Tag: chesapeake fibershed

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Last Podcast of Season 4

In this podcast, Lisa talks about the clothing challenges sponsored around the nation and the world by Fibershed affiliates. There are small challenges that focus on just one type of garment, such as gloves or a pair of socks. There are others that expect a 3 piece outfit made by one person or a team.

Chesapeake Fibershed decided to make their challenge as inclusive as possible. So we broadened the concept to include home textiles such as quilts and rugs and pillows. And you can participate whether you make a huge project, an outfit or even a hat. We also have 3 “streams” of participation depending on what your raw materials are.

You can read about it here. And if you live within 150 miles of the DC-Baltimore Metro area, you can join our challenge by completing the form here.

Would you rather watch the podcast? You can find it here.

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A Conversation with Ellen Hoch

Ellen is a vibrant member of the Chesapeake Fibershed so I thought it would be fun to talk about the Fibershed movement. We also get into the difficulties there are with getting local yarn and fabrics, simply because our infrastructure is gone. There are some new ideas out on the horizon, so there is lots to be hopeful about. We also talk about the status of our local wardrobes and what we are working on right now. You can listen to the podcast here or anywhere you listen to podcasts. If you would prefer to watch, you can find it here on my You Tube.

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Slow Fashion: New Podcast Episode

Slow fashion is the opposite of fast fashion. It has arisen from the concerns about the planet and about concerns about wage equality and the equal treatment of people in all countries, not only as workers, but also as the end users of these products and concern about our climate. It started by a lot of people pivoting to buying organic clothes, when possible. And then people started looking at the idea of these organic sustainable fibers are going to be grown on a farm somewhere. Read the Transcript Listen to the podcast Watch the Video

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Weekend Foraging

It’s just days away until Summer is over. And it’s time to be gathering some of the best dye plants in our area. This past weekend, Bill and I headed out to find Goldenrod. It is an amazing dye plant. It grows wild all along the roadways here in Maryland. And we were lucky to find some that had been spared from mowing and herbicides that are used along roads to keep the weeds at bay. They were in full delightful bloom.

Goldenrod

My plan is to separate the blooms from the leaves and woody stem. The stems will go into the compost pile. The leaves will be dried and frozen for later dye sessions throughout the winter. The flowers will be made into a dye pot this week.

Here’s what I will be doing…. I will cover the blooms with water (at a neutral pH). In fact I may put my rain barrel back in service, since we should be getting some rain this week. I will slowly raise the temperature of the flower water mixture, careful not to boil it. I will keep the water just below the simmer. Then I will set it aside and let it cool. Once cool I will remove the flowers.

When it’s time to dye, I will presoak my scoured and mordanted wool and then add it to the dye pot. A good rule of thumb is to have equal weights of fresh flowers and dry wool. This will give you a nice shade. I will begin to raise the heat of my dye pot and again keep it under the simmer for 1 hour. I will check it to see if I want to leave the wool in overnight, or just stop there.

Then I can make a determination if there is leftover dye (exhaust) that I can use to dye more yarn in a soft, more muted color. I’m super excited to get started!!