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Purple Study Group
... an international independent fiber study group
organized by Susan Feller, August 2006 to July 2007 |
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I began my study of purple, as a rug hooker, by heading
for my dye pots (Contrary to my usual procedure of just using whatever
wool I have on hand, I decided to begin with dyeing.) I dyed 12 swatches
that departed from an intense, regal purple, focusing more on softer
variations, some of which were on the blue side and some on the red side.
The swatches were all overdyed and included both new
and recycled wool. My thoughts then turned to designing a pattern that
would allow me to utilize as many of those swatches as I could.
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Thinking “purple” dovetailed readily into my interest
in all things medieval. I was rereading The Unicorn Tapestries by
Margaret B. Freeman and particularly enjoyed the documentation of 85 of
over 100 different plants that were woven into the Unicorn Tapestries that
are housed in The Cloisters in New York. Amongst the specimens in the
purple range were:
 | Sweet violets, among the best-loved flowers of
medieval times, said to have been cultivated in every medieval castle
garden |
| Periwinkles, herbs that when powdered and
consumed, acted to strengthen a union between marriage partners |
| Wild pansies, thought to be a powerful love charm |
| Forget-me-nots, whose blue color symbolized
fidelity in the Middle Ages |
| Purple iris, a knightly flower associated with
noblemen and kings |
| Wild orchids, whose roots were utilized in a
concoction that was storied to be a potent aphrodisiac for both men and
women |
I also remembered a trip to the Cloisters herb garden which was created
to display the plants that are represented in the tapestries and paintings
of The Cloisters. Revisiting that day in my daydreams, the scent of
lavender was in the air and vaguely medieval images of castles, heraldry,
jesters, and “thousand flowers” tapestries began swirling around in my
psyche. The result was my “Reverie” pattern.
“Reverie” was hooked in a 6-cut on monk’s
cloth. Its dimensions are 29” x 42˝”.
My completed rug did not turn out as purple as I had
envisioned. A number of my swatches were too close in value, so I needed
to introduce additional swatches across the color spectrum in order to
create the necessary contrast. I consider the experience positive in spite
of a “less than purple” outcome, because I was inspired to create
“Reverie”.
Submitted by:
Kris Noble, North Vancouver, B.C. |
© 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Kris Noble, By Hook or Crook -
All Rights Reserved
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