Slow living - Natural dyeing vol. 1 My pastel colors

here's my project

I thought Slow living can be my new post series. I hope I can fulfill the promise. I've been reading India Flint's book Eco Colour - botanical dyes for beautiful textiles and I'm so excited about my new found! I didn't find it by myself actually it was Fi Hocking from the blog livingcloth who told me about India - so thanks goes to her.

So let's begin. Following text is based on Flint's book but do remember that I'm making my interpretations of her writings. 

light green and light brown

When you are starting a new thing I think you have to start from very basic and with things that might even get there otherwise you might get frustrated and give up. This next test is fun and very easy to start with but before it I give you some useful tips by India Flint about natural dyeing.

Picking plants and flowers for your dyeing material:

Think locally - begin your backyard and garden. Remember "non-exploitive harvesting". You don't have to go very far to get plants, bark, leaves even your garbage can be your dye material. Yes, your garbage.

what you don't eat but you can use as natural dye material?

How to find dye material and what tells you the plant is good dye material?
 

1. smell

2. species name: tinctorum or tinctoria (the plant has traditionally used in dyeing) or officinale (medicine, contains aromatic, acid or alkaloid chemicals)

3. Remember the rule "no identification - no picking"

4. garbage and windfalls like onion skins, beetroot leaves, carrot tops, wilted spinach, red gabbage etc.

5. Rubbing a leaf between your finger and thumb - what happens? Remember also that plant can be a good dye material even though it doesn't show any visisble sign.

Ok, if you are still interested about natural dyeing - here is very simple and fun test that I made with few plants from our yard to see how they react to test. 

India Flint's tea-test method

Crumble the material with boiling water into old white cup or glass. In ten minutes(maybe more) you see if liquid turns colored and how colored? If it does, there you have a potentional dye material. Simple isn't it. Try this method with fresh or dry leaves shredded bark,crushed seeds and squashed berries.

What colours you got?

I got pastel colors.

I recommend you to get to know India's writings here about natural dyeing if you are inspired!

Ooh, what a lovely pastel pink. Yummy! Have you ever tried natural dyeing? Have you ever thought of it? Do you think we even might have a trend here?  This week also Lotta Helleberg blogged about natural dye. Great work!


xo
Kreetta 

ps. I made a blog page in Facebook - now you can like me there and tomorrow is the last day to take part in my beautiful plant GIVEAWAY. Good luck and have a wonderful day!

Link Love Creative - Shape and Form

9 is my number today. Have you ever thought how many different kind of shapes you see even before you have had your morning coffee? World of shapes and forms is just unbelievable. Mother nature has infinite imagination. I surely like to have a piece of it. Hand picked links for your eyes only. Have a creative week!

1. Brett Freund ceramics

photo © Brett Freund

 
2. Wearable art post by Trend Tablet
 

Right : Delight of Light Yuru Ma & Mengyue Wu, Donghua University Shanghai, ChinaLeft: Second skin Haley May & Fiona Christie, Wellington, NZ. Photo © Trend Tablet

3. Illustration of Lisa Leierth

© Lisa Leierth

ps. Last week I made a photo essey of Tillandsia and you find it here. You can win a Tillandsias that I can send you where ever you live here in our Planet Earth. They are easy to take care of and you know they don't need soil. They travel light. Good luck!


xo
Kreetta

Magnificent Tillandsia Air Plant - Air Plant Giveaways

© kreetta järvenpää

© kreetta järvenpää

© kreetta järvenpää

Today I have so many great things to tell you.

I adore these little creatures and made a photo essey of them because they are just so lovely. I blogged about finding them last summer at Handemade Supermarket in Berlin. I bought 2 of them from lovely ladies of Till Herba Caeli and travelled with them by train back to home Finland. Last October I told you some DIY tips to make home for them. Now I just want to show you Tillandsia's beauty with hint of a great DIY made of bottle stopper wire.

Today I'm also guest posting the DIY on blog called Monsterscircus. Monsterscircus is a wonderful DIY blog. I was so happy when Mette asked me if I could make one DIY for her blog - I made a very easy plant hanger to Tillandsia. You can see it in one of the pictures. She has so many great little treasures in her blog. Go and see!

The last but not the least I want to celebrate spring with my very very first wonderful 2 GIVEAWAYS: WIN 3 OR 2 TILL Herba Caeli's AIR PLANTS! Maybe you can have it all. First win air plants and then make a home for them - oh, so adorable DIY plant hangers to gorgeus creatures. All you need to do is LEAVE A COMMENT - tell me your favorite plant/flower or whatever you want to tell me or ask...Last day to take part in is 24.5. I'll draw the winner after that date. Sooo Good Luck My Friend!!!




xo
Kreetta 

Tulips in the garden - color inspiration

Yesterday summer came to Finland. I don't say that it will stay yet but we had a very good beginning! I took few photos in the garden. Love the colors. Hope you do too!

ps. My next post is number 100! I can't believe it...I will celebrate it with a photographic essey.Oops, nope. Haha, I did count wrong - it is 85 at the moment I counted my drafts also...yup. Whatever, there is always a reason to celebrate spring and life!

xo
Kreetta

Link Love Creative - Creative Blogger

This is number 8. I admire talents who I've chosen today to introduce to you. I think in their work you can find magic and poetry. This is a good start to week and monday morning with cup of coffee. Maybe a little bit cardamom? This week I'm going to work with seedlings and in the garden with my mom. Yay! Hand picked links for your eyes only. I wish you a sunny and beautiful week!

