Independence Day and a Fabric Sale at Dye Candy

Meet my Independence Day Baby. We brought him home from the hospital 21 years ago just in time to see the 4th of July fireworks. That seems like a lifetime ago.

It has been such a joy watching him grow into adulthood. We are proud parents of this young man. Happy 21st birthday son - Rock On!

It has been a while since I have been able to post. The last two months have been a whirlwind of visitors at the Shady Grove and a few weekend trips to visit friends and family. It was good to see everyone but it is really good to be settled in at home for a while.

I'm looking forward to having enough time to blog again. I have been trying to catch up but my Google Reader stopped counting 4 weeks ago when I hit 1000+ unread posts. It was down to 750 unread posts as of last night. I just can't bring myself to hit the delete button and make the posts disappear into cyberspace.

In honor of many days of independence ahead all of my one of a kind hand dyed yardage is on sale in my Dye Candy Fabric Shop. I also wrote a short post the fabrics I use and the dyeing process here.

Wishing you all a wonderful Independence Day!

April Fools

April Fools!!!

I'm not where I'm supposed to be today. Candy Glendening of Candied Fabrics is visiting on my Dye Candy Blog and I am a guest on her blog.

I have been following Candy's blog since last summer. She has such a creative mind and writes wonderful tutorials. I especially enjoyed her tips on lighting, both for photography and her art show booth. Her hand dyed silk scarves and bags were the first of her wares to catch my eye. I love the machine embroidery details on her Going Green journals & Clothing.

You can see the process of how she dyed the fabrics in this picture here. It has been so much fun trading places. Thank you Candy!

Missing in Action

Yes, it is true. My blog has been sadly neglected as of late. I have been keeping myself so busy that it has been hard to slow down enough to find the words to write an intelligent blog post. I have traveled to vend or retreat every other weekend since the start of this year.

My day job is in the construction industry. I sell commercial roofing products. Last year new construction starts were non-existent. The majority of the business we received was in the public sector. Because of the downturn in business I have had 10 furlough days since Christmas.

I have been working hard to supplement my income with sales from my hand dyed fabrics and miniature quilt block jewelry. Since mid December I have dyed over 300 yards of fabric and sewed 100 tiny quilt blocks to make into jewelry as I restock the art galleries that sell my work. I also dyed 6 dozen velvet & silk scarves to sell at the local retreat and art gallery. I added 10" velvet sample sample packs for embellishing and needle felting project to my Dye Candy shop (currently for sale here)

I also started and completed a play quilt for my new nephew. Photos of the quilt can be found on my Dye Candy Blog in these posts: Machine Quilting Close Up and Cornflower Blue Play Quilt.

I have tons of photos taken and four tutorials ready to write. The travel will stop soon. I just have one more weekend away and it is at my favorite quilt retreat with my mom so what could be better? I know my husband misses me but he is very supportive of my incessant need to create and I love him for it.

Welcome to my Dye Candy Giveaway. If you are new to my blog, I welcome you and invite you to look around. You have at least two chances to win a prize. Leave a comment here and enter a second time on my other blog DyeCandy.blogspot.com. You are welcome to copy the top picture of my dye candy sample packs and use it if you are creating a link to this giveaway on your own blog. If you create a link please leave me a note in your comment and I will enter your name in the drawing two more times.

If you are a winner you will have your choice of one of these prizes:

1 Gift Certificate for $25.00 for my Dye Candy Shop or

2 Dye Candy Sample Packs or

1 yard of Hand Dyed one of a kind fabrics or

a half yard of Shibori Dyed Fabric or

6 step fat quarter gradation set.

or a hand dyed silk or velvet scarf.

Choose a piece of Quilt Block Jewelry or

a small Stained Glass Snowflake Sun Catcher Ornament from my Shady Grove Studios Etsy Shop.

Good Luck to you! Drawing closes at 6:00 pm on Sunday, November 22nd.

