Wednesday 18 November 2015

a strong contender for new favourite skirt


after my students all packed their bags and headed back into the whirled
I spread out my bits and pieces and began work on a few garments, pieced together
from bits of other garments

this evening I unbundled my new skirt...realising too late that I hadn't made any "pre-dye" pictures.
dang.

the dyestuffs are all locally gathered.
predominantly eucalyptus with a little casuarina and the odd acacia pod tossed in to spice the mix


the skirt is made from two pairs of mens trousers. the labels on both stated they were a silk/wool blend.
the dyepot says otherwise.


still, I'm fond of silver greys and taupes so I'm not losing any sleep over it


the skirt was stitched by hand using merino+silk thread. it's picked up the colour rather nicely



there are eleven pockets on the skirt, so it will be an excellent wandering garment
room for leaves and drawings and poems and a clean hankie or two
along with a small notebook, a pencil and the camera that thinks it is a telephone


the picture above shows the lining. it's a silk+linen mix I had from Beautiful Silks



something in the chemical history of the cleaning of the pants that make up this skirt has pushed the usual red tones of the Eriococcus coccineus infesting the twigs of one of the eucalypts to yellow


two patches of silk stitched on to the skirt show that the fabric of the original trousers was either not what it stated on the label OR had been drycleaned so often that it responded oddly in the dyebath


this bright bit WAS wool. it's part of a jacket I was cutting up, now a nice detail on the hem of the dress


part of the waistband of one of the trousers became pockets


and unfortunately I didn't have a real body to hand so this shot of the skirt on the dummy will have to do for now.
I'm planning to wear it on the New Mexico adventure, just in case it snows. but not with that top (which is really an apron in gestation)

for the record : no plastic or ferrous sulphate used, but there were bits of iron in the dyepot - which is all you need, really.

22 comments:

  1. lovely thing, that skirt, though unexpected (and sometimes unexpected guests are such treats). but i'm envying those eleven pockets. eleven!!!

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    1. As long as I don't develop squirrel syndrome all will be well....

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  2. This looks great..........
    I would love to see you growing during windfall gathering........

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  3. Beautiful work! And pockets are so important and often lacking in commercial skirts.

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  4. Love the patterns and colours on this, what colour were the trousers?
    I agree with Jennifer regards pockets, so useful.

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    1. One pair were grey and the other a bit buttery

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  5. What a fascinating story. And a most useful one for those of us who like to make items from pre-loved clothes ... things not always being what they seem etc etc. Gorgeous !!

    Dare say tho, would be forever losing my phone imposter with that many pockets ;>))

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    1. I've developed consistency...Batfone goes in whatever pocket is nearest to right hand....and least likely to be sat upon

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  6. Fascinating re birth of trousers, love the colours . Eleven pockets! Be careful what you sit on.

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  7. I love the pics --- but I'm losing my mind a little just imagining the contents that eleven pockets might hold.....

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  8. Plastic? Eh? I so love, that there's no limits to what you use and sew together. You're as crazy brave as you are clever with scissors and needle!

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  9. Love the skirt and I'm swooning at the thought of 11 pockets. I'm wondering whether part of the problem may lay with the wool being treated to be machine washable which in my experience (more limited than yours) can be well nigh impossible to take dye. Just a thought. Are those desirable spots (2nd last pic) from stitching or caused by other means? Enjoy wearing this beauty.

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    1. The dashes are stitches, the dots from casuarina

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  10. Lovely! Hope to see this is January?

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  11. Wow I am speechless..... your new skirt is a beautiful work of art.

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  12. Wow! The skirt is stunning India. The way the thread meanders in such striking detail...the contrast between light and dark...ooh! Perhaps more such happy accidents are called for? Enjoy!

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  13. ....nothing wrong with Squirrel Syndrome. It's worked for Squirrels for centuries......

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  14. Lust worthy and delicious. You continue to surprise and amaze me.

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  15. India, your magic makes me cry. How can you create such beauty.

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  16. thank you , all of you, for your kind thoughts

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  17. Como nao podia deixar de ser....fiquei....fascinada....OBRIGADA

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