Stripes

I've received positive feedback about the scarf that I posted in my apples and bracken post and I thought that it would be nice to give you all a pattern for it. This pattern is short and simple and perfect for both the amateur and expert crocheter. I personally really like it for the depth that it gives the piece, as well as the movement that the tassels ensure. Anyways, here it is;

1) Chain whatever width you like plus three

2) In the third chain from the hook, begin your double crochet to the end and turn

3) Chain three, double crochet in the back of the loop to the end and turn

4) Repeat step three till the desired length is reached

5) Stitch the ends together

If you are using a different yarn for each row, simply snip the yarn being used at the conclusion of the row and use the next yarn to chain the beginning of the next row. At the end, tie together the two strings that are closest to one another at the convergence of each row to make a simple tassel. Be sure to leave enough yarn to tie a knot as you can always trim it to the length you like later on.

See, wasn't that simple? So far I've done two; the apple and bracken dyed scarf and this other one that I used yarn dyed with blackberries and a black yarn for. I personally love the contrast between both the texture and the color. It makes for a very beautiful scarf! I hope that you all enjoy this pattern and I would love to see your results.

Much Love, Kenzie

Apples and Bracken

So this wasn't my first attempt at dying with plant products, but it was by far my most successful. Well, sort of. When I was working at Half Price Books a couple of years ago I picked up a book called Wild Color by Jenny Dean and this has been both my introduction and my blueprint to natural dying. This book has been a wonderful introduction to the history, procedures and plants that are used in dying. Two of the most available plants to me that I found in this book were bracken fern and apple leaves. My boyfriend, Aaron lives on a property of seven acres that is mostly comprised of woods. So! Off we tromped into the woods looking for bracken fern, of which we found a lot, and other forages, of which we did not find enough to dye with.

Although I am new to natural dying, one of the things I must impress upon those other beginner foragers and dyers is that you must be careful of how much plant material you take from one place. Some things it does not matter as much because it is rampant in the area (if you ever find a patch of comfrey or bamboo you probably don't need to worry because they are so invasive), but if you find a small patch of lichen DO NOT scrape it off its resting place. We want to make sure that the plants and lichen in the environment prosper and that we make as little an impact as possible. Luckily there was plenty of bracken fern in the woods! Between that and the apple trees that could be clipped in Aaron's garden we got plenty of plant material to dye some yarn. 

Now, to the yarn itself. Being a beginner it is easiest to work with wool, as it is one of the simplest materials; it's not so sensitive to heat and I didn't need to worry so much about the dye taking unevenly. The yarn that I chose to use was Cascade Yarns- Ecological Wool, an un-dyed wool. I soaked it for roughly 12 hours, so that the dye would take more readily, then simmered the wool with the plant fiber (roughly 120 grams each) for an hour. Note here that a more experienced dyer may have washed the skeins so they wouldn't have so much of their natural oils on them. This would have allowed the dye to take more readily, but out of curiosity as to what would happen, I did not do this.

If I had washed the wool my results may have turned out differently, however I was perfectly happy with the effect. The bracken fern was just barely more tan/brown than the dirty white of which the yarn had started. The color was just barely changed and although I liked the color, it probably could have benefited from being washed previous to dying. Either that or have benefited from being simmered with plant matter for a longer period of time. I will have to try this later. The apple, however, turned out to be an absolutely lovely deep and robust, rusty gold. I was amazed that this color could come from the seemingly simple green leaves of an apple tree. I can only imagine the difference that washing the yarn and a longer simmer could have done. I may need to try these differences next season! 

Below I have included a picture of the two yarns crocheted together and the colors truly compliment one another. As for the crocheting process itself, it is a simple double crochet pattern in which I crocheted in the backstitch of the previous row. Please let me know if you are interested in an official pattern.

Much love,

Kenzie

Beginnings

Why am I making this blog? Well there are a couple of reasons; the first and foremost of which is that I am not okay. I have been dealing with depression since I was roughly 11 years old. Of course there have been ups and downs throughout the years, but I have been in the depths for quite a while now. It has been long enough that I have come to the realization that I cannot depend solely on doctors and therapists, but have to rely on the power of myself. Which brings me to my next reasons- finding meaning.

In my therapy one of the skills I have begun to explore is meaning making. In the midst of depression, for many of us, suicide rises to the forefront of the mind. Things that used to be precious to us begin to not matter anymore and we lose our connection to reality. Finding meaning within is, arguably, what makes life worth living. And thus I am trying to find this meaning within myself, and my own life.

The third reason why I am making and also very excited about this blog is that I’d always hoped to find a career that I enjoy and creation seems to be the enjoyment that I seek. I like the idea of making things naturally- of walking through the woods and scavenging plants and lichen that will make beautiful colors. I like the idea of going back to the days of using animal wool and fur to produce clothing rather than depending on unsustainable factories that not only hurt the people who work there, but the resources that they deplete. I don’t pretend to be an expert on the subject, but I hope to do my part by learning the arts that I present on this page; and lucky for you, if you so choose, you get to go on this journey with me!

If you have gotten this far I thank you for reading about why I am making this blog, it truly means a lot to me that I can share my drive with you. We all search for our place in this world and I am simply one of many in the process. I hope that you enjoy the projects that I present and I would absolutely love to hear from you about questions, comments or requests for projects that you may find exciting and relatable.

My love goes with you all,

Kenzie