sow and sew::indigo!

In the spring, I tried starting indigo seeds in flats indoors. It did not work. In early June I found some seedlings at Twin Pond Farm's spring plant sale. The Japanese Indigo (polygorium tinctorium) plants I bought that day loved growing in our raised beds here at our bit of earth. 

Last Saturday I pulled all the plants, stripped the leaves from the stems and ended up with about a pound and a half to work with.

A pound of leaves filled this large pickle jar. I covered the leaves with water, put a lid on the jar (not tight!) and set it in a large pot of water. I kept the temperature in the vat steady at around 170 degrees F for about three hours.

Over the years, I have collected several beautiful books about indigo and shibori and dying. I ended up using A Garden to Dye For by Chris McLaughlin. It's a lovely little book, with simple and easy to follow instructions.   

When I got to the step in the process where I had to oxygenate the vat I felt that our decision to splurge on the farmer's style stainless steel kitchen sink was justified. Slowly pouring the the dye solution from one vessel to the next...back and forth for about 10 minutes...with plenty of room and no chance of staining...exhale with relief!

I dyed a silk scarf (the more turquoise result) and a yard of linen (the rich blue solid). I also played around with a few shibori techniques on cotton with varying results.

(I found a variety of necessary supplies for this project at Dharma Trading Co.)

I've had a life long love of all things indigo. Growing my own plants, harvesting them and then using them to dye fabric has been on my bucket list forever. Finally accomplishing this project was so deeply satisfying for me. 

There are a few coreopsis tops drying in the woodshed and the tansy is still blooming in the gardens...

How about you, dear readers...have you tried fiber dying? I'd love to hear of your results!

a dove at the front door and in my heart, too

Today is UN International Day of Peace. 

It seems appropriate to do a celebratory shout out to my beloved alma mater out in Indiana. Last night, a group of Earlham students made a big splash in NYC...check out what happened here.

As the elections draw nearer, the madness seems to grow, and so I will feed the light of peace whenever I am able. 

Peace, friends.

It's all about peace and love and hope and light and justice right now.

why we sow

• carrots on the right have gone into the fridge, carrots on the left are stored in buckets of sand in the root cellar.
• edamame plants from our csa at anchor light farm.
• steamed and shelled edamame.
• a bumper crop of onions.
• garlic. some to eat, some to store, some to plant for next year's crop.
• fingerling potatoes! our first effort with spuds.
• the jack-o'-lantern pumpkin patch.
• last year's apple crop was outstanding in vermont, this year, we are happy to have a few.
• the last of the lacinato kale. some folks call it dinosaur kale. :-)

Oh, these days are full. I've been back and forth to my Mumsie's in Massachusetts a bit and it looks like the new normal. It's hard. But this is how life unfolds and it's how the generations intertwine. 

In between visits, life here condenses to accommodate the time available. 

We are creeping into my favorite season and I pinch myself every day as I awaken in this beloved spot. Cooking with the food that has grown out of the dirt right outside our door, as the late day sunshine streams into our splendid new kitchen...this...this is our very own bit of earth.

Meditating. Eating well. Stitching. Mending. Sleeping. Breathing deeply. Harvesting. Acting locally.

All of it under the sanctuary 

of the bright blue sky and pitch black night.

xo

triptych 36

• bread and puppet at big town gallery in rochester...one of our favorite little vermont towns.
• hosting labor day supper with batman's co-workers. cornhole, good food and appreciation.
• wilma and some meditative knitting. pickling apron from cast iron, cast on, by becky herrick and calley hastings (of fat toad farm)

roasted cherry tomatoes

Batman starts some of our garden bounty from seeds, early in the season, tucked along various sunny windowsills around the house. But we usually buy tomato starts at the farmer's market...this year down in Norwich. (I think we went to King Arthur Flour for breakfast on the way). Priced to sell, Batman bought a bunch of starts and now, a whole summer later, we have cherry tomatoes galore! 

We can't keep up with the volume of sweet little orbs that practically drop into our hands as we pick them. So, I have been roasting them in the oven and freezing them. Last winter, we often used the frozen tomatoes as a topping on homemade, wood fired pizza, baked in our Home Comfort.

It's super easy to roast tomatoes in the oven, be they fresh from your own garden or your local farmer's market, or neighborhood store.

• preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
• rinse and drain your garden fresh tomatoes.
• spread them out on a parchment paper covered rimmed baking pan.
• drizzle a bit of olive oil over the tomatoes and move them around to lightly coat them.
• add some freshly cut herbs, yesterday I used oregano and rosemary.
• sprinkle with sea salt and a few grinds of fresh black pepper. 
• roast them in the oven for about 10 minutes, then give them a bit of a gentle stir.
• after stirring them, give them another 10-15 minutes, until they have all burst open and shriveled a bit.
• remove them from the oven and let them cool completely.
• I usually remove the twiggy bits leftover from the herbs and drop them in the compost.
• put appropriate portions in small freezer bags, clearly marked with the date and content.
• store in your freezer until you have forgotten what garden fresh tomatoes taste like. 
• open your freezer, grab a bag to defrost and start your pizza dough!

This sew and sow life really comes on strong at this time of year. Harvesting and stitching and living the dream.

What's happening in your kitchens at this time of year, friends?

triptych 35

After being away again for a bit, I spent some time wandering around our place today, soaking in the last little bit of August and I took lots of colorful pictures.  These three, tho, with their muted colors and gentle mood caught my attention. 

-Sweet Wilma

-dried poppy seed heads from the gardens and a bit of birchbark, stashed for an upcoming winter project

-Honeybee's paws

I'm going to try to be around here at sewandsowlife more often, with show and tell.

Autumn is my favorite. xo

Please remember, I am now responding to your comments right here, in the comments section below. It's such fun to hear from you.

honeybee and wilma and getting along

My Mumsie's kitty Honeybee has moved to Vermont to live with us. She is on the left, above. Her life has been turned upside down and she misses my Mumsie (who is working on some of her own changes), her home and the peace and quiet she used to enjoy.

Our growing kitten, Wilma, is on the right. She is SO EXCITED to have a new friend and she just won't give Honeybee much of a rest. 

They are working things out, very slowly. Honeybee does much growling and hissing with ears laid back and she gives warning swats. Wilma just dances around her on tip toes, chirping kitten chirps and follows Honeybee everywhere.

Make no mistake, there are "time outs" during the day and they are shut apart at night. We don't want to push our luck...

But twice now I have caught them napping in the same room.

I watch them and wonder why new relationships are sometimes so difficult to navigate. "The Other" looms large for so many of us. 

Patience.

Over and over again the magic word is patience.

Maybe trust, too.

xo