Nature’s soup – more colors of Avalanche Ranch

water water everywhere

2 weeks ago it was the extreme heat that caused schools to be closed for a day.  This week it was the rain.  Upwards of 12 inches – as much as an average year’s total – in just one day.  And that, on top of an already steady 2 days of rain, in a region that’s been suffering a drought. 

I am very fortunate – although I live in Taft Canyon subdivision, my home is on a ridge and we’re safe from the flooding.  But the devastation is all around us, roads are gone, people are stranded, and helicopters buzz overhead, making multiple rescue trips.

fabrics dyed with plant materials and water in the rocky mountains of Colorado

water and nature

Colorado is my home.  I love living here.  For the nature, the mountains, the blue skies, the red earth, the river canyons, and the spirit of the people who are drawn to be here.

All this water has me thinking back to just a few short weeks ago, enjoying the hot springs, the magical mineral waters of Avalanche Ranch.  And, wondering how much effect this mineral rich rocky mountain water had on the results of some fabrics I dyed while at the ranch:

The wool has a good range of color, the copper “greened-up” much of it, and several of the leaves acted as resists, leaving a mark with little color, outlined by the shape of the leaf.  The metal wire darkened the silk/cotton fabric, although there are also some leaf shapes printed on it as well.

Detailed images below are (top) silk and (bottom) wool:

Good variety of color, texture, and mark in all of these fabrics.  And they play well together too. May use these to complete my Avalanche Ranch book, and/or make a small textile painting to go along with the book. 

Either way, they’re a physical reminder of the water and nature of a special place in my special Colorado rocky mountain state.