“Brilliant Colours with Natural Dyes”
A little glimpse into how and where natural dyes are derived! All of the information provided below is sourced directly from the book quoted below. The book also includes a very interesting section on "Pioneer Colours", listing the plants and plants parts that were used throughout history for textile colouring.
Source: Brilliant Clours with Natural Dyes on Silk and other Natural Textiles by Cheryl Kolander
This is a fascinating, inspirational book, available at www.AuroraSilk.com.
COCHI...
Food for Thought – “Milk: It Does the Body Good?”
We hear more and more about severe allergies to many common foods, such as milk and peanut butter. Without pushing an opinion, there are some interesting articles that are worth reading, all on the subject of milk. There is a Raw Milk movement that claims that the enzymes in raw milk are beneficial. I personally agree with this statement but where to get raw milk from a reliable source unless one milks their own Betsy? If one gets enzymes from other sources in their diet, and so opts to drink pa...
The Importance of Play
Importance of Play
"Children need to play – it is part of their world that helps to develop their imagination, communication and understanding." (nursery ed, Dec 2005)
This opening sentence says it all. The full article can be read here...The Importance of Play.
It is important to allow for playtime during daily routines, when schedules can become very busy with schooling, household chores, and extra-curricular activities. We hope you find these articles encouraging, and we look f...
Cranberry Sauce
Forget the canned stuff - homemade is best! A yummy condiment for special occasions, or just as a well-received treat with a chicken dinner.
Ingredients:
- 8 oz bag fresh cranberries (frozen would work as well, I am sure)
- 5 tbsp sucanat or rapadura (or more)
- 1 tsp lemon rind (optional)
Add all ingredients to a saucepan, cover and bring to simmer on a low heat. Shake the pan periodically so the cranberries do not burn to the bottom. Once the berries have burst, taste and add more sug...
Dragonfly Beginnings
Name: Lise Blackford
Location: Oregon, USA
Personal Bio: I have always enjoyed fiber arts, from sewing to spinning, knitting, felting and dyeing. I have a passion for helping others to achieve beauty in their lives while maintaining a non-toxic and healthy environment. Being chemically-sensitive myself, I became interested in creating naturally-dyed baby carriers for those that either have sensitivities to chemical dyes or that just love the look of the natural dyes. I love to create custo...
Organic Cotton, Linen and Cashmere from DIDYMOS
It was certainly a busy day at DIDYMOS headquarters with the release of three new slings.
First, there is an all-organic-cotton Ellipsen in shade of red and blue giving a offering rich berry shades.
Then, one of the newer patterns, Nautilus, is presented in an 85% organic cotton/15% cashmere blend in shades of grey, making this a classic, perfect-for-fall wrap.
Lastly, the ever popular, super-cute Fishies are now here in a 40% linen/60% organic cotton blend - G...
Oooh – We are back to making bread!
We had the great pleasure of attending a bread-making workshop offered as part of the local fall festival. The goal in attending was to get us motivated again to make our own bread. It worked! We are now making bread almost every day.
There appears to be a new trend in bread-making where the focus is "home-made bread in only 5 minutes!". There is a very interesting book that we picked up at the library "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. We have not m...
DIDYMOS Now with Ramie and Silk
DIDYMOS has introduced yet another member to their growing family of fibres used in their intricate weaving process – Ramie. Ramie is a flowering plant found in eastern Asia. It is one of the oldest fibre crops and has been used for over 6000 thousand years. Ramie is harvested between two to six times per year. It is resilient to disease and parasites and so can be grown quite easily without the use of pesticides and even herbicides.
It is the bark (called the phloem) that is used for Ramie...
DIDYMOS Björn and Indio Natural Brown Discontinued
The news that Indio Natural Brown was officially discontinued came as a bit of a surprise. Along with the Indio, the stripes Björn is also making its departure. The colour-grown brown organic cotton became richer with wear and wash. It is a shame to see them go but we will simply need to enjoy the colour-grown green in the Indio Natural Green and the stripes LARS....
The Calm Before the Storm
We stopped, on our way home, to visit the horses. They are usually far out in the pasture but this evening, they were right by the fence, with their noses pointing to the wind. They were quite curious when we approached and we really enjoyed admiring these impressive creatures. I have to wonder if they knew something was brewing in the air since later on that evening, we had some terrible storms blow in....
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