Finish Line

My snowflakes are finished and shipped. It is finally time for sewing projects of my own choosing. Next on my to do list is to clean my studio so I can get to my sewing machine. I recently moved my studio to a room with a door. I can close the door and make all of my mess disappear. Poof, magic...I love it!

A few years back when I started making my quilt block jewelry I tried many different color combinations before settling on some standard product offerings. Each year I edit and make a few changes. Last weekend I reviewed my line to get my 2010 order form ready. I added a new section called "Sale Items" to my Shady Grove Studios Shop. This category contains many discontinued color combinations at a discount. All my pieces are foundation pieced hand dyed fabrics. The sewing can be seen on the reverse side of the jewelry. Stop by and take a look. Please note I offer free shipping worldwide on all of my jewelry.

Giant's Causeway

Today is reveal day on the Art Quilts Around the World blog. The theme for this challenge was "Where Sea and Land Meet" This is my interpretation. I have always marveled at the basaltic rocks that form the Giant's Causeway in Ireland. I hope to travel and see this ancient place someday.

I would like to invite you to to visit the Art Quilts Around the World site and see the rest of the challenge quilts. These ladies are so talented. I always enjoy seeing all the different ideas they come up with.

Finishing this quilt was the last big deadline I needed to meet. I'm looking forward to some down time soon. I cleaned 3 rooms of carpeting last weekend and still need to move the furniture back where it belongs. By the end of this coming weekend I should have my house back in order.

It is good to be back to a normal routine. I hope to catch up on my favorite blogs in the next week or so. It was really hard staying away and I have to admit I did a lot of lurking when I had free time.

Oh My, What Did I Get Myself In To?

I have big problem with agreeing to do more than I have time for. I had planned to spend the month of August sewing blocks for my quilt block jewelry. I wanted to get all stocked up for the Fall and Christmas sales. Best laid plans....

In the mean time I was invited vend my hand dyed fabrics and jewelry at a quilt show in September. I couldn't resist the opportunity (partly because it is near my mom's home in Illinois). So now I'm spending all of my spare time sewing and dyeing fabrics. I even purchased some silk and velvet scarves to overdye and to add some more interest to the booth.

More complications. I am running out of many of the main fabrics I use in my best selling jewelry. I haven't added these fabric mixes to my Dye Candy shop yet so I had to break out the turquoise dye and get to work. Turquoise as a primary color makes beautiful greens and purples but it is an extremely aggressive dye. It also takes at least one additional wash cycle (sometime two) to rinse from dyed fabrics. I have 24 yards of blue-purples in the dryer this morning. I will be working on the blue-greens tonight or tomorrow.

I am also planning a fabric painting class that I will be teaching at the end of this month. We are working with Set-a-Color paints on white print cloth. This paint is very versatile. There are many different techniques to play with and the results are beautiful. I will have pictures for you in early September.

I may need to cut back on my blogging and reading for a while until I get my head above water again. I am just feeling too overwhelmed.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend. I'm off to volunteer at the art gallery today.....Oh My

Giveaway Day

I have finally finished my latest dyelots. They will soon be for sale in my Dye Candy Etsy Shop.

My giveaway on my Dye Candy blog has just started. Follow this link for a chance to win.

Duluth Bound

I just finished my initial stocking order for a wonderful art gallery in Duluth, Minnesota called the Waters of Superior. This gallery is located in the Canal Park area of Duluth on Lake Avenue. I've been thinking of contacting the gallery for two years but my trips to town are usually a quick jaunt there and back to pick up our son from college. If you are going to the Minnesota Quilters show in Duluth next week please take time to stop in, enjoy the gallery and all the other great shops and restaurants in the area. DS & DGF work at Little Angie's Cantina a few doors away. They have great mexican food!

I will be going to this show for the first time. I am meeting girlfriends in Duluth, but my main reason for the trip is to visit with my son and his girlfriend while they are on vacation from school.

