The tie-dye parade continues with Mack's creations!

The two above are for his dad. The top one was kind of scrunched/gathered on the diagonal and sectioned off for dye application. The bottom one was swirled, of course. The yellow seems especially vibrant this year!

I should mention that we used Dharma Trading Co.'s Fiber Reactive Dyes, as always. I purchased Dharma's Little Group Kit a few years ago and we're still working with that, plus some extras. In the past, I've ordered some of their dyeable clothing, too, and also indigo. I have been extremely pleased with it all! This year, I purchased & pre-washed a variety of t-shirts -- all were 100% cotton, but there were a few different brands and I think there are subtle differences in how they took the dye.

Our colors were: Fuchsia, Lemon Yellow, Turquoise, Deep Purple, and Cobalt Blue.

This kind of "minimal swirl" is for his mom. I didn't turn it over, but I think it might be a bit more saturated with dye on the back!

These two are Mack's size. The one on top is his attempt at "crystal wash," and the bottom one was a pleated from the bottom to about the armpits and then rolled.

He used a lot more dye for his "crystal wash" shirt than Addie did, and also used more of the dark colors. I just love all the variations & differences!

The top shirt, above, with the patriotic feel is for Junah, and the lower one with the swirl was also intended for him... but more likely Ginny's size!

This is Ginny's tie-dye tank a la Mack...

...and this is Malina's. Malina ended up with two very vibrant, saturated shirts... they were so tiny, it was difficult to go "light"!

Similar to how Addie's shirt for Malina reminded me of the northern lights, Mack's "crystal wash" shirt gives me a very "nebula" feeling.

I feel like I could get lost in there!

There's another whole batch of shirts for Junah, Ginny & Malina to make for their mom & dad, Mack & Addie, and for themselves! I'm not sure I'd have been able to keep up if they'd all done it together. (My hair sort of stands on end just thinking about that!) I'm not sure it'll work out, but I think it would be super fun for the boys to be "camp counselors" at Nona Camp... if not this year, then definitely next!

I've already had a request for socks & other types of clothing/items for next year! You might have noticed that there wasn't anything for Davey in the boys' piles... lordy, can you imagine the number of tie-dye hand-me-downs that boy will already be subjected to??!!!

It's a little different this year -- they're all here earlier than usual and still working/in school, for the most part, plus passport renewals, vaccinations & haircuts, and Mack is doing his behind-the-wheel both with an instructor & with his dad -- but we're doing what we can, and squeezed in some tie-dyeing over the weekend!

We're happy as clams with whatever we get since we didn't even have a chance last summer!

We tried a new technique using the measuring cups/bucket, but mostly swirls and pleats and sections... and a lot of shirts!

I might have left them set longer if we hadn't had a lunch date yesterday along with rain in the afternoon forecast, but at least I remembered to correctly mix the dye and to soak everything in soda ash solution.

One of our biggest challenges over the years is remembering who tied & dyed what, so this year, for better or worse, I devised a system... putting a staple in the hem of each of Mack's shirts. I'm sure there's a better way (and I'd love to hear about it), but at least we were able to keep track of which shirts were Addie's & which were Mack's.

It was all official when Addie rubbed his ear...

...since the first Auntie Camp (indigo), it isn't official until someone (usually Addie) turns BLUE! Haha. (For the record, I have a very pink thumbnail!)

I photographed every shirt they made this year, so let's get started with Addie on parade!

Two shirts for his dad. The first is gray and was done using the "crystal wash" method in the bucket. Basically, it's soaked in soda ash, scrunched up and stuffed into a container, and squirted with dye. The other one looks like a combo swirl/scrunch.

A shirt for his mom, above (I think I bought a size too small, but it'll "work") that was scrunched & sectioned.

These are both his size. The first one was swirled from the bottom/side instead of the usual chest area, and it turned out pretty great (I'm sure that will be done again in the future!). The second was also done using the "crystal wash" method in a 4-cup measure... the dye is sparse but interesting.

These two were done with Junah in mind, though I think the bottom one will be a bit small, so Ginny's!

This one is definitely Ginny's.

And, finally, Malina's. Parts of this remind me of the northern lights!

I love tie dye because there's always a little bit of surprise and it's really hard to make a dud!

Stay tuned for Mack's parade, coming up tomorrow.  ;)

Joining Carole & friends for Three Things on Thursday... 

Thing 1:

The lavender is beginning to bloom.

It's one of my favorite flowers and is, absolutely, my favorite floral scent. I spent a good while in the garden yesterday morning, and it felt good -- trying to keep up to the standard of Kate's excellent work earlier this spring -- except that all my great work in the garden must have really aggravated an already sore hip. (I reintroduced myself to my chiropractor on Monday and will see her again next week.) It was incredibly painful last night and I had a hard time falling asleep... resulting in a pitiful 4 hr 10 min of sleep recorded by my Fitbit last night.

But there's lavender!!

Thing 2:

Our accidental catalpa tree is putting on a glorious show!

