Ode to Goldenrod

they rise in a stiff sweetness, in the pure peace of giving one's gold away.

~Mary Oliver

The scientific name for goldenrod is Solidago which means "to make whole."  This weekend involved experimentation with dyeing wool with freshly gathered goldenrod.

Norsk Fjord Fiber vevgarn Frid is imported from Hiilesvag Ullvarefabrikk, a fifth generation spinnery on the west coast of Norway.  This is my favorite yarn for tapestry.  It comes in multiple natural shades of natural grey and white, which made for fun dyeing possibilities. 

Dear hubs was alarmed when I explained my plan to gather goldenrod along the highway.  He decided adult supervision was required.

3.25 pounds of goldenrod.

After washing all the yarn in Synthrapol, I mordanted it.  Some in alum (4 tbsp in 4 gallons of water) and some in iron (2 tbsp in 4 gallons).  

After mordanting and rinsing the yarn the goldenrod was placed in a large enamel pot and covered with water.  The pot was brought to just under a boil (about 200 degrees) and simmered for one hour.  I removed the goldenrod and divided the liquid between two pots.  The iron mordanted yarn was placed in one pot and turned dark olive green immediately.  The alum mordanted yarn was placed in the other pot and began turning yellow.

The yarns to the far left were the iron mordant and all the yellows were the alum mordant.

All in all a successful experiment with goldenrod.  I tied some skeins before dyeing and played with ikat as well.