Ginger's home! and golden marguerite.

Ginger came home tonight! Now we get to feed her via a feeding tube, installed in her neck. Oh joy, oh bliss.

And she's healthy enough to resist a bit. More joy, more bliss.

But she is home, and seems happy to be here. And the feeding tube should go away in a couple of weeks as she starts to eat on her own again.

I've also been dyeing, with the golden marguerite (aka dyer's chamomille). Flower heads in one pot, and their leaves and stalks in the other. The wool rovings that went into the flower pot was pre-mordanted two nights ago with alum, and the yarn that went into the other pot was accompanied by a rusty iron nugget.

I came home at mid-day yesterday, after the contents of my stomach left the building, so I turned on the dye baths, and promptly fell asleep on the couch. Woke up an hour later to find them boiling, and turned them off. Fortunately I hadn't added the wool yet. I tested the flower heads dye bath with some cheap yarn to see if I'd ruined the colour but it turned out okay.

When the dyebaths had cooled sufficiently so as to not shock and felt the wool, I added it and turned the heat up again to simmer for a few hours.

The colours are delightful. :)


This is the results of the flower heads dye bath. Originally white icelandic rovings, pre-mordanted in alum.


This is the results of the dye bath from the golden marguerite stalks and leaves. Originally white mysterious yarn, iron nugget acting as mordant, in the dye pot.

Next on the list - elm bark.

Karen