March Giveaway Winner

Yay it's Judi!!  

Judi is a fellow fabric dyer.  I met Judi on the Internet through her blog and then later at a quilt show.  She is the person that got me interested in snow dyeing and after reading her article in Quilting Arts I was addicted hooked.  This winter she has been snow dyeing mandalas by the hundreds. I purchased the fabric in this photo  from Judi in February.  Don't you just love it? 

You can find Judi's hand dyed fabrics and mandalas in Paducah April 26th through the 30th .  Look for Mamaw's Handdyes in the Finkel Building.

Congratulations Judi!  

March Dye Candy Giveaway

Please leave a comment here to for a chance to win fabric or jewelry from my Dye Candy store.  If you are a winner you may choose from an item valued at $18.00 or receive $25.00 off an order of greater value.  

The giveaway will close at 12:00pm CST on March 30th.

If you share this post on your blog, Twitter, Facebook or any other social media platform please leave an additional comment for each tweet or post you write.  Don't forget to leave me a way to contact you if you are a winner.

Check back monthly for additional Dye Candy giveaways in 2011.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming....  Procrastination 101.  

No, I have not start my taxes, but I have a really good list of other things that I have accomplished in order to avoid doing my taxes.  Last night I put the the final stitches on my challenge quilt for Art Quilts Around the World.  I finished at 11:00 pm and was so full of creative energy that I had a hard time going to sleep.  I'm really happy with this project and cant wait to share it at month end. Today I will finish dyeing velvets to be shipped early next week for the Adventures in Crazy Quilting classes in Glastonbury Connecticut.

And just this morning when I should have been writing this post I created the postcard you see above.  I bring these with me when I vend at quilt shows.  I'd love to hear your comments and suggestions about my new  postcard before I send it off to the printers.  

Have a great weekend and good luck!  Chris

P.S.  I just posted a sneak peek of my challenge quilt here.

Fashion Friday

"Come and knock on our door..."

1981

Procrastinator plan for filing taxes: There is always tomorrow.  Yes, I have yet to start my taxes but I thought up some really good excuses to wait a few more days....Check back this weekend. My March Dye Candy giveaway will start on Saturday.

Tray Dyeing - Exploring Colour, Texture & Special Effects

Tray Dyeing - Exploring Colour, Texture & Special Effects (2006) Leslie Morgan & Claire Benn, Committed to Cloth.  If you want to take your fabric dyeing to the next level this is the book for you.  These ladies introduce ideas only briefly touched upon in other books.  There is a bonus DVD included in this book that I found very informative.  I did find the content in this book to be a bit light.  In my opinion this book was written with the premise of sparking an idea in the reader and then letting the reader reach their own results.  If you like to experiment and draw your own conclusions then I recommend this book wholeheartedly (I do really love this book).  On the other hand if you are a reader that needs evidence of concrete results you may not be happy with this book.

Fashion Friday

I couldn't think of a thing to say about this pattern but I sure got a laugh when I pulled it our of my pattern stash.

Check back in a couple of days.  The March Dye Candy Giveaway starts as soon as I finish my taxes.

Looking for another way to win today?  Visit "Project Quilting" on Kim's Crafty Apple blog before 7 PM CST Friday March 18th.  Vote for your favorite flying geese challenge quilt and enter for a chance to win in the "Public Winners" drawing.

Fabric To Dye For - Frieda Anderson

Fabric To Dye For (2010) by Frieda Anderson.  I would have loved to have owned this book when I was first learning how to dye.  It is packed full of tips about proper tools and ways to set up your dyeing area.  The recipes are made using 4 dye colors, 3 primary colors and a black. Various dyeing techniques are discussed.  This  book also has a bonus section with fusible projects you can make with your newly dyed fabrics.  I would recommend this book to both novice and expert fabric dyers.

Fashion Friday

Hello Angels!

1977

Have a wonderful weekend!  Chris

Fabric Dyer's Dictionary - Linda Johansen

Fabric Dyer's Dictionary (2010) by Linda Johansen.  This book takes the guesswork out of combining dye colors.  The Fabric Dyer's Dictionary contains extensive dye recipes and color photographs of each resulting fabric color.  The main focus of the book is dyeing solid color gradients of various types.  The book includes dyes made using complementary colors, mixing primary colors to make secondary and tertiary colors, using dyes at weaker strengths to create pastels or adding black to make darker shades of color.  The book also briefly touches on a few specialty dyeing techniques. This is a book you will find yourself referring back to over and over again.

Fashion Friday

When I was younger many of my clothes were made using this Stretch and Sew Book.  My mother had a Kenmore sewing machine with pattern cams that could create fancy stitches along hems and necklines.

When my son was an infant my mom passed the Stretch and Sew Book on to me. I made all of my sons sleepwear using it. 

Lately I have been thinking of making my own t-shirts to tie-dye.  It is so hard to find  flattering white t-shirt for plus size women. Well, maybe later....I have my office and studio torn apart in anticipation of  the arrival of a much needed desk and filing cabinet on Monday.  WhooHoo!  I love organizing my life :)

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Chris

Creating Color - A Dyers Handbook

Creating Color - A Dyer's Handbook (1989) by Judy Anne Walter - When I first started dyeing there was a limited amount of information about dyeing fabrics in print.  This book thoroughly covers all aspects of what you need to know about dyeing gradients of solid colors.  My favorite part of this book was the chapter on the characteristics of different dye colors.  Judy also has tables that deal with converting weights and measures. This book has an number of detailed illustrations.  There are a couple of the draw backs to this book.  One is the lack of color photography.  This book was published before color photographs were common in books. Another is the dye color chart in the back of the book is out of date.  This book is out of print but easy to find inexpensively.  I recommend this book if you really want to understand the chemistry behind the dyes.

I've added a new stand alone page to my blog that contains reviews of my favorite dyeing reference books.  

Do you have any fabric dyeing books?  I'd love to hear from you.