Terra Lenta

Madder growing madly on my windowsill! Vigorous little plant, I'll bet it is really invasive in the ground. Good, it will produce lots of lovely roots!

Little eucas happy for the time being :-)

When a sycamore #leaf allows you to print its detail on #silk! Now on to print some #silkscarves ...#ecoprint #madder #logwood #naturaldye #botanicalprint #leaves #purple #nature_seekers #terralenta

Madder and euca cinerea seedlings :-) The baby eucas are tiny, with red stems, and germinate very easily! Betty was it you who (quite a few years ago) mentioned you had one in a pot? I will try other species of euca too, if these grow into healthy plants!

Not, it is not coffee! These are madder seeds (Rubia Tinctorum) which is a member of the coffee family. I decided to grow a number of plants but my new allotment needed a lot of work and it is getting late in the year, so I will keep them in pots until next year :-) I love Monty Don, not only because of his talent and his interest in eco-friendly methods, but also because of his openness about his fight against depression. Using the loo rolls as pots is his idea <3 I have also put a few seeds in moist cotton wool, as I used to do when I was a child. Will keep you posted about the plants!

I love madder, not only as a dye but also because it will print a wonderful red! I have used it in several of my scarves. My friend Teresinha Roberts from Wild Colours Natural Dyes gave me a plant last year, I was afraid it might have died with the harsh winter but didn't and is doing very well now. I haven't used any of the roots yet, will plant it in the allotment first and let it grow for at least one year.

Not snow in Spring! It is the beautiful english countryside. Love it!
Legend has it that a Portuguese King fell in love with and married a Scandinavian princess. When she became so homesick that she fell ill, he was advised to plant many almond trees. When they blossomed each year, the petals were so similar to snowflakes that they soothed her heart. They were happy ever after ;-)

When art meets 100% self-sufficient homes made from rubbish! <3

This is the result of my initial tests, on silk. The pH was, as expected due to oxalic acid, quite low, around 3. After mordanting, the silk was a light creamy gold colour, similar to the one I get from myrobalan, another tannin. I then dyed a sample mordanted with rhubarb with lac (middle), and finally (far right) a sample mordanted with alum, also with lac. Alum produced a redder colour (rhubarb was dark pink) but the depth of colour was lovely.
The cooked leaves look like cabbage, but they are toxic - it is NOT a soup :-) . See the following link for info: http://www.rhubarbinfo.com/poison

My new allotment came with a wonderfully large rhubarb plant. The rhubarb stalks were delicious in a crumble, and the leaves I used to test rhubarb as a mordant. NOTE: the leaves contain oxalic acid which is toxic. I always use gloves when handling dyestuffs, and always boil them in open or well ventilated environments. Also, if pots or utensils are used for dyeing, do NOT use them for cooking!

Now, is it worth try to compost this?

From a very neglected plot to Fatima 's dye garden!

Latest review: "My top arrived promptly. It is beautiful - I love it. Thank you!" The #kindness of #customers :-) #upcycled #boho #bohostyle #top #handdyed #indigo #hippie #bohochic #sustainablefashion #ecofashion #ecofriendly #slowfashion #naturaldye #slowliving #etsyfashion #ecofriendly #sustainability #TerraLenta

Brilliant!

History in a label: my other page Traditional Dye Works focuses on natural dyes, and on this page I will post about leaving a slightly smaller footprint on this beautiful earth! As an avid collector of vintage fabrics, I always check the labels and these two are gems! The first one is a woven wool blanket, where the label itself has the price (42/5 - shillings?). The second one is from a vintage coat label and says "Made in W Germany" :-)

This is so cool! Traditional Portuguese ceramics have produced leaf-shaped bowls and plates for centuries, but this actually uses leaves to make them :-)

A while back I printed some unbleached cotton with maple leaves. I kept the panel for a while... I like sewing so decided to re-use more and more existing materials to make new upcycled items. So, I used the panel for the lining of a green suede tote made from a deconstructed garment. Leather handles also came from another garment :-) Love the distressed look!

I have a room full of other materials so it is time to stop printing on vegan leather! But it prints so well! O the joy of combining leaf colours - this will be my next bag :-) Also, don't you love it when little, humble pieces of plants (in this case a lilly stamen) unexpectedly give you a rainbow?