It's another overcast morning here - this makes 3-4 in a row. I miss having morning sun in the family room.
Today I finally put my black & goldwork embroidery piece on hold and am starting something more colorful instead of trying to force myself to finish that one. For the new piece, I'm using naturally dyed commercial wool that I'm going to pull apart & use the singles for embroidering.
Just in case, if you needed this info 
... This is the color you get, if you dye eggs with polypores (aka shelf or bracket fungi).
I'm on the path of exploring polypores, a lot to learn, definitely not enough of info, a lot of surprises. And I don't know the name of this one.
But natural dyes... well, weirdly enchanting. It draws you in very gently and smoothly, and soon you don't have a free pot for soup because there is some plant or mushroom in those pots soaking in water with fabric, eggs, paper... 
Anyone else here exploring and experimenting with natural dyes (in any form?)
Our all-natural Logwood dye is still available in the shop! 
I'm absolutely in love with this rich purple hue. Can't wait to create more of this amazing dye. It's incredible to think it comes from wood!
Even though I collected tons of seeds from the Japanese indigo I grew in this pot last year, it has still reseeded prolifically & I’m thrilled! #indigo #NaturalDye #gardening
An evening batch of #WeirdSmells because my mum brought me 2 kg of frozen lobster mushroom (Hypomyces lactifluorum) peels she collected from her yard, along with 2 gallons of her alkaline well water. What colour will this turn my yarn? We'll find out in the morning 
In other news, my cochineal dye experiment with cotton & linen and applying different tannins prior to mordanting are at the next step. I let everything sit overnight then pulled it all out of the pot and hung it up (without rinsing) to cure a few days. Next up: I'll wash & rinse the fabric with Soap fiber wash in my washer. I can't wait to see what I get for final colors! #FiberArt #NaturalDye
#Calendula is an excellent addition to any food or pollinators gardens. It's an amazing multi-purposeful annual plant that is easy to grow. It is #edible, #medicinal & is also a fave flower choice for #NaturalDye makers 
It's sometimes called poor man's saffron as it can be substituted for saffron in #culinary recipes. Most British folks call it pot's gold because it's used in broths/soups.
Learn more about how to grow, harvest & use calendula:
https://gardentherapy.ca/grow-calendula/
#Rowan aka #MountainAsh #tree #berries. Some birds feed on them. We have a tree that's been in our backyard since before our family bought our property in the early 90s.
There's also a big one growing at Welland Community Orchard too - they planted it there to boost pollination for one hybrid grafted fruit tree - one of the grafts are in the rowan family.
I harvest their berries to use for #PlantBased #NaturalDye making. They have high tannins in them.
#Woodworkers like the dense wood of rowan trees for carving/turning & making tool handles & walking canes.
