The Raspberries

This gorgeous raspberry color was achieved by solar dyeing with wild blackberries.  I picked late season berries a week ago with the express purpose of dyeing with them.  I put two soy-mordanted pieces of old linen in a quart canning jar layered with slightly smooshed berries, and let it sit for several days in the sun.  I intend to overdye at least one of these pieces, likely with plant material of some sort along with rust. 

And after decanting the berried fabrics, I made a delicious blackberry syrup, especially good over French vanilla ice cream!

And speaking of French vanilla, Saturday I was in Eureka for the annual Humboldt Sponsors rummage sale, and picked up another load of old linens for a song.  Humboldt Sponsors is an organization of well-heeled local women, most of them doctors' wives, who raise money to support local programs for women and children.  You should have seen the lines waiting to get into the three buildings -- I've never seen that kind of turn out for anything in Eureka before.  A sign of the times.

Amongst my haul were several pristine items, doilies mostly, that will go into my private collection.  Not that I have anybody to leave them to, nor was I heir to anything like these from my family.  What I love best about beautiful old things in mint condition is that you rarely find them anymore, and they're certainly not making things of this quality any longer.  So I'm happy to possess them for as long as I do.

We're having our first real rain of the season right now.  I like how relatively silent it is everywhere.  I'm always up for peace and quiet.

Have a wonderful week.

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