Here are a few more shots of my work in progress. I use this little organizer to sort cut colored fabrics and keep them from getting dusty between uses. Most of the fabrics I use are hand dyed by me. I also use Cherrywood Fabrics for the brown log cabin pin and matching flying geese pendants and earrings.

Here is a look at the back side of my jewelry. I thought you might enjoy seeing the stitching.

Hope you have a great week! Chris

The Results

Here is the finished embroidered laundry bag (from my last post) in it's new home at Patsy's Homestead Cabin Retreat. I made it to fit in this old washtub which is now a display for my hand dyed fabrics.

Can you imaging having to wash your laundry by hand? I know some of my Amish neighbors still do. I wonder if they are lucky enough to have a "Speed Queen" washtub like Patsy. :)

Patsy has an incredible knack for finding and using found items. See this post and this post for a look at her creative mind. I love exploring the nooks and crannies of her retreat. There is always something new to find.

I have my list of items that are not stocked at our local quilt shops. I leave tomorrow for Paducah with my girlfriends. We are all so excited. I hope we sleep well tonight!

Talk to you when we return!

P.S. I just posted pictures of shibori dyed fabrics on my Dye Candy blog. I am taking a class from Marjie McWilliams through Quilt University. I am having so much fun playing and getting messy.

Don't You Hate When This Happens

Winter Solstice class resumed this week. I finished my blocks at class on Wednesday night...or so I thought. Last night I put all of my blocks on the design wall a had a big hole! I hate when this happens. I remember having 2 extra fabrics when I sorted my fabric for this class. I must decided that three didn't work with this color scheme. Here is a peek at the "Groovy Little Hippy Bags" Crazy Quilt purses I have been working on over the last two weekends. If you follow my blog through reader you have already seen these purses when I posted them for a special order customer to review. The blue and black velvet messenger bag has 12 hours of hand embroidery on the flap. I use new corduroy and new and reclaimed velvets to make these purses. These fabrics make the best shoulder straps. They really stay put.

Does this happen to you? It irks me when my pictures load sideways....

This Dusty Purple Messenger Style Bag has one of my original hand embroidery designs. I really enjoy making these purses. I sometimes wish there were 20 extra hours in each day so I could get more accomplished.

The photos below are ATC's from the ladies of Around the World in 20 Quilts Group. Our theme is "Seasons" We are also doing a postcard exchange. I have my postcards completed but have yet to put them in the mail. I'm saving them for show and tell at quilt guild on Monday night.

"Water - too wet, too dry" from Simone in the Netherlands. I love the hand dyed and painted fabrics in this work. The blue metallic threads really give the ATC a beautiful shimmer.

"Spring" from Marian in Australia. These flowers are so delicate. I'm longing for the days when the spring beauties start to bloom here.

This lovely tree by Lynn in California was machine felted and top-stitched with free motion embroidery. I love the angelina fibers she mixed with the threads and yarns!

"Autumn" by Linda in Australia. I have seen mushrooms like these in fairy tales. I had no idea they grew in the woods of the Netherlands until I received this beautiful card from Linda.

"Ginkgo"

These are my ATC's. This is the first time I have made an Art Trading Card. I cut the ginkgo leaves from freezer paper and ironed them to some of my hand dyed fabrics. I rubbed Shiva paintstiks over the top of the fabric and then hand stitched the veins of the leaves.

It was so much fun to get letters from other places in the world. If this is something that interests you I highly encourage you to join an exchange.


I'm dyeing fabrics tonight and tomorrow I sew. I will be making some more flying geese pendants in a couple new colorways.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

Chris

Dye Candy

"Delicious Hand Dyed Fabrics To Satisfy Your Cravings"

You know how an idea starts out as a little spark? My mother suggested packaging my hand dyed fabrics in small parcels. She is always full of great ideas and I always listen to my mom now that I'm a grown up.

I divided some of my 6 step gradations into small sample sized pieces. Each piece is about the size of a fat 16th (a nominal 9"x10.5"). There are 12 pieces in each box.

