gratitude and paper

thank you all for your kind wishes for hannah and tyler.

they are feeling a bit better, a bit less shell shocked.

which makes my heart beat more easily.

after the first evening walk in ages

 i gathered up some black eyed susan petals,

from my backporchpatch

 and set them to soak

(maybe for ink)

 in paper doings 

my student todd brought me this lovely gampi/cattail paper

(an apple for the teacher, he smiled)

it's delicious, 

much more subtle than the photo shows.

 todd's gampi supports two little flax with lokta stitch sheets i took along to maiwa

 here they are with some indigo dyed hand spun hemp 

 and then some walnut dunked earth pigmented sheets

on a walnut/flax/stitched sheet

there seems to be no end to the possibilities

of which i've just scratched the surface.

 and then this came

oh, my.

if you've ever thought of making your own ink

you should check out this book

 a touch of color on the corners entices you to open

 an illustration from the book: 

buckthorn ink

a green earth pigment dunked in black walnut

 and then an ochre, likewise dunked

 and the backside of this indigo dunked flax and lokta

 a wee bit of hemp basket in making

 one of my flax samplers 

(there are a few of these...

 nice back, don't you think?

contact printed acrhes text wove.

 my class worked with drew matott and johnny lafalse

while i was at maiwa

drew overexposed

 my students learning and pulp painting

 how to form a sheet, 

back left is johnny

 each bucket a different pulp, 

mostly from knitted cotton shirts

 and almost black and blue pulps, 

and a brand new sheet.

i came back and we all have to slow down now

and make really good sheets 

after repulping half of their first abaca sheets

they are really, really attentive.

physik

the phrase i woke up thinking of this morning

was this:

"it's not enough to physik a jay bird"

something my folks used to say.

they had many lovely mountain sayings that i've mostly forgotten.

i found several of the tiny things that were in the soil of this pot

shells, pebbles

knocked onto the porch one day.

and on another day i also found this one's

been in the poor old hibiscus.

my jaybird must be looking for a physik.

as i continue making paper from what's been given me,

small batches that keep me happy

and prompt book ideas,

from rag:

white-cotton/linen shirt

lavender-patagonia hemp skirt

and

green-cotton off cuts in many green tones from st armand 

and an accordion booklet beginning here is now complete.

flax paper

tow linen threads (20)

a few tiny greasy yellow beads

 how many times (at least 10) do i have to rinse

black walnut dyed cotton woven tape

before i can let it dry?

 and here it is on a lokta shifu square

 on the walk hunting season has begun

which makes me pay attention.

 this large doe isn't too worried. yet.

milkweed pods are splitting

after the first hard frost this week.

 red maples dance

but autumn color is late and subdued

in this strange long warm autumn.

the ticks became active after the frost.

the traffic on my walk 

 expells exhaust that doesn't make me choke.

 i need to get 

my milkweed harvest stripped and cooked

soon.

this is last years harvest

perfect for a mouse or a bird's nest.

that big bag of stalks that's waiting needs my attention

before it's so retted that 

only the birds will use it

though that is a noble use.

on this walk i was happily reminded to get to that chore soon.