Continuing on with my natural dye printing explorations, here is one of my first multicoloured swatches.  Can't wait to see how the colours blend when printed.

I hope you all have enjoyed your weekend.  Sadly I missed nuit blanche last night since I'msick sick sick :(

I've been following Craig Sinclair's blog, My Daily Image since 2008.  I love his unpretentious style.  I find his photos honest and telling, each one a narrative in itself, and they work wonderfully collectively.  Each photo posted represents the day it was taken and is marked as such as the title of the post.  Above are some of my recent favourites.

P.S. he's the guy who photographed my East Hastings yarn bomb a few years back.

I presented this doll in an installation where she sat on the floor among furniture that matched her clothes, using fabric from the Anchor/Cradle, and a silent doll-sized television made from paper clay.  The T.V.projected blue light.  I see the installation as an extension of the personal interventions I've been doing.  I'm not sure yet if I'm identifying the doll as a self portrait, but in this case it did represent the state of mind that I was in at the time; introspective and low energy.\

The original ookpik is made by Margaret Kanayok and altered by myself.

Here are some shots of the fabric I've been working into this month.  There will be a lot more added to this falling sweater, including some subtle leaf prints and maybe even some goldleaf.  The falling sweater was printed with brazilwood and logwood and the full falling series is 5 vertical prints on 136 inches of silk

This finished piece will be shown at Eastern Bloc starting March 30th, 2012

photos by Riley Sparks

Update March 23rd:  Shortly after this post I accidentally ruined this fabric in a contaminated pot.  I was pretty sad at first, but the more I look at the photos the more I think the piece had already been resolved at this point.  So now I'm just glad I have these great photos.  For the show on the 30th I'll be showing the second part of this series which will be a lot different and feature a sound element.

Cara Birkeland, the third generation owner of the well loved Vancouver wool and yarn company which has been running for over 70 years, has recently announced their upcoming closure.  I know the community is very sad about this, as am I.  Thank you Birkeland family for your legacy of beautiful, quality products, hospitality and camaraderie.



Below is Cara Birkeland's message to the community, taken from their website.

February 2, 2012


To all our Valued Customers,

Birkeland Bros. Wool will be closing as of March 1, 2012.

Birkeland Bros. Wool would like to thank you for your patronage over the last 73 years. We have enjoyed helping, laughing, and sharing your wool dreams. You are not only our customers - many of you have also become our friends.

This decision has not come easily. My grandfather founded the business, and my father took over until his retirement due to illness. About 15 years ago, parallel to a nursing career, I started to expand Birkeland Bros. Wool into its current format of supplying a wide variety of products for crafts and fibre arts.

A wonderful community has formed around our business, and it has been much fun, and you as customers have contributed to 2011 being one of the most successful years in the history of Birkeland Bros. Wool.

Nevertheless, health reasons have forced me to re-assess my options and consider drastic changes. With pride about what my family, our staff, and you as a community have achieved, and with sadness that all good things will have to transform at some point in time, I have decided to close the doors of Birkeland Bros Wool, and focus on new horizons.

Help us to celebrate the wonderful and woolly things shared, of decades past and new decades to come, in this month of February. We will be having several sales events, and it will be a good occasion to re-stock your coffers and drop by and say hello.

We wish you continued happiness in knitting, spinning, weaving, felting and many other wool dreams.

We have loved being part of your life.

Sincerely,


Cara Birkeland

3rd Generation Owner,
Birkeland Bros. Wool Ltd.

I'm having a sale over at my Etsy shop!  These two items have been my best sellers so I've continued to offer them, mostly through word of mouth locally, but today I added them to Etsy again so I can offer them to those of you farther away!  If you're in Montreal I can create a custom order for you that does not add shipping and we can arrange a pick-up place and time.

So, for the next two weeks these two lovely jems are 30% off.  

Enter the coupon code "covet2012" at the checkout.
Buyer beware, they are very cozy!

xo Janna

More printing with natural dyes.  These photos aren't out of focus, the prints have just transferred that way, which I love.