Ruby Slippers's Profile

It's a change for me to work with paper rather than fabric but once I started dyeing paper I was hooked! I can understand how you want to change it all to fabric and stitch - you do such beautiful work with fabric.

Commented Jun 11, 2013 on small dyed book at Ruby Slippers

small dyed book

I decided to bring together some of the papers I've been dyeing with plant material into a small book (about 4 x 5 inches). It gives me a great feeling of satisfaction and joy as the fabric for the cover and the fiber used to sew it together are all... Continue reading

Posted Jun 8, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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dye pots busy

This weekend I had three dye pots busy - two on the stove and one on the hotplate on the deck. Horsetail infests one of my garden beds and I didn't have to move to pick a pail for dyeing. The green comes from over dyeing with indigo. I spend... Continue reading

Posted Jun 5, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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They are magnificent! I'm always in awe of the amazing gifts from Nature around me. As you are in your very different environment, I'm deeply connected to the land, plants and animals around me in this West Coast rainforest.

Commented May 28, 2013 on broom flower dyeing at Ruby Slippers

I premordant silk and wool with alum and cotton with tannin and then alum. Maiwa (www.maiwa.com) has an excellent Natural Dye Info sheet that you can print for free off the internet. It gives good info about mordanting and dyeing with some natural dyes. I'm careful when dyeing with yellow flowers not to let them simmer or overcook as they'll then produce more golden yellows rather than clear yellows (the dandelion flower dyeing I showed in the previous post went more golden-yellow). I usually put the flowers in a fine mesh bag, add the fibre and cook them both up together. It's a delicate balance of cooking them long enough to get a good deep colour and not overcooking them and getting a more golden colour.

Commented May 28, 2013 on broom flower dyeing at Ruby Slippers

broom flower dyeing

This time of year the roadsides are bright yellow with flowering broom bushes. Although they're an introduced invasive species I find them beautiful. The other day I set out to gather a basket of broom flowers from along the roadside. The occasional driver slowed down to stare, no doubt wondering... Continue reading

Posted May 27, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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dandelion days

Last week on my morning walk I was admiring the beautiful bright yellow dandelions when I suddenly thought - dandelion flower dyeing! I gathered two bursting pockets full. A couple of neighbours were very generous in inviting me to pick all the dandelions I wanted from their lawns! In her... Continue reading

Posted Apr 29, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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spring bag

Such a beautiful spring with fresh green leaves, primulas, marsh marigolds, early rhododendrons, heather, flowering shrubs and trees, spring bulbs and forget-me-nots. The air is scented with the fragrance of a shrub with tiny white flowers and on sunny days there's the loud buzzing of bumble bees. This silk that... Continue reading

Posted Apr 13, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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envelope insides - who knew?

I treated myself to the online course 21 Secrets Art Journaling Workshop which I learned about in Ro Bruhn's great blog. I decided to make a journal using the techniques I learn in the course and that are inspired by the course. I started with Ro's workshop and her first... Continue reading

Posted Apr 6, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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fairy book pages

Books have long been special to me. When we were two my mother took us to the library, got us our own library card and taught us the proper care of books. I was lucky enough to have a story every night before I went to bed. I still have... Continue reading

Posted Mar 21, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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paper fun

The plan was that I'd spend the winter mordanting so that in the spring and summer when I was busy gardening and dyeing with materials from my garden and the wild I'd have everything all mordanted and ready to go. Trouble is, I've been having too much fun playing! Most... Continue reading

Posted Mar 6, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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Thank you Nancy. :) They were fun to make.

Commented Feb 28, 2013 on magic wand holder at Ruby Slippers

magic wand holder

Ever since I was very young I've been drawn to things magical and have felt a deep curiosity about what lies behind and beyond the physical world around me. My imagination was rich with magical beings and creatures who lived in strange and wonderful worlds. This magic wand in it's... Continue reading

Posted Feb 27, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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more little bags

I love making little bags out of bits of leftover handspun and scaps of cloth. This is my Summer Sunshine bag, knitted with handspun wool/kid mohair blend during the dark, rainy days of our West Coast winter. A tooth fairy bag bought by one of our guild members for her... Continue reading

Posted Jan 24, 2013 at Ruby Slippers

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Thank you Deanna. Lots of fun to dye them!

Commented Nov 22, 2012 on more dyeing at Ruby Slippers

Thank you Nancy. I have to admit that I fondle my dyed wool the way Scrooge fondled his coins!

Commented Nov 22, 2012 on more dyeing at Ruby Slippers

more dyeing

The last dyeing of French marigolds for the season. Slugs LOVE these plants. Before I knew better I planted some in a flower bed. The next morning there was nothing but a few stubs where the main stems had been. Now I put them in planters and do nightly slug... Continue reading

Posted Nov 21, 2012 at Ruby Slippers

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Thank you Nancy. I enjoyed knitting them, feeling the essence of our seasons here as I knitted.

Commented Aug 10, 2012 on sunshine coast medicine bags at Ruby Slippers

sunshine coast medicine bags

These bags are knitted with hand dyed, handspun wool. The blue one is a summer bag - the time when the sun is shining, the ocean is sparkling with light and the sky is brilliant blue. This is the time that gives our region its name. The greyish bag is... Continue reading

Posted Aug 4, 2012 at Ruby Slippers

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Thank you Nancy. I have to confess I'm quite addicted to dyeing! It's a very busy time of year right now with all the work in the garden in addition to dyeing.

Commented Jun 14, 2012 on lots of dyeing at Ruby Slippers

lots of dyeing

Whenever I eat an avocado I wash and dry the pit and put it in a plastic bag in the freezer. Recently I took out some of my pits, thawed them, put them in a thick plastic bag and smashed them with a mallet. I soaked them in a large... Continue reading

Posted Jun 12, 2012 at Ruby Slippers

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jayce boggs workshop

As part of the celebration for the 25th Anniversary of our Sunshine Coast Spinners and Weavers Guild we invited internationally known art/textured yarn spinner Jayce Boggs to give a Friday night talk and an all weekend workshop. The workshop was held in one of the yurts at the wonderful Fibre... Continue reading

Posted Jun 5, 2012 at Ruby Slippers

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They are beautiful. One of the things I love about naturally dyed fabrics and fibres is how they are harmonious with each other. When I line up all the rovings I've dyed with a variety of natural dyes they all look good together. There are no colours that don't 'go' with the rest.

Commented May 7, 2012 on indigo at Ruby Slippers