Misneach: We need this now
“Misneach (Irish) encompasses a blend of courage, hopefulness, bravery and spirit. It can allude to pushing forward, one paw in front of another, through doubt or snow. Brighter and less bellicose than bravery, misneach lingers longer with uncertainty, even as it carries on lifting each tired limb…”
Work in progress
A before shot with the original fabric...
My talented pal, who is always so generous with her time and knowledge, gave me a crash course in how to reupholster this old rocking chair.
After we removed the existing material, we found the cotton and horse hair stuffing to be in fairly good shape.
A much needed addition was new strapping for support.
The wooden seat frame displays the signature of the original upholsterer. Well done! Only a bit of foam was incorporated for extra cushioning.
A detail shot of the piping, which used my frayed onion-dyed fabric as an edge.
I sourced this repurposed cotton fabric at The Bay, which was being sold in the form of a waiter's apron via The Drake General Store. I dyed, ripped apart and reassembled the apron to reupholster the seat and chair backing.
These aprons were a crisp white when I bought them...
...but my food waste dye gives them a wonderfully warm glow.
Avocados pits and skins provide a lovely pink hue.
Iron darkens dye to a purple-grey.
It takes me at least 5 hours to scour, mordant and dye each piece of fabric.
Some projects bring surprises and unexpected results. Every now and again, I just have to grab the lighter and conduct some experimenting...
Osage ink, rust, sumac, avocado and onion dye. This piece of fabric is now incorporated into one of my mixed media canvases entitled "Contrast Dye I".