Steaming Away

I do use the steaming method in my house quite a lot. I use it for Eco dyeing of course and in cooking as well. The steaming method is a way of preserving all goodness and flavour in vegetables, fish and fruit. 

What have I been steaming lately? My steamer is always going for my Eco dyeing batches. I used to do that with my domestic cooker, but when I was in Bangkok I brought back a single gas burner and now I'm steaming out on the back deck. I do miss that eucalyptus smell from steaming. So what do I have to show you from my productive week today? 

When I was in Bangkok I picked up some tote bags, plain ones at that. It's getting harder and harder to find just plain of anything these days, so I was thrilled to find them in an Eco-Green shop. I dyed it with mulberries. Together with other mulberries dyed silk and vintage Japanese silk I applied some boro stitching  on the bag. I added a few buttons and this tote bag turned out gorgeous, I must say!

I used the same kind of tote bag as above, but this time I dyed it with eucalyptus leaves. I used boro patches with mixed dyed fabric and as you can see it's a very earthy and cool looking bag. I have used it once already when I went to the opening of Ziguzagu's exhibition a few weeks ago. 

You can't do steaming without a steamer. Up until now I have been using any old steamer, but my dyeing production is picking up so I need to be more efficient with the steaming. This is the same type of steamer that we used in my family home in Thailand. It's a double steamer with two layers of steamers and one base. I can boil the dye liquid in the base with bundles and at the same time I can have bundles steaming on top. How economic and environmentally friendly is that! 

This was the first time I used this new steamer. So out I went gathering those precious eucalyptus leaves again on my daily walk. There are couple of Eucalyptus Cinerea trees in my campus that I keep good eye on for falling leaves. These are sure to give me orange prints. I also found some Eucalyptus Silver Drop trees around my area that only had few leaves left from last year. I know they will dye because they give out strong scent.  

Plenty of leaves left over for the next batch. I have a feeling it will be soon. Oh I must tell you that I'm going to a workshop with Jacky and her friends a Naturally Dyed this Sunday. We went there this time last year and we thoroughly enjoyed it. 

These are the first three bundles to start the new steamer off. One bundle has vintage silk and mixed green and brown eucalyptus leaves. The second bundle has only old leaves I found on Monday morning when I got to work. I used  prunus leaves on cotton for the third bundle. I'm not sure about the cotton on this one, but we will see!

I have this lovely and soft piece of woollen fabric I found at an op-shop a while ago. It's a perfect backing of this Eco blanket I'm piecing. I would like to showcase the whole piece of the dyed cloths so this is a good way of showing them. So far I only pinned them down. Next I will go back and do invisible basting around the edges and then start stitching. Lots and lots of stitching will go into this one. I think it is a stitching project for next winter. 

Now for steaming of a different kind. Steam food parcels. Every Greek household has at least one grapevine growing. We have two, one vine for fruit and one ornamental vine. The ornamental vine hangs on the railing of the deck. At this time of year (Spring) the young leaves are a beautiful luscious green. For me it's the time to make dolmades (stuffed vine leaves). 

This is a wonderful recipe for meze or tapas. Easy to make and most of all I can use vine leaves from my very own grapevine. You can also buy vine leaves at a good delicatessen, either frozen or in the can. 

Here they are all wrapped up and ready for steaming. Here is a traditional Greek recipe from an old Greek cookery book that I have had for more than thirty years. Enjoy!

Stuffed Vine Leaves:

50 vine leaves, fresh or canned

 2 cups rice

 4 medium-sized chopped onions

1.5 cups olive oil

 1 lemon 

 1 cup chopped parsley, dill and mint leaves

1/4 cup pine nuts

 4 cups water

Salt and pepper to taste

Filling:

Fry chopped onions in olive oil until golden brown. Add pine nuts, rice and other ingredients and a cup of water. Cover and let simmer for 10 minutes. Allow mixture to cool.

In the meantime blanch vine leaves in boiling water for 1 minute, drain and cool under running water. 

