Mood:  lazy

My trip last year to Scandinavia, Estonia and St. Petersburg unleashed my interest in history that had been lying dormant.  Since that time I have read so much more than before including several fiber history books.  One book hadbeen in my book stash for a long time was A Perfect Red by Amy Butler Greenfield.  This is the history of cochineal-- my all time favorite natural dye stuff.  Cochineal is so forgiving, so powerful and not so expensive if you keep using the dye baths over and over.  I always tell my students that they will wear out before the cochineal does. 

This story starts with Cortes and ends in the 1990's.  I'm not a big fan of conquistadors so the early part of the book was my least favorite because I could envision way too well how the natives were treated.   

Once the book  moved on to the Spanish cochineal monopoly  and English, French, and Dutch pirates and then Europeans taking several centuries determining the nature of the dye--plant or animal, I thoroughly enjoyed the book.  The book discused the  history of natural philosophy and science, color and dyeing in  art and textiles, color preferences throughout the different eras and development of chemical dyeing and patent issues.  All in all a very good read which dovetailed into other history I'm reading. 

Now I'm off to my spinning wheel to start a "big" project I'll tell you about soon.   

Linda Shelhamer