The Cahuilla people live, as they have from the time of creation, in the arid yet hospitable lands of Southern California. Their traditional territory stretches from the San Bernardino Mountains to Anza Borrego Springs, from the San Jacinto Mountains to the Colorado Desert. The land abounds in hot springs because, as Cahuilla traditionalist Pedro Chino once explained, the heart of the land is fire. If the Earth doesn't breathe, it will blow up.
The Heart Is Fire offers rare, first-person insight into a remarkable California Indian culture. In relaxed, conversational language, Cahuilla elders, discuss a variety of topics: family, language, rock art, basketry, pottery, song, medicine, traditional food preparation, and other aspects of Cahuilla life. They describe the creation of the Cahuilla world in mythic times and discuss the singing of "bird songs," epic accounts of the wandering of the first people. With passion, knowledge, sadness, and laughter, they relate what life was like when they were young, what it means to be Cahuilla today, and how they envision the future of their culture.
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Beautifully and lushly illustrated, The Dyer's Tao is jam-packed with practical and useful information about natural dyeing for advanced and novice dyers. It presents more than 80 recipes for extracting more than 550 colors from natural dyestuff. The recipes in The Dyer's Tao are marked, when known, to indicate safety or toxicity. Never worry again if dying is safe for you, your family or your pets!!
Clearly written, the first half offers a brief history of dyeing. It explains how dyes work; fiber types; equipment; processing the plant material into dyestuff; and how to keep everyone safe while dyeing. The second half is a trove of recipes divided by season of the year, with plants identified as reliable dyes in each season. The chapter called Grandmother's Rainbow contains the recipes for the ancient dyes - indigo, logwood, osage orange, and others, available year round. Samples of repeatable colors are printed with every recipe, so you can see the exact colors each dyestuff will produce.
This is a lovely, lively, informative and practical guide that should grace every dyer's bookshelf.
Ellie Greenwood Kordas, PhD (AKA Deborah Dozier) is a retired professor of American Indian and American Studies with a specialization in textiles and technology. On her mother's side, she is descended from Welsh flax workers who immigrated to the United States in 1798 where they established themselves as linen workers. Her ancestry is important to Kordas; when she was four years old, her Welsh grandmother set Kordas on the textile path when she taught her how to braid three strands, the first of many techniques that make up the legacy from her ancestors.
Dr. Kordas taught dye technology and surface pattern design at Syracuse University. She also served as the Quality Control Manager for the dyehouse at an independent textile mill. During these years she developed a critical eye regarding safe dyeing practices for artists and their families.
For twenty years she walked the hills with Native American artists in California and in Baja California, Mexico, learning every aspect of textile work, including the use of natural dyes.
Throughout the years, her dye workshops have helped hundreds of artists translate the complex botanical processes of dyeing into clear, inspiring narratives that empower them to safely create art using sustainable natural dyes. If you pay attention, you might meet her on the side of a county backroad, legally gathering materials for her next dyebath.