Take each leaf with the shiny surface on the outside. Place a teaspoon of filling in the center of each leaf. Fold like an envelope and roll lightly to allow for the puffing of rice.

Place 3-4 fresh vine leaves at the bottom of heavy base saucepan. Arrange the leaf parcels on top, side by side and in layers. Add 3 cups of water, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a little more salt and the juice of one lemon.

Place some fresh leaves on top, press with a plate and cover the saucepan. Let simmer for about 45 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Uncover and let cool. 

Remove carefully, one at the time, so that the leaf parcels do not unfold. Serve hot or cold. 

Until next time

Nat

Australia Day - The True Blue...

Happy Australia Day everyone in Australia and around the world. I have a specially extra long weekend - a four day weekend. It's hard to come by when you are working full time so I'm enjoying it to the full. Yesterday we had the first meeting with the architect to start the process for "Seabird", our beach house. Today is Australia Day and I've planned to host an Australian Day tea party in the afternoon. In the morning Jacky and I played with indigo dye. We had such a fun day stitching shibori pieces and dyeing.  

In the above collage from left to right: An Australian flag and ANZAC biscuits I made for the tea party. Next is the table setting with the homemade lamingtons that Lynda kindly made for us. I made cucumber sandwiches and a platter of fresh fruit. The bottom photo is Jacky and Mr NJN enjoying the bubbly before we started our cuppas. 

In this collage from top left photo going clockwise: Jacky was making fringes on her scarf for dyeing. The next photo is the indigo vat I mixed earlier using an indigo kit. In the next photo Jacky had a first dip. She pulled out her scarf from the vat. It was yellow turning green/blue when it hit the atmosphere. The last photo is the scarf turning blue after leaving it to oxidize for a couple of minutes.

This is a piece of the color catcher I shiboried and dyed last week. I will be using it on a tote-bag to cover the logo. 

We rinsed all the dyed pieces and hung them to dry on the fig tree.  Jacky and I are really happy with the result of our dyeing today. I know I'm addicted to dyeing. Summer is the best time for indigo dye and I really need more experience mixing indigo. I'm getting there though; at least I know when I kill the vat!

This is indigofera tinctoria I found on my walk at work. In my search and research I know that in India they use this plant to produce indigo dye. You need lots and lots of them to produce enough dye. It's interesting to find them growing in my university's garden. 

I mentioned in this post that I'm planning to make quilts for "Seabird". I started these trip around the world blocks last year and still need another twenty blocks before I have enough for a quilt.

And here are the first two blocks for another quilt for "Seabird". I decided to make all the quilts in indigo blue. If it's possible I will use the vintage or recycled fabric that I have in my stash. So far I only make a small dent in my stash. I think I will have enough for 4 quilts.

This tote-bag is the result of the dye from my indigo plants that I processed a few weeks ago. The bag was a conference bag and it had the logo printed all over the front of it. It's cotton and perfect for indigo dyeing. I hid the logo by patching over it with indigo fabric from the same dye batch. I'm really happy with it and I will keep it for myself. I have couple of more bags to make for gifts. 

Enjoy the rest of Australia Day weekend if you are in Australia, but if not, enjoy your weekend anyway.

Until next time

Nat

Shopping in Bangkok

Bangkok is a shopper's heaven if you know where to go. I still remember some good retail and wholesale outlets since I lived in Bangkok over 30 years ago. Of course there are new shopping malls popping up every time I go back. The area I know well is Sampeng Lane in China Town. Every time I visit Bangkok I go there. I don't really know how to get there, but every taxi knows where to take you. It was comforting because when you are ready to leave you can jump on a taxi and get out of there. Because DDIL was with me on this trip I thought I would let her experience Sampeng Lane with me. Sampeng Lane market is very large. I found some YouTube videos here and here in case you are interested to see the place. Sampeng Lane is as interesting now as it was 30 years earlier. You can stroll along looking at everything and anything; there is no pressure for you to buy. You would feel the heat at this time of year, but you can make stops at well air-conditioned shops along the way. You can also get refreshment from the many vendors pushing their carts along every few minutes. Please come along to a mini tour of Sampeng Lane in Bangkok with me...

