After doing some sample smocking, with good results, I set out to do another gathered apron. I had previously bought some lovely linen in a herringbone twill and was happy to finally use it. The sample smocking told me I needed to use twice the desired width of fabric so I cut out an 80 cm wide apron with a length of 90 cm give or take.
Almost done with the honeycomb pattern.
I made the gathering stitches 1 cm apart and several enough so that the gathering was about 7 cm wide. Then I started on the honeycomb stitch and this time I didn’t leave any empty rows (like I did in the sample), I think it made a prettier and more even impression in the end. My honeycomb stitches were 2 cm apart. I managed 5 rows of stitches which I think is wide enough. You can see the lovely herringbone twill in the bottom right corner of the picture.
After that all that was left to do was to finish the edges and then attach the ribbon at the waist. I used the full width of the fabric for the ribbon and made it 2 cm wide.
The honeycomb pattern with the gathering thread still left in the fabric.
Racaire finally got her crafty challenge gift from me this week. I’ve been preoccupied and forgot to send it to her so it has been laying around here forever… She got a gathered apron and hope she will find it useful!
Last week I finally got around to try out some dyeing with the silk I pre-mordated. I wanted to try something simple and inexpensive so I went out in the garden and gathered some Cow Parsley Anthriscus sylvestris (sv: Hundkex). Then I put the flowers in a pot with water and let it boil for at least an hour.
The silk should never be treated at a temperature over 70 °C so I let the water cool to that temperature before I put the silk in. I dyed a 9 gram skein, sufficient enough for a fist try. The silk was left in the pot at 70 °C for an hour and then I let it cool for a while. The silk was rinsed in water and then in vinegar water to really get the shine of the silk. You should pour as much vinegar in the water that it tastes sour but not so much that you make a sour face when tasting it!
Silk and Cow Parsley in water.
The silk turn out pretty enough with a lemony-yellow colour. I’m gonna make some thread winders to wind it on and then use it to sew with (it’s very thin).
Today I spent all day at Astrid and Dis. We had a very productive day working on different projects. Dis started an amazing scoll, Astrid work on 16th century landsknecht-ish garb and I almost finished my tablet weaving as well as started on another apron project. I’m doing another gathered apron and am now doing several test pieces to see which size of smock to use.
Astrid and Dis also got a chance to look at my newly dyed wool and we discussed the possibility to dye some silk in the near future. There was also time for gossip and general craft/SCA discussions which is always nice.
I’m going away for the weekend but hopefully I’ll be able to tell you more about the tablet weaving, the apron project as well as some silk dyeing that I’ve been doing next week. Have a good weekend!
This Saturday it was finally time for some dyeing. We were 5 dyers: Bothild, Sigrid, Ulrika, Kjettil and myself, various husbands and children was also hanging around so we quite the crowd. The day started pretty early so we got lots of dyeing done! We ended up using walnuts, madder, cochineal, birch leaves, elderberry leaves and Kjettil also did some experimenting with both the roots of galium and the plant.
The result on Saturday evening
Cochineal
Sigrid had prepared the cochineal in advance, crushing the scale insects and soaking them in water. We used 10 grams in 7 liters of water. Let it boil for 10 – 15 minutes and then cool to 90 °C. Put the damp wool in the cauldron in 1 hour making sure to stir and keep the temperature at 90 °C. Pick up the wool and rinse it until the water is clear.
Wool dyed with cochineal.
Birch leaves
We gathered lots of leaves and then let them boil for about 2 hours. The water was then cooled to 90 °C before we put the damp wool in. Then, as the usual method is with dyeing wool, we kept the temperature at 90 for and hour and stirred. We let the wool cool in the water before picking it up and rinsing it.
Wool dyed with birch leaves.
We used both white and grey wool and with birch it really makes a difference. The white wool dyes yellow and the grey wool dyes green.
Elderberry leaves
The dyeing with the elderberry was done with the same methods as the birch. According to sources it was suppose to give a nice green colour but it turned out more like a bland yellow-green colour. We probably didn’t pick enough leaves.
Wool dyed with elderberry leaves.