1. Mister Finch and his magical animals

photo © Mister Finch

2. Canelle et Vanille is food for the eye and the soul - food blog by photographer Aran Goyoga 
 

photo © aran goyoaga

3. A view to is a door to Imke Klee's world

photo © imke klee

ps. This week I'm also making one photo essee of some gorgeus plants and there might be one DIY also there but we'll see...


xo
Kreetta

Is It Vintage - Kupittaan Savi vase designed by Linnea Lehtonen

This time I introduce you Kupittaan Savi and a beautiful vase designed by Linnea Lehtonen. Kupittaan Savi produced tiles, bricks and ceramic dishes and decorative items. The factory was in Turku. You can find several their products here in Finnish online shop Dishwareheaven. You can also find many Kupittaan Savi products just with simple google search. Kupittaan Savi products were awarded including the Paris World's Fair 1937. Unfortunately Kupittaan Savi were bankrupt in the year 1969.

I found this vase from auction. I love it's very simple decoration and form. Very trendy triangle shapes combined with black and white scandinavian style. There's handwritten singnature at the bottom. It was designed in 1950's. It represents the tradition of functionalism. Turku was important place of funtionalism in Finland. You might have heard about Alvar Aalto and Aino Aalto, talented well-known Finnish designers. This vase is a quite rare find. Quite many of these are already owned by collectors from different countries. For example Japanese are very interested of Finnish design.

I think this vase brings my mind African style. Simple figure repeats itself. I wonder where has designer Linnea Lehtonen got her inspiration to make such a pretty vase? Do you like it?

xo
Kreetta

Trending - follow or go first or even make it together?

It's monday but this time no Link Love Creative. Today I really like to talk about trends. I like to hear what you consider as a coming trend at the moment? I read interesting writing  about making of a trend by Holly Becker from Decor8 in Patchwork Harmony blog. Since that I've been thinking the complexity of the trend and trend making.

I can't help myself but I see a little bit negativity in the trend word. Trends are shallow. Why? I guess I like the situation before it. How can I explain that? Not very easily. In the short version - it's the time before trendy people have to have "it" and after that comes mass consumption. I suppose I like more unique and personal style - but I know that can be also a trend. Much bigger reason why I see trend in negative way is that I think we need less consumption and more sustainable consuming habits and living. I'm afraid trend is more an enemy than a friend. I don't want to sound hypocrite. There are shades of grey and not only black and white...and who am I to say - I have pastel colored blog...trends come and go it's part of the fashion...but today I talk about trend not about fashion.

Somehow I also think you can see trend in positive way. If you could make a sustainable living, ecological ideology, pure organic and local food and fair trade as a mass trend and change it to fashion that would be a big achievement. The trend is a powerful tool to make the world go your direction. But how could we do it? I'm sure it's possible because there are plenty of trends going on all the time. They also change very fast. Are they good enough? Do they work for you? I think visual trend can be sustainable also. I'm happy to see that handmade, quality, fair trade, slowing down, organic, more interest about maker, approval of margin groups and many more are coming up more and more. Or am I only dreaming? I think this is a good beginning. Can we try to make together sustainable trends? Can we change these positive trends as fashion and not only a margin trend? That would be awesome.

Are some of these thoughts maybe provoking? Good. Tell me what you think! And as I said it's complicated, we all know that. Sorry for my not so perfect English because in this kind of posts it matters, I know.

xo
Kreetta

Easy DIY with vintage napkins - flower string light

I needed light. But not x-mas garland. I wanted to have easy and pretty string light to go with me to the Korukarnevaali. Two weeks ago I found pretty pastel colored old napkins from one antique shop. They didn't cost much because these aren't so popular - yet. I always buy if I find beautiful napkins or old paper staff in general. I just love the feeling of the old and a little bit frayed and color damaged. Also the material, pattern and details are suberb in vintage paper products. Usually I don't want to use them in this kind of projects because they are too valuabe. But there are plenty of these and oh, how pretty is the color!

Wasn't it simple? Do you like them? What do you think about vntage paper goods? I love them!


xo
Kreetta

Link Love Creative - It's different

This is number 7. Spring is finally here. I feel I need to find some silent moments. This is time of rethinking of everything, it's spring...everything will start all over again. I guess I'm thinking new directions. Have a thought. And you know me...don't forget the coffee or should it be tea this time? Hand picked links for your eyes only.

1. Listen to WorldStreams World Music for a while
  

not in every radio

2. Calm with photographer Beth Dow's work

can you hear the silence?

3. Write down your thoughts, ideas and draw your world 
- notebook and sketchbook love by gretchen in Pinterest

i like this is wonderful - sketchbook by alison worman

ps. I made photo collaboration as part of taking class in Holly Becker's Blog Boss course. That was great! Please do click and go see Natalie's Bjorn and Lion blog. You can see the pic also in my fb. The key word was nostalgia.


xo
Kreetta

Photography Concept and Styling - PROCESS

Two different processes. One plan. Same theme. Where to go from here?

To you who haven't seen the previous Photography Concept and Styling post which was also the first one of this series...I tell that with this series I want to work with different ways of representation. Maybe it gives a birth to new idea or view. 

I make a short photo essey about simple thing like word, shape, feeling, name, element, color, age, era, poem, quote...First word was triangle, you can find the photo essey here.

What would you like to see as a short photo essey? It would be wonderful to hear. Tell me simple thing like word, shape, feeling, name, element, color, age, era, poem, quote etc. You can leave a comment but if I were you I would send an email because that way nobody else can see it before it is online. You can find my email by just clicking contact button. In any case I make a decision.I already have some but love to get more words and ideas. I'm quite sure we'll make something great and new! And of course if it's your word, idea - your name will be there also. This series will be posted once in the month. I will collect them all together and you can find them also in my photographic portfolio.   

What do you think about this one? This was my own word. Very popular nowadays...almost too popular. Next one will be yours.




xo
Kreetta