There are drawbacks to shopping in Bangkok, especially in Sampeng Lane. There is so much choice that it is difficult to pick something to buy. You tend to postpone making decisions so that you can  think about it before you buy, but the trouble is, later when you decide, you can never find what you saw before! It happened to us many times. You can see in the above photo of handbags that the choice is amazing. And no, we did not buy one!

You see what I mean about too many choices! I love these string of beads. I only want just one string, but which one do I choose? I came away with half a dozen of them, I think!

I think these are amazonite stone. They come in all shapes and sizes. I thought these were interesting but they must he heavy to wear around your neck!!! I really wanted to bring one home, but I would have had a problem with the weight. 

These hand held mini sewing machines actually work. I thought afterward that it would work well with small pieces on the go. Sadly I didn't get one because I'm trying to downsize not to collect more...!

The lady showed us how this little machine works. You can also use it as a bobbin winder. I should have got one now, dang!!! 

One fifth of Thai community are Chinese from mainland China. They moved south during the famine years. My Grandfather was also from China so I'm quarter Chinese. What would my children be then? Too complicated! Why did I talk about Chinese? Oh, I just wanted to say that the Chinese also brought in the tradition of tea drinking to Thailand. Thais generally drink coffee, the traditional antique-style coffee. I will tell you about that later. Above are the many wonderful tea cups and also tea pots you can get at Sampeng Lane market. I did bring the selection of these home with me.

Out of all those wonderful choices here is my little pile of purchases. Though I did get them in multiple items. They are great for gifts. Inside the woven tote bag is 3 meters of indigo dyed fabric from North-eastern Thailand. Those little strawberry shaped felted purses and some with folk designs on them are so adorable. The blue cords made from recycled paper and the roll of antique trim with cross stitched design is a treasure and some leather broaches. The woven tote bag gives me fond memories every time I use it. I got it from an elderly lady sitting at the bottom of the steps at a Skytrain station. She had many of them for sale, but I chose this one with red stripes on it. I'm glad I got it when I did because on our way back she was no longer there! 

DDIL and her treasured leather hand bag. We walked far and wide in search of the bag she was looking for. Once we found them, there was so many to choose from. After many "yes no, yes no" later she found the one she liked. The brown woven leather handbag to die for...

I spent too much time in Bangkok among the glitzy and glamourous. I bought myself a new iPhone case cover with Swarovsky diamond studs. It's unlike me to carry a phone full of diamonds, but I thought it is now or never!!!

Here are more like it. I also bought some plain covers. Couldn't decide which one I like better so I bought all five of them! At the moment I'm using the Maneki-neko (lucky cat) cover and I am just thrilled with it.  

We were hot and tired by 1:00pm. It was time to get out of there. When we arrived at the end of one section of the market we stopped for a drink and we were ready to go back to our hotel. We tried to hail down some taxis, but none of them would take us where we wanted to go because the traffic was so heavy. Mid afternoon is also the time when taxis change shifts. After half a dozen or so one stopped and he must have felt sorry for us sweating away in the heat. He offered to take us to the nearest Skytrain so we could return to our hotel. That was a fun and adventurous shopping trip we had in Bangkok! 

If any of you happen to venture to South-east Asia, I highly recommend Bangkok as a stopover. Drop me an email if you need any travel tips to Bangkok. 

See you again soon.

Nat

Japanese Parcel Post

It took a bit of time for me to get out of writing about my Japan journey. Thanks for your lovely comments. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I keep remembering things I didn't include in the journal, but there is always a next time.

I haven't done much in terms of stitching. I did make a couple bags for gifts. For those of you who have been reading my blog for a while would know that I'm a rag-to-riches, re-purpose, recycling person, and most of all a hoarder!  The bags I'm showing you today are close to my heart. I made them from a recycled Japanese parcel post bag.


For years I have saved this Japanese parcel post bag to make something! That 'something' opportunity arrived a few weeks ago when I was looking to make a few gifts. One for DS's birthday, and the other one is for a dear friend who appreciates something boro and handmade.  