Even at night, illuminated by only the pergola lights, it's pretty spectacular... so many flowers.

Thing 3:

I am really enjoying my current Airbnb guests. wink:wink

The feeling is mutual... Ann shared this photo the other day, starting her day with coffee in bed (we have the most eclectic collection of mugs up there!).

My sis & her family might possibly be more frequent guests in the future, since the local house purchase turned into a clusterfuck and the deal is off. There was some miscommunication -- in the form of NO communication -- which came to light a week ago after a conversation with one of the new neighbors. He remarked that there were 40+ families "involved," which led to Annie asking a few questions of her agent, eventually learning that the sellers' lawyer had JUST sent out the certified letters to those 40+ interested parties, to which they each had 30 days to respond, followed by another month before the title company needed to do their thing. Not only was this the first mention of all of this "involvement" (from the neighbor), but the closing -- having already been postponed once "because of the title company" -- was supposed to be TOMORROW! Tradespeople were lined up -- not an easy thing these days (especially since they were all "postponed" once already, too) -- and Ann had planned to be somewhat involved in renovation, at least overseeing in the beginning stages, and had also planned on staying there next month (roughing it, no doubt) prior to returning to Peru. The revelation of this new, previously undisclosed timeline made it clear that they'd be lucky even to close before departure. It's so incredibly disappointing to so many people on so many levels... I just can't even.

So, anyway, because of the layout & configuration of our house & the apartment, I've basically opened it all up and it's more of a house-share situation! They have their space and I have mine, but there's a lot of common area and we've been cooking & having most evening meals together. Sometimes we even share a little coffee in the morning before things get going. It's really nice and will be weird when they're gone and things are back to "normal" after next week.

Who am I kidding? WTF is "normal"? There's always something... it just remains to be seen!

I love a good trend along with the best of 'em!

Cartoon yerself... I doubt I'll keep this app on my phone for long, but for now I'm in, and they're so darn cute -- not to mention spot-on! (FYI: An article on Wired.)

Joining Carole & friends for Three Things on Thursday... 

Thing 1:

Kate found a fabulous flat-share in Edinburgh -- lots of room (both private & shared) and a great location! Occupancy as of July 1st, but possibly sooner (her current Airbnb term is up on the 22nd).

The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh is about a 40-minute walk from the new flat. She was there today and had to share the rhododendrons with me. They're spectacular! One of my favorites, and I've never seen rhodies as big & lush as in Edinburgh.

Thing 2:

She also found a part-time gig at an art space with a fantastic view!

(This is not the view.) I assembled this collage with stills nabbed from a video that Kate took as she walked through an enormous hedge at the Royal Botanic Garden. It's like an X-ray in the middle. So cool.

Thing 3:

Maddy is also starting a new part-time job next week -- at a brewery! It's very close to the winery where Viv works -- a half-hour drive from where they currently live -- and perhaps they'll relocate if all goes well.

The current scene in Maddy's backyard:

Maddy said while snow isn't unusual, they're not used to it sticking/sticking around so much!

Meanwhile, we're in a heatwave that doesn't appear to be letting up anytime soon! I am looking at 80F predicted for Tuesday and thinking of it as a relief! We are/have been hovering more around 90F and there's ZERO precipitation... and it looks like it will continue for as far as I can see.

Time for a Dilly bar.

I'm joining Kat & the Unravelers...

CROCHET:

It's growing... but these are busy days! There have been a few evenings of late when I didn't even lift my hook. I've just started joining the two rows worth of circles that I have ready, and added a couple of hexagons last night while the boys & I watched S2E2 of LEGO MASTERS... wherein stuff was blown up with glitter, dust, water or slime. Yeah. It was great!

READING:

No one was more surprised than me that I finished Shuggie Bain in time for last night's group discussion! I found it to be a very compelling read, and it was especially enjoyable to alternate listening & reading. (I loved the narrator's voice, and kept thinking that he sounded like a mash-up of Alan Cumming and Sean Connery!) Now I'm back to An American Quilt: Unfolding A Story of Family & Slavery, thinking/hoping that we'll be returning to the quilt in the last 30+/- pages. I've also begun listening to Sinéad O'Connor read her memoir, Rememberings. 

It's so HOT!!! We've been flirting with 90F for days and that will continue all week. Water balloon fights FTW!

The boys are both taller than me! Junah has stars in his eyes! (It's so cute.)

It's a whirlwind! Kids, work, business & banking, planting stuff, building LEGO monster trucks, laundry, cleaning, crocheting... y'know, the usual, but with temps ramping up & stuff.

Tomorrow afternoon, I welcome what will no doubt be my favorite Airbnb guests EVER! I'm even picking them up at the airport and providing a car for the duration of their Stateside visit... their first since Christmas 2019. I'm so excited to see & hug my sister Ann & her family!! I know that Mack & Addie will have grown, teens that they are, but I think it's going to be SHOCKING nonetheless. Voice changes, too. First order of business will be getting vaccinations going, and also high on the list is Mack taking the test for his Temps! As in driver's license. GAH!!!