Madder
When dyeing with madder you use the root chopped in pieces (or preferably grounded) which has to soak in water at least over night. We used 100 grams of madder and 6 liters of water. It’s then heated to 70 °C and kept for an hour. If the madder reaches higher temperatures the colour will turn towards yellow and not nearly as beautiful. The damp wool is then added and kept at 70 °C for an hour. Don’t forget to stir.
Wool dyed with madder.
The two skeins to the right is from the second bath. It will still give colour but much less and not as bright. Skein number four from left is grey wool.
Walnut
We bought 1 kg of walnut shells that where already chopped (thankfully) and let them soak in water over night. After boiling them in 15 liters of water we strained of the shells and were left with a deep brown water in which we put the damp wool. Left it there for 1 hour at 90 °C and then we rinsed it. We saved the water and used it the next day for some more wool.
Wool dyed in walnut shells.A second bath with walnut shells.
The skein to the right is white wool (and on coincidence matches my hair pretty good), the others are grey wool.
We didn’t do any dyeing with the silk. You can’t do it together with the wool as the silk needs a cooler temperature but I’ll save it for a later day. Also we had so much fun dyeing that we discussed another date for dyeing in August. Then we’ll focus on indigo and madder.
Today I’m pre-mordanting all the yarn with alum for tomorrows dyeing. With 2 kg of yarn it’s probably gonna take the better part of the day to get it all done. But it’s a lazy day so I don’t mind.
I’m using a standard recipe with 20 gram alum to 100 gram wool in 5 liters of water. I heat the alum water to 60 °C and put in the wool. Then I heat the water to 90 °C and let the wool lay there for an hour. The wool will then cool in the water and then dried in the shadow.
Haven’t had much inspiration to do anything SCA-related lately. I’ve felt it before and I know I’ll find inspiration again. Went to some local second hand stores a couple of days ago and made quit a bargain.
A bobbin winder (sv: spolmaskin)A rigid heddle and a "garnsticka"
I got a bobbin winder for 20 kr (approx. $ 2.5) – I don’t think the old lady knew what it was. I new one costs about 500 kr ($ 60)! The rigid heddle and the “garnsticka” (anyone know the English term?) is always useful weaving tools.
This weekend I’ll be going to Bothild for some natural dyeing. We’ll be dyeing wool and silk with walnuts, madder, cochineal (carmine), roots of galium and other stuff we can find in the garden/forest. Sigrid and Egil will also be there and I haven’t seen them for I while so that will be fun too!
Hopefully I’ll get the supplies tomorrow and then I can start pre-mordanting the yarn with alum.
Last weeks shire meeting had woodwork on the schedule. We made various wood needles with pretty good results. My research in nalbinding has showed several finds of bone needles for nalbinding and I don’t think it’s to far fetched to think that the also made the needles from wood. And the good thing about wood needles is that the only get better the more you us them, it has all to do with the natural grease in the wool.
Biorns needle
So, back to my woodworking. The wood I had was from a linden and I used a simple knife (morakniv) and lots of smoothing paper. That’s the trick when you aren’t that used to wood working – you just have to use the smoothing paper a lot more! 🙂 The holes are made with a modern drilling machine. All the medieval bone needles that I have seen have round holes like this one.
I ended up making two needles and I am pleased with the result. The still need some more smoothing paper with a finer grain so I’ll have to find some at home. Then I’ll use some linseed oil and the needle will be ready to use!
After the smocking was finished I folded the side and the bottom of the apron twice to fell the edges with a simple hemming stitch. I make my hemming stitch so small on the right side of the fabric that it looks like a prick stitch. It’s a lot faster this way than making actual prick stitches and makes a very neat impression.
At the top of the apron I took a long piece of linen with a 5 cm width. I folded long edges and then folded it again to make a long double folded waistband. The waistband was sewed as close to the top honeycomb stitches as possible.
Washing, ironing and… Tada, one gathered apron with smocking!
The finished apron!
My hips are to big for this apron, I probably need a smock with a width of 35 cm. But Rose was gracious enough to put on a dress at our latest Juneborg sewing circle so that I could take some pictures. Thank you!
I’m very pleased with the result and will definately take all this experince and make an apron for myself – with a wider smock. 🙂
Cristina's ramblings 