Au naturel!

Always feel a bit naughty when I do a composite - but this days event deserves it!
I went on a Natural Dyeing Workshop with a friend - all the way to the outskirts of our local town - all of ten minutes away!
The workshop was held in a converted cowshed, set in 9 acres of land with a feature packed 1920's house! The fields had 4 beehives and chickens scratching around and in, a poly tunnel. Whats not to like?!
There were 8 of us, 9 including a baby who slept apart from when being breast fed so she didn't really count and was hidden in the shawl wrapped round her mothers chest and covered by her apron - just the occasional snuffling noise and sighs of contentment were heard! 2 of the other women came from our village and we knew them! So I knew this was going to be good fun! Which it was! The teacher went through the process and the types of "mordants" to fix the natural dyes. There was iron screws and copper pennies in jars of water , vinegar and ascetic acid. The dyes we were to make from Yarrow, Hibiscus, Madder, Woad, St Johns Wort, Nettles, Dyer's Chamomile, Elder and others I forget!
We boiled the plant chosen and carded the wool, stopping for lunch of homemade pumpkin soup and brown seeded rolls, then apple and blackcurrant crumble, ice cream and apple juice to drink. All of it homemade and delicious! We talked of allotments: growing brussel sprouts, swiss chard and beetroot: mice, slugs, rabbits and fowl! A bit of talk about age, feminism, life in general!!
Once back we put our wool in the dyes and the fun began! After 20 mins or so the wool was washed under the outside tap, and for the Woad, shaken to oxygenate and strengthen the dyes colour! We then started adding the wool to other dyes made by everyone else and adding mordants - each piece of coloured wool was pegged on a line and a rainbow appeared against the white painted cowshed walls! Once we had finished each piece was divided into 8 and we took our rainbows home!
Loads of photos on Flickr - didn't even really try to edit as the girls will want to see them! Decided to raid herb plot on my allotment, plan what seeds to plant for future plant dyeing material, my friend will lead the dyeing and I will try to be more helpful and leave my camera at home! Other village friend on course does felting so we are going to do a workshop with her next year so we can use what we dye]!!!
Well, I dropped my friend home then up to chickens to unload sacks of pellets, mash and corn, clean the feeding trays and tuck the girls up in the coop!

So before settling down to watch last nights Strictly and see who got eliminated, I must thank you all again for getting my blip yesterday to the spotlight! Unbelievable! Was dancing round my kitchen after a few expletives of delight and shock!!