Wordless Thursday

I finally did it - Fabric Dyeing

This has been on my to-do-wish list for a while now....like several years.... :).  Why did it take me so long to attempt it ?.....well.....after reading up on it and taking notes of all the supplies and steps, ....... mentally I was exhausted.  There were so many supplies like the different dyes and chemicals, the right fabric, the proper space and it really does get messy and time consuming.

Finally I decided to do it my way, forget all the many steps, chemicals and fabrics.  I will use what I like and do it my way, the short cut way using the inks I think will work well without the extra chemicals required and the fabric I like.

Praise the Lord, it worked.  I am so grateful and thrill that this project is a success.  Yesterday, I went to buy a bolt of the fabric cos I was not sure how much I would need and what size fabric I was going to dye.  I didn't start off with a concrete plan.  It was all in my head I think or something like that but I knew I was going to experiment and have fun.

As soon as I got back home, I started cutting the fabric into one yards and then somehow from there I started cutting the one yards into fours.  I decided that fat quarters would be a good size to start with each color.  I already have the fabric inks from a while back that I had bought but didn't know what I was going to do with them.....:)  After they came out from the washer, I started dyeing them without really knowing how I was going to attempt it except to just have fun and get it done.  It was trial and error, no measuring, just adding more ink or water when I feel it needed more and using my bare hands to squeeze the fabrics to absorb the dyes.

Because my hands were so dirty with inks all over, I didn't get a chance to take pictures of the whole process.  But less than 24 hours after I started, tada......I now have my own dyed fabrics.....all 7 yards of them...:)  I love it.  I think they are beautiful.  I can't wait to make something with them.

7 yards of hand dyed fabrics.

Grocery Bags

We shop alot at member's club stores where they do not provide any grocery bags but you can recycle their packaging boxes if desired.  In our cars, I have saved plastic and paper bags, thermal bags I have bought and a couple given from work, and a few boxes to keep the groceries in place so they won't be flying around when we make a turn or go thru a bump.

I noticed that when we shop at the member's club, alot of time the boxes of goodies we bought are huge and can take up a whole bag for itself.  As our kitchen is on the second floor, hauling all our shopping up those stairs can be a marathon at times.  I find the two shoulder bags we have are very useful and helpful but they are kinda small and worn out.

So over the weekend, I decided to make grocery bags for my car.  I know it has to be bigger and with long shoulder strapes so my hands are free to carry more shopping and limit our trips up and down those stairs.  I had bought some upholstery fabrics a while ago that was on sale and I had quite a bit of yardage left.  I had bought these fabrisc for making ironing boards as they are strong and steady and 100% cotton.  They are not really 'pretty' fabrics but I thought its for a grocery bag so its ok.

Since I am still playing with my new machine, I decided to fill the pocket front with the embroidery stitches so I can see how all the stitches look like.  I didn't get to try them all but I think I got to the ones that I thought look good from the manual.

I used a pattern but changed it up alittle bit, I increased the height of the bag an extra 1 3/4" and changed the strapes to be wider and added multiples layers for strenght.  The bags turned out pretty good.  Very roomy ~ 8" wide.  We used it over the weekend and I have to say it was very strong.  I think these bags will last for a while.

And at all work places too.