Eco Dyed and CWQ Block 8

Haven't been very active here lately. My online workshop is almost at an end and I've signed up for a Shibori technique workshop with Glennis and a cloth whispering for mini hearts with Jude again in April. Then in May is my Silk Study Tour to Japan. I'm so looking forward to it. Through my online network I discovered that an annual Shibori festival is on in Arimatsu, Nagoya Prefecture while we are there. My friend and I will visit that too. How very exciting! 

I have been doing some eco dyeing in the last couple of weeks with eucalyptus barks. The eucalyptus trees are shedding their bark in Spring. I collected some on my daily walks. To my surprise the bark produces a beautiful deep tan colour. Actually I have a dye pot going most days with various stuff. 

These are the 2 pieces of vintage silk dyed with eucalyptus bark. The piece on the right I scrunched into a ball and tied with rubber bands. The one on the left was pleated and folded into a neat bundle, then tied with rubber bands. I boiled the bark for about an hour and dropped the silk bundle into the pot and boiled it for another 45 mins. I left the bundles in the pot outdoors until they completely dried before I untied and rinsed the excess dye off. 

To my surprise there was not any excess from the dye at all. The water ran clear. So this is a successful batch of dye and I will gather more bark next time I walk that way. I have been keeping a chart for all the dye I'm doing now. My daughter-in-law insisted I keep a dye chart for the future use. Good idea.

And here where the barks came from. The tree is bare after shredding all of it barks. The tree trunk is still have fresh pinkish bark on it. Such a treasure find! 

Finished block 8 Cotton Boll of the Civil War Quilts block of the week last night. This block went together very well. I love that my 'F' fabric fitted in the block perfectly again. It's really surprised me how well any colour goes with the 'F' fabric. If you want to see more of the finished blocks visit flickr page for the CWQ 2011. 

Hope everyone is well and keeping busy with your creations. I hope to have a chance to visit all your blogs soon.