American Folklife Festival, Knitting Progress, and the Cubs!
Summers are very busy in the Washington, DC area - there are so many things to do! The past couple of days have been unseasonable mild as well - which means I've been spending more time outdoors than indoors knitting!
Sunday, I met my friend Mia at the American Folklife Festival. It was fantastic! This year, the featured cultures were Northern Ireland, the Mekong River and the countries it runs through, and the state of Virginia. The weather was absolutely perfect and there were a number of fabulous crafts displayed. I've only put a few of the photos here, but I have the entire display here: American Folklife Festival Photo Album. (The photos are currently out of order and unlabeled. I plan to "organize" the album this weekend, so please be patient.)
The first quilt is the Remembrance quilt from the 9/11 attacks - it was very moving and is a stunning work of art. There were also a number of other quilts on display. All of quilts shown here were part of the Virginia display.
The most fascinating display was that of indigo dying. Elaborate patterns of butterflies and flowers are made by tying threads threads around the fabric and then immersing it in the dye pot. The pictures above show fabrics in process. The first photo is a bit dark, but I think you can make out the "bunched up" area - that's where the fabric was tied in little bundles. In the second photo above, you can really see the detail of the tied areas of the fabric.
Here, the participant has tied the fabric around her waist as an apron. The color contrast is absolutely stunning. She also scooped out some indigo from the bottom of the pot on a spoon so we could smell it. I was surprised - it has a very pleasant odor - almost "tea like".
This completed cloth is absolutely stunning. Check out the minute details in the leaves, flowers, and butterflies. It's hard to believe that this entire work of art was created using white fabric, indigo dye, and thread!
There were a number fabulous looms and examples of silk weaving in the Mekong exhibit as well. The photo album I mentioned above has numerous pictures of these. Here, I've captured an "action shot" where the participant is loading the silk onto the bobbin in preparation for weaving.
The Northern Ireland exhibit included a large display of gorgeous linen. The "beetling" machine shown here with the sewing machine was fascinating. Unfortunately, the picture is rather dark - a consequence of the festival being outdoors and the sun shining in the wrong direction through the tents. (I'm not sure how to spell "beetling", so if anyone does, please let me know!) The machine has a number of wooden posts that jump up and down on the fabric as the crank is turned - this process was to bring out the sheen of the linen. The exhibitor said that they soon found that they could wrap it tightly around a large drum like contraption and it would have the same effect in a more efficient manor.
The final pictures are from the Irish rug making display. The first photo shows the various components that go into making the rug - fiber and yarns that are put through a jute backing. The boxes on the table show a sampling of the many and varied colors available for making the rugs. In the background, you can see part of a very elaborate rug depicting streets. It's so detailed, it almost looks like a painting. I have a better picture of the rug in the photo album, but I could not fit the entire rug in the picture as the booth was a bit "tight".
I finished the day at Mia's where her mother had prepared and absolutely fabulous feast of American and Filipino food. Her mother is a fabulous cook - everything was wonderful! After dinner, Mia and I got out our knitting and worked on our projects for a while - she worked on her green felted bag and I continued to work on my purple Wildfoote sock.
Then, today at work, I found out that I'd won two tickets to see the Cubs play the Nationals at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC on July 4th! What an exciting way to spend "Independence Day"! As a long-suffering Cubs fan, this was a fabulous surprise! I can't wait! "Take me out the ball game......Take me out to the crowds......"
Sunday, I met my friend Mia at the American Folklife Festival. It was fantastic! This year, the featured cultures were Northern Ireland, the Mekong River and the countries it runs through, and the state of Virginia. The weather was absolutely perfect and there were a number of fabulous crafts displayed. I've only put a few of the photos here, but I have the entire display here: American Folklife Festival Photo Album. (The photos are currently out of order and unlabeled. I plan to "organize" the album this weekend, so please be patient.)
The first quilt is the Remembrance quilt from the 9/11 attacks - it was very moving and is a stunning work of art. There were also a number of other quilts on display. All of quilts shown here were part of the Virginia display.
The most fascinating display was that of indigo dying. Elaborate patterns of butterflies and flowers are made by tying threads threads around the fabric and then immersing it in the dye pot. The pictures above show fabrics in process. The first photo is a bit dark, but I think you can make out the "bunched up" area - that's where the fabric was tied in little bundles. In the second photo above, you can really see the detail of the tied areas of the fabric.
Here, the participant has tied the fabric around her waist as an apron. The color contrast is absolutely stunning. She also scooped out some indigo from the bottom of the pot on a spoon so we could smell it. I was surprised - it has a very pleasant odor - almost "tea like". 
This completed cloth is absolutely stunning. Check out the minute details in the leaves, flowers, and butterflies. It's hard to believe that this entire work of art was created using white fabric, indigo dye, and thread!
There were a number fabulous looms and examples of silk weaving in the Mekong exhibit as well. The photo album I mentioned above has numerous pictures of these. Here, I've captured an "action shot" where the participant is loading the silk onto the bobbin in preparation for weaving.
The Northern Ireland exhibit included a large display of gorgeous linen. The "beetling" machine shown here with the sewing machine was fascinating. Unfortunately, the picture is rather dark - a consequence of the festival being outdoors and the sun shining in the wrong direction through the tents. (I'm not sure how to spell "beetling", so if anyone does, please let me know!) The machine has a number of wooden posts that jump up and down on the fabric as the crank is turned - this process was to bring out the sheen of the linen. The exhibitor said that they soon found that they could wrap it tightly around a large drum like contraption and it would have the same effect in a more efficient manor.
The final pictures are from the Irish rug making display. The first photo shows the various components that go into making the rug - fiber and yarns that are put through a jute backing. The boxes on the table show a sampling of the many and varied colors available for making the rugs. In the background, you can see part of a very elaborate rug depicting streets. It's so detailed, it almost looks like a painting. I have a better picture of the rug in the photo album, but I could not fit the entire rug in the picture as the booth was a bit "tight".
I finished the day at Mia's where her mother had prepared and absolutely fabulous feast of American and Filipino food. Her mother is a fabulous cook - everything was wonderful! After dinner, Mia and I got out our knitting and worked on our projects for a while - she worked on her green felted bag and I continued to work on my purple Wildfoote sock.
Then, today at work, I found out that I'd won two tickets to see the Cubs play the Nationals at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC on July 4th! What an exciting way to spend "Independence Day"! As a long-suffering Cubs fan, this was a fabulous surprise! I can't wait! "Take me out the ball game......Take me out to the crowds......"
posted by Jinann @ 9:04 PM
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