Dandelion Update

Here is an update on the Dandelion Yarn. It turned out to be a beautiful, clear yellow. I was a little worried when I put the yarn into the dye bath. The pot was yellow-brownish and cloudy. I was really amazed at the depth and clarity of the color that it turned the wool! Again, I apologize for poor color quality in the photo. It is more the color of lemon sherbet.









Here are some of the yarns I have been working on this spring. The lilac color is from a Cushing dye but hand spun. The rest are natural dyes I have cooked up at home.

Here you get a better idea of the actual yellow color of the dandelion yarn (furthest to the left).

The season for gathering wild dyestuff is just getting started here. I have noticed several new things along the road as I am driving.  I have identified some and nam going an a hunt later today...I can't wait to see what I can find.  Check back and see!

Dandy Dandelions

Most people who take pride in their lawns would cringe at all these dandelions. Mow them down! Try to dig them out! If all else fails, grab the chemicals!  

I do take pride in my lawn, but a bit differently. I was thrilled at the sight of all these lovely yellow 'flowers'. I won't deny that they can be a huge problem, and that there must be a balance between lawn and dandelions, but they are also very useful as food, beverage, medicinal plants and dye stuff.

I think that dandelions are charming. I don't encourage them, but I don't bring out the heavy artillery either. I found many lovely yellow flowers in my yard this morning, I needed to mow the lawn as well. I decided to gather and use the flowers that were there. I took a bag and went out and picked the tops off every flower. I even got help from the little girl next door who, at three years old, thought it was wonderful fun. After I had picked all I wanted I mowed the rest down to keep them from going to seed. I have no doubt that I will have many more through out the summer!

 I decided that I would try to make a dye bath with just the flowers and see what color I get from them.  I placed them in a large container and added enough water to generously cover the flowers. I added a couple tablespoons of sea salt as well. I left this in the sun to steep, like sun tea. I will be gone again for a few days, so I will have to wait to see how it turns out!

Dandelions have many other uses besides dyeing wool. They are easy to identify and relatively easy to find. They seem to grow almost anywhere. They are easy to harvest and all parts of the plant can be used. For this dye experiment I chose to use just the flowers, although, all parts of the plant can be used. Dandelions have a long tap root. This can be washed, cut into small pieces and boiled to extract the color. You can also choose to dye with the flowers and leaves. Each will result in a slightly different color.

Besides being useful for dyeing, dandelions contain such things as Vitamins A, B, C, and D. They also contain iron, potassium, calcium, insulin, sesquiterpenes and carotenoids. Dandelion root can be used as a liver tonic, with stimulant and decongesting effects on the liver. Dandelion roots also stimulate digestion and aid in the production of bile, thus helping to break down cholesterol and fats.

Dandelions can be used to make a coffee substitute, tea, wine, or sauté the flowers gently in butter for a crunchy addition to salads. The leaves are delicious in salads as well.

It will be a little while until I get the wool dyed, but stay tuned...it is coming! In the mean time, I hope you can find ways to use and enjoy a few dandelions. Especially as it is impossible to get rid of them!

Pinked!

I have been traveling around a lot lately due to some family issues. I was out of town for a few days and returned to find I had been 'pinked' by a group of kids in a school organization that is fundraising.
Tied around the neck of one of the flamingos is a sort of ransom note telling me how to contact the Flamingo Relocation Team and how much it will cost me to get these relocated to someone else's yard. (For a small extra fee, I can have them relocated to a yard of my choice! Oh boy. Pay back time!). Of course, my first thought was what sort of color I could get from those feathers.

I am anxious to start gathering dyestuff from my gardens and the ditches nearby. I looked back at my journal to last year thinking the plants were further along at this time last year. I was surprised to see that they really weren't! I thought I started making dye baths from local plants in May, but it wasn't until June. I was at the farm recently and checked on the rhubarb and Snow on the Mountain. Those were some of the earliest plants I used last year. They are not ready yet. Some warmer weather will be needed to bring them along.  Meanwhile, I am back to driving with one eye on the ditches looking for whatever might be growing!

I have been working to spin up the pink and minty green wool I dyed earlier this spring with red cabbage. I should have about a thousand yards of each color in a sock weight two ply. I also have some dye left over from earlier dyeing where I mixed some black walnut and some onion skin dye together. I am anxious to see what color I will come up with from that!

Saturday at the Mill

Today was the day for the natural dyeing class. We had a great class and a lot of fun!

I would like to thank our hostess, Chris Armbrust at Dakota Fiber Mill/TheWood and the Wool for the wonderful accommodations and for the free lunch she provided.

We had a lovely, warm place to place to play with the yarn and the dye pots.

We even had helpers! Meet Fred, one of Chris's Angora Rabbits...

E

Here are some of the other animals around there. All are friendly! It was alpaca sheering day as well.

Here is a sample of the finished yarns, dyed and drying outside. The students were very pleased with their results.

Update...

 I am sorry it has been so long since my last post! Almost a month. There have been some family emergencies that have kept my attention focused elsewhere. I will try to keep more current.

I have been keeping busy. I have been getting the yarn ready to dye at the Natural Dye class this Saturday at Dakota Fiber Mill. I will be teaching students how to mordant and dye with natural dye stuff. I think it will be a lot of fun.



I have been busy, though! I have purchased 10 pounds of raw fleece from a shepherd near my farm. She has been raising sheep for hand spinners for many years and has some gorgeous fiber. The fleece is currently at a small mill about 15 miles from my home. I will be picking it up this weekend! I just bought white so I will have plenty to play with. I still have a lot of my own browns and greys. I can't wait to start collecting plants to dye with.

I have been thinking all winter about some different things I want to try. I have some different methods I want to try as well as new plants. 

I hope you will keep reading and hopefully trying some things yourself. Please let me know what you are doing!              Happy Spring!!!