Creative by Nature

Contest at Nature’s Cauldron Natural Dye CSA

Dustin — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 17:14:32 +0000

Fellow natural dye enthusiast and dye farmer, Birdsong Sundstrom, is promoting her Natural Dye CSA with a contest! Grand prize: An indigo-dyed pair of socks, made on her antique circular sock knitting machine. Visit her website for details.

Second prize is a skein of local Romney yarn, which Birdsong dyed with pokeberry. I [...]

brightening up the winter with mushroom dyes

Dustin — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:51:58 +0000

I have been having lots of fun experimenting with mushroom dyes the last few weeks, both at the annual fiber arts classes at SOMA camp, and at home.

The mushrooms that I have been dyeing with are Dermocybe spp. (pink to orange), Omphalotus olivascens (purple and green) and Gymnopilus spp. (yellow).

I finally learned how [...]

Indigo seeds and other news

Dustin — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 23:39:37 +0000

My indigo crop was abundant this year, and I allowed the stems to flower at the beginning of fall. When the flower clusters started to turn brown, I cut off the stems and spread them on a cloth to dry indoors. Now I have a huge pile of stems, and have started to clean the [...]

Fibershed Marketplace

Dustin — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 02:00:54 +0000

I am pleased to announce that the Fibershed Marketplace is now open for business! We are a community of artisans and farmers collaborating to create beauty, function and healthy alternatives in the world of fibers and textiles. I first became involved with the Fibershed Project through taking a natural dye class with its [...]

colorful harvest

Dustin — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 01:31:20 +0000

This summer and fall, much of my natural dye activity has been to grow or collect and dry my dye plants for future use. Dye plants in my garden this year that I am harvesting and drying are Japanese indigo (Polygonum tinctorium), Dyer’s coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria), Cota (Thelesperma megapotamicum), and Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris). I also [...]

thousands of Buddhas

Dustin — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 00:03:32 +0000

Lately I have been pretty busy with graphic design work, leaving little time to experiment with textiles and dyes. However, I have enjoyed a number of my recent graphic design projects, among them a project for nearby Spirit Rock Meditation Center, which includes both print materials and the website for a capital campaign called the [...]

indigo overdye

Dustin — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 23:26:15 +0000

Recently I did a quick experiment with over dyeing some bright yellow yarn that Nancy (aka SwknitsMN on Ravelry) had sent me in exchange for some indigo seeds. Nancy had dyed the alum-mordanted wool with Buckthorn berries, a plant that I am not familiar with, but which is invasive in some [...]

upcycling with indigo

Dustin — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 01:28:33 +0000

My Japanese indigo crop has been flourishing this year, and I am looking forward to a second harvest soon. I have been using my homegrown dye primarily for yarn, but I have a lot of other needs for indigo, so I decided to start a vat using powdered indigo that I bought at Dharma Trading [...]

experiments in eucalyptus dye

Dustin — Fri, 13 May 2011 17:44:59 +0000

Recently I noticed that there is a Eucalyptus sideroxylon (or Red ironbark) tree growing next to a friend’s office. Turns out that it is a variety known for producing beautiful dyes, so last time I made a visit there, I took along my pruning shears and clipped off a few leafy stems that were practically [...]

nature’s cauldron

Dustin — Tue, 03 May 2011 16:56:05 +0000

Recently I have been working on some fun projects in my graphic design business, as well as freshening up my blog (as you can see from my new minimalist look for spring/summer).

One recent project even overlaps with my interest in natural dyes! I connected with a woman named Birdsong through the Ravelry [...]