Japanese books come in cardboard boxes and the box goes in this parcel post sack when they are shipped to us. It's  a very strong sack with double layers on the bottom part of the sack. It's in military green colour. It has very strong leather belt to go around the neck. Loving anything old, boro and vintage these bags are ready to turn into something! 

And here they are, the two postman bags made from the sack. I didn't wash the sack before I cut it up. I like the boro (old and used) look about them. The sack had been carrying around parcels who knows for how long before it got to me! 

One bag by itself showing the little bit of lining. 

Both bags hanging from the long handles. The handles are long enough to go across the shoulders. The way a postman carries it.  They are very strong bags made for men. The logo on the left bag is the Japanese Post Office official logo. The C on the right bag could mean copyright ha!

The lining made from woolen suit fabric found in a thrift store. It's brown with white pin stripes. I made the inside pocket with the same fabric. There is also printing under the flap.

This is the back view of the bag with the word Japanese on it. There are some tears that need fixing. I did the darning before I gave them away. I still have a few more sacks left to make bags for myself or more gifts. 

One sack is big enough for two bags with flaps and one tote-bag. I tried to keep the printing on both bags. I'm so thrilled to be able to re-purpose something that otherwise would be discarded.

There are lots of advantages working in a library. I learned book binding there because I didn't like seeing dust jackets get thrown away. I dyed twines that had been wrapped around some books that were sent from India.

There are a whole lot of books coming through everyday on every subject especially Japanese craft and art books. If I did not work there I would have missed out a whole lot of good books.

What I'm saying here is, it doesn't matter what you do, do it with passion. My latest passion has to be photography with my iPhone4. I take a daily walk at the campus where I work. Apart from listening to great walking music. I challenge myself to capture the artistic images through my lens. I have post them up on my FB page and the responses from friends are very encouraging, thank you!  

Tote Bag - Yellow butterfly

I finally finished this yellow butterfly bag. The butterfly pattern came from Leannes House. It took me longer to complete this bag than I had planned because of the hand quilting I did. It looks great, but when I showed it to my colleagues at work they didn't even know I hand quilted it...! I am very happy how it turned out though. The fabric for the bag was a pillow case I got from the Salvos sometime ago. I love to give new life to old objects I get from the opshops. These are great for birthday gifts..... Hope you noticed that there are butterflies on both sides of the bag!

Christmas Gifts

What do you give to someone who has everything! My friends and I still exchange birthday and Christmas presents after more than 10 years. It is hard at times to come up with new ideas for gifts that I haven't given to them already. One of my dearest friends Cynthia Tomaszewski is a quilt designer, author and fabric designer so, what do I give to someone who has everything? I constantly try to come up with ideas of handmade gifts to make for her. Cynthia is very busy and I know she doesn't have time to make herself things so I try to make her something that I know she would appreciate.

This is Cynthia's latest book 'Quilts from Paradise' that she gave me this Christmas. Cynthia and her husband often travel to Fiji and she hopes one day to live there. This book was inspired by paradise places she visited. I'm so proud of Cynthia. My very creative friend. You can visit Cynthia on her web site HERE.
I made this tote-bag for myself last year. I love it so much that I thought my friends would like them as well. The butterfly pattern came from Leanne's House, and I found it in Homespun magazine. I love mine and received lots of compliments every time I use it. The bag with red butterfly applique is for Cynthia and the one below with yellow butterfly was for Linda (no blog).
Yes I made two of them. This one is for Linda (no blog) in Massachusetts. Both Cynthia and Linda get the same presents every year. Everything I make I multiply by two or in the case of heart ornaments I multiply by twelves!!!

I made this one last week. A colleague of mine who is a quilter made one for herself. She kindly gave me the measurements. I happened to have some handles that are perfect for this bag. I think this is going to be my birthday giveaway later on in the year.

