Salish Sweater

While the wind howls around the rooftop this afternoon, I am dreaming up a warm and cozy Salish or Cowichan type sweater to knit as a christmas present for a special someone. I have long had this dream. I bought a book in the 1980s: Salish Indian Sweaters, A Pacific Northwest Tradition, by Priscilla A. Gibson-Roberts. Over the years I have pored over this book (the pages are starting to fall out), I've used some of the graphed designs in lighter weight sweaters and hats (one of which recently traveled from Canada to Mexico along the great divide on a bicycle... yep, that's my son, Kina... who coincidentally is back in the Pacific Northwest. He's the one who put in a sweater request!) The sweater I'm planning to knit has the same birds that are on Kina's hat.

I carded up some white and dark grey wool together to make a 'salt and pepper' yarn for the main color. The border will be a natural dark grey/black, and the designs will be knit with a dark brown. In order to get this dark brown I needed to go for a walk with my dog, Claws.

We've had gales blowing the past few weeks, first from the south, then from the north. The happy result is lots of twigs and branches littering the roads and trails covered with lichens. I do not pick live lichens from the trees, but these that have blown down to my foot level are perfect for what I need. I gathered a grocery bag full on our three mile walk. I decided to dye some grey yarn that I have on hand, spun by my mother a few years ago. It is nice and thick, and the darkness of the grey will result in a rich dark brown (I hope) after cooking with lichens.

I dug out my canning kettle, which happens to be the largest pot I have, and filled it with water. Next I put in a layer of lichen, then the yarn, then another layer of lichen. I put my hot plate outside (lichen cooking makes for a strong earthy, not unpleasant, smell... better outdoors), put the pot on it, turned it on high, and let her cook. When the pot began to boil, I turned down the heat and let the brew simmer for an hour. I peaked at the yarn a few times, and gave it all a stir in the process.
The story continues ....