Once I had the first few boxes packed I thought "These look so luscious". That was when the idea of "Dye Candy" came into my mind.

I was torn about opening a second Etsy shop but decided customers would have an easier time finding my hand dyed fabrics if I opened a shop of the same name. So if you are looking to enhance your hand dyed fabric stash, here is a great way to do it without a lot of expense.

I have yet to move all of my hand dyed fabrics into this store. I will also be adding more color options in the coming weeks.

A Little Progress and Some Set Backs

I made some progress on my Winter Solstice project last week. I'm pleased with the hand dyed fabric I chose for the background. It really highlights the stars and makes them shine.

I have been working on a new idea for marketing my hand dyed fabric. I came up with a catchy name, which made me think I should rename or open a new ETSY store of the same name. Has anyone done something similar? Any thoughts? I'm really undecided.

I had planned to have my newly dyed fabrics added to my store this weekend but I had a few commission requests that have changed my focus for a few days. I am glad for the change. I have long been putting off adding some crazy quilt purses to my store. I'm working on one in particular that may be hard to part with. Oh well, I have learned to let go because I can always make another.


We have had a lot of wildlife sightings near the house lately. A few weeks ago I started smelling a skunk like odor and figured the skunks were coming out of hibernation. I turns out we have a red fox living very near our home. Our dog Jack has found remnants of meals just outside my studio window. The musk of a fox smells very much like skunk but MUCH more pleasants. Take it from one who knows. Our Alaskan Malamute was one to chase skunks. Never, NEVER, let your dog in the house if it has been sprayed by a skunk. :)

The deer have been coming in mass to the orchard and this morning I discovered why. We have seen a pileated woodpecker feeding on the remaining apples from last years crop. The apples no longer stay in the tree as the woodpecker pecks. Instead they fall to the ground to feed the deer.

Winter is slowly coming to an end. The morning sun is finally reaching our home early in the day. In a few weeks the quiet of winter will be replaced by the song of red wing blackbirds as they nest in the fields and raise their young.

Color Choices and a Little Sewing

Do you ever have a hard time choosing colors? Over the next few weeks I am taking a class from my friend Suzanne. The pattern is one of her own designs and requires lots of different fabric to give it interest. I dove into my scrap bin for this class looking for a neutral or light colored background and some medium and dark fabrics. All of the colors I put together were earth tones and I was not happy with the brightness of the pallet. Last year I purchased a few batiks while I was traveling and added a few more from Jeanne's fabric sale. I have been itching to put something together with these vibrant fabrics. For the background fabric I dyed some of the print cloth I just received with a light red and golden yellow mixture with a hint of blue to get this lovely butterscotch color. I can't wait to see how the pattern turns out. More on this project next week.

Today I am putting the finishing touches on some quilt block jewelry. I have been out of stock of some of these colorways for a bit. It will be nice to have some on hand again. I also took some time out to play Frisbee with Jack on this warmish ( 23 deg F)and sunny winter day. The snow has been gone for almost a week on the south facing slope however we still have up to 12" inches of snow on the north facing slope. The sky has been a beautiful blue all weekend and it makes me long for springtime.

Dye Release

The photo on the right shows 2 examples of dye release.  Both fabrics had a bleach paste (In this instance Cascade liquid dishwasher soap) applied to make the leaf pattern designs.  I used a stencil and a foam roller to make the ginkgo leaf design. The oak leaf design was made with a foam stamp.  I lightly rolled the paste onto the stamp with the foam roller.  I let the bleach set for 10 minutes on the green fabric and only 5 minutes on the dark navy fabric.  The bleach was rinsed away and then the fabric was soaked for 15 minutes in a water and vinegar mixture to stop the bleaching process.