Something BORO something Blue

I have posted part of this boro cloth once before, but since then I have added more stitching on different parts of the cloth. I could say this is a true boro cloth, my boro cloth. All fabric used is vintage and even the backing came from an old yukata (cotton kimono) that I ripped apart. This is my first try at boro cloth and I didn't have design in mind. I threw the fabric together and started stitching. My aim was to create a boro cloth and to re-purpose and recycle as much as possible. I believe in giving new life to old cloth - rags to riches.

The more stitches I added to it the more I liked it. I named this cloth Boro Moon because of the many moon pieces I hand dyed and used in the cloth. When I took the photos of it today I thought wow, it has already aged. That's how I wanted it!

I imagine this is how boro cloth was made in the old days. You started with a backing and added larger pieces then you layered the smaller pieces to fill the gaps or used overlapping pieces to make it interesting. I have some plain pieces on there that I stitched over with shashiko designs to make it stronger and more decorative. I will use less stitching on the pieces that already have designs on it. 

Collages of stitched blocks. You can double click on the above picture for a close-up view. 

Don't you just love this piece of tenugui! It was a piece of indigo fabric I received from Japan. I received a mix of indigo fabric, but this piece jumped out at me when I opened the box. It was only big enough to make a tote-bag. I didn't waste any of it; I even pieced small bits together for the handles. I turned the raw edge on the out side of the bag as a design feature. I only had just enough fabric for the handles so I used the same running stitches on them too. The fabric already has a gorgeous design on it and with some stitches it looks amazing! 

Enjoy

Nat

Seriously Dyeing the Natural Way

If you can't find me on my blog I will either be at work or over the dye pot, seriously! Eco-dyeing is the way to spend your creativity in more ways than one. I walk, work and sleep thinking about it. If I have bundles to be open I would handle them, stroke them and when I can't stand it any longer I open them. Open one, two, three and before I could stop myself I opened them all in one go! 

I have acquired more dyeing techniques from the workshop at Naturally Dyed. I also discovered more eucalyptus trees that grow right in my campus. When I take a daily walk now I bring a tote-bag along and gradually filling it up by the time I get back to my office. My supervisor told me one day that I should clean out my bag, the plants are starting to grow from it! He was right! Lots of samples to show you here, so enjoy...!

Some bundles after being stewed in purple carrot dyedbath.  I'm still not sure if I like the stewing method or steaming method of eco-dyeing! It's good to have that choice though.

The results from three pieces of silk stewed in purple carrot dyed bath. The middle piece was wrapped over a copper spoon. The dark patches caused by rusty nails. 

I threw in a ball of pearl cotton. The left one was from eucalyptus dyed bath and the right one dyed in purple carrot dyed bath. Perfect colours to use on eco-dyed cloths. 

Do you recognise these leaves? They are rose leaves. Rose leaves are perfect for dyeing. I mordanted the silk with alum and wrapped the leaves very tightly. Great results. I am happy with it, yeah! 

Stitches over eucalyptus leaf. This cloth is a scarf I made for one of my friends who has not yet taken up eco-dyeing. 

Another leaf on the same cloth in the above photo. I have been enjoying the stitching process this last week. Forgot to mention, I used the eco-dyed threads for stitching. 

another leaf in the same cloth. Not sure what the leaf is! 

And here is the actual cloth that I'm making it into scarf. I didn't stitch over every leaf. I thought I would leave some without stitching to enjoy the imprints. 

Eco-dyeing on a cotton blouse. Eucalyptus leaves with rusty nails and wrapped over metal rod. A good result I think!

Silk with purple carrot and some eucalyptus leaves. This one was stewed in eucalyptus dyed bath. 

The whole piece of silk with rose leaves. Did you notice the burn mark in the middle? It is caused by too much steaming for too long! 

This last piece was dyed with juvenile eucalyptus leaves and flowers. This is only a small section of it. I'm really happy with this piece. I already have more leaves for my next batch. I have ran out of silk for dyeing. Another trip to Ziguzagu is calling.

Talking about everything Japanese. It is only 8 weeks before the Japanese Textile Study Tour is taking place. I will be posting photos on Facebook (it's public so you don't have to have Facebook account to view them) during the tour and I will blog about it after I get back. 

Enjoy

Nat