not the process, it's waiting to see the finished product.