The green fabric on top is one of my hand dyed fabrics.  The fabric on the bottom is a commercial dye/batik.  I was curious to see how my fabric would hold up to the bleach in the release paste.  I was pleasantly surprised.  I use a dye fixative in the final stage of dyeing to increase color fastness.  There was much less of a reaction than I expected.  On the other hand I did not expect the quick results with the commercially dyed fabric. I guess that what makes this technique so much fun.  You never know what your end result will be.

Fun with Fabric

I just have to start this post by saying thank you so much for all your support and the wonderful comments you left on my last post.  It feels so good to be back in a routine of exercise and this time I have cheerleaders!  This new attitude was long overdue.  

This weekend after I finished my shift at the Red Door Gallery I was able to get back to sewing.  I put the finishing touched on my "Mod" quilt top late Sunday afternoon.  This quilt is composed of many of the large scale prints I have been collecting for the last few years.  Some were purchased for handbags and others just for fun.  I never did make the handbags but loved the fabric and had to find a use for it. I thought it would be fun to feature the fabric in large quilt blocks that would capture snapshots of the large scale prints.  I designed this quilt in early January after looking for a pattern and finding none that really appealed to me.  The finished quilt will be 50.5"X84.5". Believe it or not it will be a lap quilt.  Winters here in our old farmhouse are chilly.  Lap quilts need to cover your toes and tuck underneath your chin.   I can't wait to snuggle up under this quilt with a good book!

I just placed an order for a 100 yard bolt of print cloth.  It should be here by Wednesday and I will start dyeing again.  My Etsy store has been neglected for more than a month.  I finally replaced the purple and fuchsia colorways the other day.  I did a small dye lot a few weeks back, but no where near what is needed to get my store restocked.  I have to wait until the weekend to dye because I get so excited when I dye that I don't sleep well.  I just can't wait to rinse out the one of a kind dyes and see how they turn out.   These are my favorites from the last batch.

Dawn asked about the quilt behind me in my last post.  My friend Patsy made it to hang in her quilt retreat. You can see and better photo of it here.

Serious Stash Enhancement and the Winners Are...

Thank you so much for all of your comments on my 100th post. It was really helpful to hear your favorites. I won't keep you in suspense. The winners are....

Quilt Crazy Gal Jenna who has a wonderful blog showcasing all sorts of quilting techniques and

Jackie's Stitches, a knitter and a new quilter. She has some lovely pictures of a recent trip along the Appalachian Trail. I've always wanted to make that trip.

A big thank you to everyone that turned out for the Fabric Sale yesterday.

Here are my purchases, made in the afternoon after most people had come and gone. There are 4 sets of purchases in the photo above. The assortment of oriental prints fanned out in the front is the most expensive group on the table. The other 3 groups were bags of 2-3 lbs each (or 8-12 yards each) purchased for $5.00 a piece. On the left is a group of silks that include a Frank Lloyd Wright inspired fabric. The bag in the center holds strips sets of light and dark hues of brown. (I always need more of these in my stash.) The last on the right are generous scraps of different African prints. I've always wanted to add these to my collection.

This sale is on two levels of the home. I worked in Jeanne's quilting studio where all the fancy fabric are located. Oh... there is still so much left to choose from. I don't think it will matter what day you come to shop. You will not go away unhappy.

There still many large pieces of African print. Some are mud cloth, some with shells and still others are appliqued. There are a couple of bins full of hand dyed cotton sateens, print cloth and hand painted fabrics. Other items on this level include fancy garment fabrics, wool, overdyed wool, fleece, oriental fabrics (both silk and cotton prints), velvets and upscale batiks.

I came home with yards of Laura Wasilowski's cotton sateens, lovely hand dyed flannels and some of Wendy Richardson's overdyed velvets. Scrumptious!!!

The upper level of the home houses the traditional fabrics. There are cottons, flannels and even courduroy fabrics to choose from.

There are three more days left to this sale. Look for details in the upper right hand corner of my blog. I borrowed some of these pictures from Patsy's blog. You can see more photos here.

Leonids meteor showers peak tomorrow night November 17th in the late evening. I hope your skies are clear.