Hippie Genetics

My parents were (and are hippies). Ok. Those of you who know them would argue this to be far from true. And I see your point. There is no Woodstock attending, Birkenstocks wearing, long hair and daisies or tie dye. There is a lot of smartly tailored clothing, strong family values, hard working mentality. None of these things scream hippy- I know that. And in all honesty, the grow lights in the basement of my parent's house are to grow... are you ready for this... geraniums. Shocking. You'd think with that green thumb of his and those grow lights he could come up with a more lucrative crop. Nope. Geraniums.

But I'm telling you, my parents were crunchy granola before being organic or environmentally aware was trendy. I was lucky enough to grow up with a father who was more or less a subsistence farmer. Our house was on a quarter acre and my dad's garden was, and is, enormous. Everything we ate from spring (radicchio was always up first) to winter (squash and potatoes keep well in a cold room) came from my dad's organic garden. And while he was busy pulling weeds and planting things, my mum was in the kitchen cooking them, and preserving them for the winter. She still bakes her own bread (12 loaves at a time), and cans tomatoes, peaches, pears and cherries. There is of course lots of pasta sauce and grilled eggplant (what is an Italian without those things?), and tons of delicious baking. I would be willing to bet that my parents make less waste than 95% of the population. Almost nothing goes in the garbage. My mother is a militant recycler (Lord have mercy on your soul should you forget to put a toilet paper roll in the recycling and... gulp... throw it in the garbage. She's sort of the female equivalent of Ed Begley Jr. Although, to be fair, the toaster does not require a half hour of pedalling on a bicycle to operate). My dad has the biggest compost heap which totally eliminates the need for fertilizer. They built their own house with the help of my beloved and very missed Nonno Giovanni. They are very kind to the planet, they are very organic, they are indeed hippies. Just without the clothes. It is so cool.

No doubt this is where my love for gardening and cooking and sewing comes from. Living in the city, an enormous garden isn't possible- I do what I can with the space and time I have. And my mum is in my brain every time I use a paper towel instead of a rag. "Why waste Emmanuella?". Good question. Keeps me thinking all the time.

I think the hippy fashion sensibility skipped a generation and landed on me. I love me my Birkenstocks. LOVE them. And here's another thing I love- tie dye. Not to wear, so much as to do. It is such fun- I love a project with that kind of instant gratification.  There is something so terribly exciting about pulling a waded mass of elastics out of dye, removing the ties and seeing what you ended up with. Such fun. I've tie dyed all kinds of things over the years: socks, underwear, sheets. My friend Lisa and I had a full out tie dye party in university (oh the hysterical pictures I have somewhere of her modelling her projects). But my favourite projects have been for my boys at Halloween. This was an idea I first saw in Family Fun Magazine. I loved it so much I made countless of these things- for friends, and at least on a year for my boys.

Cute right? The circles were created by elastic bands, and I used el-cheapo shirts and Tintex dye. The facial features are done with fabric paint, and the leaf and stem I improvised with appliqued fabric. One thing I did find with these is that the fabric paint sticks to itself with the heat of the dryer, so better to let them dry on a rack.

I finally reached saturation with this project. Seriously, how many of these things can one justify making before being admitted for analysis? It's overkill. Plus, I got a fancy schmancy front loading washing machine. I can't bring myself to put fabric dye in the cycle.

But the hamster is always running. Three thing happened today. 1) I was feeling Halloweeny 2) I came across a new kind of fabric dye that isn't used in a washing machine and 3) I got an idea other than a pumpkin. !!!! Wheeee! Tie dye it is. I ran to Walmart for T-shirts.

Here's what you need for this year's version:

• black fabric dye (I used Dylon)
• back and white fabric paint
• elastics
• 100% cotton shirts
• black acrylic paint
• Gemtac glue
• google eyes

1. Using elastic bands, tightly tie up the shirts to create the shapes. Figure out where you'd like the targets and place the elastics accordingly.

 2. Prepare the dye as directed on the package. Submerge and stir as directed also. Rinse out in cold water. I like to throw mine in the washer with vinegar to help the colour set. Tumble dry and iron. And no, that is not my type A talking (well, not only my type A talking), but you want the shirt nice and flat for painting.

 3. Lay the shirts out flat, and put several layers of newspaper, or cardboard inside so the paint does not seep through.

4. Draw on your arachnid friend. I used acrylic paint for the body (Brain wave! Does not stick to itself like fabric paint, and does not wash out). Fabric paint pens were used for the legs, mouth and eyebrows.  Use the Gemtac to adhere the googly eyes. Let dry. The glue bottle says it is washable after 24 hrs. We'll see if it survives the wash. I have my doubts. May need to come up with a plan B.






Ta-Dah!!! The 2012 edition of the tie-dyed Halloween shirt. I love them, and I suspect the boys will too

Ok. Go on. Listen to Bob Dylan (the answers are indeed blowing in the wind), put on your Birkenstocks, rub patchouli on something, burn some incense and tie dye something! You won't be sorry you did!

Happy Trails! And Peace Out.