Fermentation Suint Method: Adding the Fleece

I finally got around to getting the fleece part of the equation into my soon to be Suint bath this weekend. I'm offering a two day workshop on washing fleece using FSM where we will also take a look at different fleece types and how to process them with a tiny bit of dying thrown in the mix. This class was terrific last year and was largest group I have ever had at Tillers! It was great fun and I took loads of pictures but do you think I can find any of them now? Will keep searching and hopefully can add them in at some point!

All of the rain last week meant I could have had two very large bins started but because of various methods I have adopted in the last year for cleaning my fleece, I don't use this method as often because I wash my fleece as I need it. (A whole other post, seriously.) I had a smaller bin handy since I don't want to overwhelm my students. A quick pick through this Border Leicester and it was into bags!

 

 

Unfortunately, I realized all of my mesh bags were at the studio so I had to make a quick trip to the Family Dollar. They didn't have any plan ones but they did have these really nice Gain ones for $1.50 a piece! The next size up was the exact size of my bin if I laid it flat!

 

This will soak for 5-7 days and all the natural grease (suint, etc.) will create the soap bath. Watch for my next post for progress or follow me on Instagram for lots of behind the scenes looks at my fiber (and sometimes just life) ventures! 

Fermentation Suint Method: Collecting the Rainwater

Hey all!

I just got back from vending at the very first PLY Away retreat about a week ago and am still digesting the whole amazing experience. Work and life back home of course keeps on going so on to the next thing! (Don't worry, I took loads of pictures at PLY Away and am very excited to share more in depth stories behind all that I shared on IG and the few I held back for here!)

My booth at PLY Away!

In preparation for my Rainwater Fleece Prep class at Tillers International in a couple of weeks, I thought it would be appropriate to get a Fermentation Suint bath going again. It has been just over a year since my last one and for a couple of years I was cleaning fleece using this method combined with some Unicorn Power Scour as a final scour after the bath.

I did a lot of research on the method and really enjoyed learning about it's history which I talk about in the class quite a lot.

May is acting a bit more like April should have been with loads of rain and semi chilly temperatures here in the mitten. While warmer temperatures would be nice, the rain was welcome as I needed to start my bath by collecting some natural rainwater. You can use softened water for this also but, A. I don't have soft water and B. if we are gonna go with a natural method, might as well go all natural right?

I like to leave a few large opaque totes out on my deck just under the edge of the roof for this. It collects quickly, especially if we are getting heavier rains!

collecting the water in bins under the edge of the roof

drip! drip! drip! Sometimes more slowly than others. 

Wednesday I will select a fleece to start the bath so that I can give each student a jar of a good example of a suint bath since it is impossible to complete the fermenation suint method (FSM) in a weekend. It is incredible how something as simple as the natural greases in the fleece create their own soap! No wonder this method has been used for centuries! Look out for my next post where I choose the fleece to dunk first!

In the studio

This incredible thing happened a few weeks ago. I moved into a studio. Another artist was in need of a studio mate and I jumped at the chance.

 These fibers were from my first batch of washing and dying in this amazingly equipped space. I feel like I have won the lottery, it is pretty much a dream setup. FOUR utility sinks, loads of heat sources for dying, a washer so I can spin water out.. man, it's great.

I also am starting to carve out time to get back to some work that I have had in my head for a while. I finished cabbing the Montana Moss Agate in the center above just before the Fall term was up. I know I am pairing it with this piece of fossilized coral I bought at a rock shop up in Beulah, MI several years ago and a tip of an Icelandic sheep horn.... just don't know how yet. You can watch progress on my rock and non-fiber jewelry adventures on Instagram under the name thecuriousatelier. I wanted to separate this body of work as I started getting back to my jewelry and rockhound roots but there will of course be overlap, hence the sheep horn.

Tonight I was in the studio later than ever but sometimes that is just the way life goes. I had wanted to get in on Sunday but unfortunately blew out a tire on my way back from visiting friends Saturday night. Being stuck on the side of a major highway till 2:30 in the morning waiting for road side service kinda puts a damper on productivity the next day. I did manage to get everything above and then some scoured and dyed. There will be loads of batts for Wine & Wool Festival this weekend at Sandhill Crane Vineyard! For more information check their facebook event here.

Happy New Year!

I have updated my Press, Show Schedule, and Lecture/Teaching Schedule tabs above for the new year. I had already started this a few months back as I'd like to have a better landing page for all things Bricolage Studios. Ideally it will all be on my SHOP page because I would prefer to narrow my focus on just a few platforms (my Big Cartel and my Instagram account) instead of stretching myself thin using ones I don't enjoy as much.

There is not enough of the red dog in my feed. Dillion is getting rather grey in the face these days. #irishsetter

A photo posted by Emily Wohlscheid (@bricolagestudios) on Jan 1, 2016 at 11:55am PST

This brings about that whole reflection thing. It is the start of a new year and I feel like if I can just get things off on the right foot, it will be a fulfilling, bustling, exciting year full of growth and patience. Patience with myself, with change, and with my business, and whatever else life throws at me.

A photo posted by Emily Wohlscheid (@bricolagestudios) on Dec 11, 2015 at 12:35pm PST

I want to bake more, sew more, knit more, and spin more (to knit!)

A photo posted by Emily Wohlscheid (@bricolagestudios) on Oct 22, 2015 at 5:59pm PDT

I want to take my kids to fun places instead of sitting at home because I dread getting everything loaded and unloaded and loaded again from the car. It really isn't that big of a deal... just an obstacle I make up in my head.

A photo posted by Emily Wohlscheid (@bricolagestudios) on Jun 17, 2015 at 8:15am PDT

I want to feel good about me and enjoy the times when my whole family manages to be in the house at once. It is rare these days.

I want to not get in the way of myself. Anywhere. Period.

I have never taken much stock in resolutions, but I know what makes me happy and what prevents me from being that way and that I can make those changes. The start of the new year is as good of a time as any to make those changes. Cheers!

A photo posted by Emily Wohlscheid (@bricolagestudios) on Nov 19, 2015 at 6:16am PST

inspiration

It can come from a lot of places.

This is my mood board. It changes subtly every so often and is a carefully curated mixture of beautiful postcards of people's work I am drawn to, pictures of my own work, biz and postcards of friend's work who I find particular great, trinkets, things Adele made me when she was little, comics, Gareth's tag from his little hospital bed proudly stating, "I'm a boy!" and photos.

Do you have a mood board? I find it really centering to stare at mine for a bit. It shows all stages of my work either through symbolism or completely literally in the case of the photos and pieces of my work I pin here and there. Sometimes I turn from my bench and pin a piece up there to view it differently.

It is so tidy in these photos. I have since added, subtracted, and gotten a little sloppy with overlapping additions. 

 Etsy shop has been updated with lots of goodies and will continue to be as the holidays approach!