From Mark Traxler
Barry, That'll do it. I would send jpgs of the dyes and yarn, but they're not all that impressive; just ground up roots in plastic bags. I picked up some of the handspun yarn yesterday from Lisa, in Amboy, Minnesota. Amboy has a population of about 300. We left Lisa's shop, where she sells items made from the angora, mohair, and wool that she raises and spins. She had several ounces of Lincoln wool spun up for me, and we drove out to her land to meet the sheep and goats. Readers may be interested to note that the beard "hair" of the elderly mohair goat was very long and course, about the consistency of the fibre found in good old textiles, including Turkomen warp. I couldn't help it, but when I saw his beard I kept seeing skeins of unbelievable yarn. The bag that I'll be making, or am in the process of making, will be 100 kpi, wool warp and weft, in dimensions of 24" X 17." It will sport a flatwoven back. At $50 a pound, the handspun yarn for the pile will cost me $150. When you add $20 for the warp, $20 for the weft, plus the dyes [indigo, madder, osage, walnut] the price tag for supplies will be up there. The only dye I harvested myself is the walnuts, which are plentiful in our area. I have some madder growing in the back yard, but its not ready for harvest for a year or two.
The theme of the bag is the Islamic "meditation" the Zikr. "Zikr" means "remember." The meditation is "La illaha il'Allahu," which is rendered "there is no God, Allah is." I believe that one "meaning" of this is something like: the material world is quickly fleeting, only God exists. Since I want my children to realize this, I decided to make a"reminder" for them. Nick, age 9, is already quick to point out to others what the "prayer" means. So, its working already. I'll send jpgs of the project when its finished, in about 9 months to a year, depending. Hratch Kozibeyoukian, in LA, did the Calligraphy for this project. He was a great help. All the best to the RugNotes readership, and you too Barry. Mankato, MN |
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