Fennel dye

Natural dyeing with fennel | gather and grow.

Last year I was inspired to sow bronze fennel, even though I thought I was through with food dyeing. Rita Buchanan also mentions it in her book. This year my plants are really growing, so I decided to give it a go. One wool skein, two silk, all alum mordanted.

fennel02

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Little green wonders: Asparagus.

Last year I planted asparagus, and I know I’m not supposed to pick any until next summer, to give them strength to grow big enough to sustain harvest. But I just had to go and try one. Only ONE.

Huge mistake. OMG that was amazing, I’m never ever going to buy these from a shop again. Next summer I’ll live on them, and strawberries. In the meantime I’ll gaze at them longingly, as they poke their stems above ground to taunt me…

The greenhouse having collapsed I have no homegrown tomatoes or cucumbers this year, so I’ve sown some snack carrots just to have something.

How do you like to eat your asparagus?

Spry old kale

kale2I actually thought kale was an annual thing, but these have never looked better! Looks like they’re going to flower – does anyone know if the rest can still be eaten? (if not, I’d like the space for the orange cosmos that Mary Jo sent me)

Going to be a headachy day (and then some) for me today, probably not a whole lot getting done. Or perhaps I won’t be able to contain myself to begin my project “new picture storage space”. Got the lumber yesterday, next step sand and paint.

It’s 6.30 am as I type this, G is going to some guys out thing with the neighbour (no, not a drinking thing), so unless the headache works itself into a migraine I will need to find entertainment for myself. We usually do house projects over the weekends. Perhaps I’ll molest some wood and build a loom?! Yes, you can have ants in your pants even if you’re feeling poorly. 😉 Then again I may just try finishing my holey sweater. So I can start a new one.

Would you believe it my sewing pile has grown again? And yesterday I added 4 pairs of jeans that need hemming, found at the Red Cross shop in town for 45 kr./£5/$8/€6 each. But I’m not going to look at that today. Sewing needs a special kind of extra energy …

And that’s my Sunday in spe. Will be interesting to see how it really turns out! I may have some kale for lunch.

(And before anyone is impressed with my morning skills, the headache woke me up around 5)