mangles

The Dance of Dye: Seeing Your Fabric Born

| ellenanneeddy

You’ll need to forgive the way I look. There’s nothing glamorous about dye day. Or really dye week. Prepping fabric, dyeing fabric, washing up, washing out and ironing are all really blue collar fun. You sweat and get messy. Never mind that I’ve missed my last three hair cuts.

My friend Lauren Strach used to come to visit, partially for dye day, but mostly for the day I ironed. Because that was the day the fabric came out of the mangle.

Hand dyed fabric is pretty. But like all of us, it likes to dress up. It’s nice hanging out to dry. But you really get to see it when it comes through the mangle, pressed, starched and pretty. It rolls out like a beautiful woman floating down a staircase.

Three pieces


Of course the real moment is when you get to see it with hand-dyed thread

Lauren is a fabulous fiber artist, who explores a number of styles, in amazing ways. You’ll find her work on Instagram.

I’ve been privileged to watch her work grow. And she would come and drool with me over the freshly ironed new hand dye. She lives in Oregon now, and I in Galesburg, IL and all of that would take a lot of arranging to do again. But I treasure the memory of watching her face as the fabric would roll out, pressed and precious. And the things she would do with it.

You’ll want to see more of Lauren’s work. It’s a journey in color, texture and joy.

You might ask why I was mangling in the garage instead of the new glorious studio! We had misbehaving mangles. Don found me a lovely mangle that lasted just long enough to blow black smoke and powder on the floor immediately after it was plugged in. We took it out and found that new amazing IronRight. It stopped opening and closing about five minutes in.

I had a long cry, and we waited a day to plug in my old mangle from Porter and she worked like a charm. You bet I sang to her!

This is Don companionably sitting on his mower in the garage while I ironed my fabric. He had to sit somewhere. Did I mention I really like being married?

I do dye fabric for others as well as myself. This was a good dye run, and People regularly ask me to dye what they want for a particular project. But I do have some fabric from the last dye run I would be willing to sell if there’s an interest. Contact me and I’ll set up a video phone conference if you wish to pick some out for yourself.

You can see the flower already started here.
ellenanneeddy@gmail.com
219-617-2021
1055 N. Farnham Street
true
Galesburg, IL 61401
USA

Everything Old Is New Again: Hunting Aging Appliances

| ellenanneeddy

The appliances that worked for Gramma still make a dyer’s life so much easier!

My new old mangle

I’ve been dyeing fabric since I was ten. I’m about to be 67. With all of that you’d imagine something must be learned.

What I’ve come to understand is that natural fiber was the default in the fifties. There really wasn’t much else. That being said, the appliances that worked then are perfect for people working with natural fibers now. The irons, washing machines and clothes lines of that time are set at the correct defaults for people working with cotton, flax, wool, bamboo and rayon.

A mangle is a rotary iron with a heat shoe. I can iron fifty yards of fabric in two hours on a good mangle. It leaves fabric perfectly pressed without needing to use the dryer.

Ironrite Mangle #85

I love my mangles, even though they’re fragile. At 50 years plus everyone’s wiring frays a little bit. Here’s a video of me singing to my mangle

I had one in the studio in Porter. We’d worried about it being in cold storage. It seems to have held up, but we found one that had been safely stored in some nice lady’s basement. Unfortunately when we got home and plugged it in on Wednesday, it made a satisfying “pmoof” noise and blasted black power on the floor. Exit mangle two.

I went home with Don, devastated. Three hours later he plopped a picture for another mangle, on ebay. It came home yesterday and worked promptly and properly. I am thrilled!

After a while you start paying attention to the old companies. Whirlpool was also Kenmore. I had two Thor Gladirons (talk about Vikings). The new one is an Ironrite.

Is there a difference?

Turns out there really is. I have a link to their add video. It features a terrifying view of women and men of the 50s. But it may be the most goof proof mangle I’ve ever seen. The shoe is in a safer place and divided in the center. They showed a woman working on blindfolded. I think it might maybe be safe with this machine

Ironrite video

Where do you find a mangle? There is a new version from Miele that is astonishing in every way. Price too, but I suspect it’s very nice.

Miele Ironing system.

At current prices, I’ll probably never know. But the old ones exist, saved from attics and basements and estate sales. Make friends with the old appliance people. People downsizing their homes. Ask around. If you are dyeing fabric you need one of these. I certainly do.

I’m hoping on exercising this new beast after doing my first dye day at the studio. Do you need some hand dyed fabric for your inspiration. Call me (219-617- 2021) or email me and we can set up hand dyed fabric just for you, mangled to perfection!