MEET Wayanna Batik

Sep 5, 2017 | Create, Meet

Meet Wayan and Anna, together they make Wayanna Batik! I met this wonderful pair in Ubud, Bali. Wayan is the batik artist who creates beautiful batik paintings inspired by nature, and Anna is the project manager who is building the brand.

Tell me about yourself: your name, age, where you’re from, what do you do?

My name is Wayan. I am 33 years old from Ubud, Bali, Indonesia. I am the batik painter.

I am Anna. I’m 33 years old, living in Bali. I am the project manager.

What is Batik art? History of batik? Process?

Indonesia is the home country to batik, it is ancient technology. Balinese people have kept this art from generation to generation.

The batik art involves drawing on a fabric with hot wax. This wax separates the drawing from the dyes that are painted over it. The batik artist then paints over the drawings, removes the wax by heating, then dries and sews the fabric, and prepares it for the shop.

How did you get into Batik painting? What did you do before you started Batik?

I have been painting since my childhood: by pencils, by acrylics on on t-shirts. I was working with my cousin on his fabric work. Then as my family’s homestay business grew, I took care of the homes we rented out. And then 2 years ago, I started to help my cousin with his batik. Now I have my own batik project with Anna.

What inspires you? Where do you draw your inspiration from?

Nature is the main thing which gives me inspiration. And most of my paintings depict nature.

Favorite spot to eat in Bali?

I like to eat at Made’s Warung (my uncle’s warung😊)

Tell me something I probably didn’t know about Bali.

Did you know about the *ceremony of cutting teeth of all 13 years old boys and girls?
We do it for sign that a person is now an adult.

*The mesangih or mepandes, is the ceremony wherein the Balinese smooth away the fang-like qualities of human teeth and, in doing so, smooth away the savage aspects of the soul.

What is your favorite quote?

Akuadalahkamu, kamuadalahaku (I am you, you are I).

So all people are the same and what you do for people, people will do for you.

The main idea is to live in peace and love.

Three words to describe your art?

Amazing, unique, beautiful. 😊

Hard handmade work, with magical colors and unlimited ideas.

Any goals you want to accomplish before the year ends?
How about in the next 5 years?

I want to have regular monthly orders before the year ends.
I hope my batik project will grow more popular and will develop the brand – Wayanna Batik brand!
I want to have my own house in the next 5 years.

Advice you would give to your 10-year old self?

Be honest. Follow your heart always.

Check out more of their work on their Facebook page @ Wayanna Batik

CREATE: DIY Natural Turmeric Dye at Home

Sep 5, 2017 | Create, Sustainable Living

A good friend of mine introduced the craft of tie-dying to me 2 years ago, and since then I’ve only tried it twice. I don’t know why I haven’t been doing it more often, because I loved it.

Yesterday, I felt inspired to DIY a natural dye with things that I had at home. I’m still in the process of collecting onion skins, beets, and avocado pits, so for today, I decided to try dyeing with organic turmeric powder, which I already had at home.

Natural Dye vs. Synthetic Dye

We live in a colorful world, and if you look hard enough you can find every color of the rainbow in nature.
Natural dyes were used as far back as 2600 BC and colors varied by region and resources. Lichens, roses, beets, turmeric, and so much more. Natural dyes are safe and are easy to do!

Today, synthetic dyes make up over 90% of textiles produced for sale. The resulting wastewater is extremely toxic and the environmental impact is hazardous. Not only that, but production of textiles using synthetic dyes is often dangerous for people and can end up in rivers and oceans.

As people are becoming more aware of the effects of synthetic dyes, the craft of creating natural dyes is sparking interest in those looking for more sustainable fashion.

DID YOU KNOW?

The color yellow is the easiest color to create using natural dyes. It is the most common color to be produced from nature. And ironically, though abundant in nature, Green is the hardest color to produce from plants?

DID YOU ALSO KNOW?

Synthetic dye was accidentally invented by a 15-year old English chemist by the name of William Henry Perkin? He was trying to find a synthetic cure for malaria using coal tar, and realized he had created a purple-ish color he called mauveine (today known as mauve).

What You’ll Need:

Turmeric powder
Vinegar
Water
Large bowl
Two large pots (avoid ceramic as it will stain)
Tongs
String
Never dyed fabric (pre-washed)
Recommended: gloves

How I Did It:

Pour 8 cups of water and 2 cups of vinegar into a large pot and boil. Carefully place your fabric inside the pot, making sure to get full coverage. Set to simmer for 1 hour. The vinegar mixed with water will allow the dye to adhere better to the fabric.

In the other pot, boil ½ cup of turmeric powder and 8 cups of water. Stir the turmeric powder once boiled to make sure the turmeric is dissolved. Leave to simmer for 30 minutes.

Use tongs to remove the material from the pot and transfer to a large bowl. Because it was very hot and the soaked material was heavy, I did this outside so I could stand over the pot.

Rinse the material in lukewarm water to get rid of some of the acrid vinegar smell.

Once you’re done with boiling the turmeric, now comes the fun part – the dying!

You can choose to place the entire fabric into the turmeric dye (while still hot) and leave for 5 minutes. For a more vibrant color, leave in for longer. For a more muted color, leave in for only a little bit. I had one large piece of fabric that measured about 40”x30″ and four smaller pieces that measured about 16”x12”. I did a full dye on the large fabric, and for the smaller pieces, I used shibori dying techniques.

Once you get your achieved color, remove the material from the dye, rinse in cold water, and take it outside to dry.

And you’re done!!!

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Check out the color results below!

THE RESULTS

(isn’t it so pretty?!)

What do you think of this gold turmeric color?
And what other colors should I try for?

Bali Travel Diaries: Market visits and batik class

Sep 2, 2017 | Travel

My home in Ubud is alive with nature

It’s nestled away from the busy Ubud center and surrounded by the sounds of birds chirping, crickets playing their songs, trees rustling in the wind, and rain pit-pit-pattering on the rooftop.

I stayed up all night inspired by this place to work on my travel journal, edit photos, and work on my blog.

What paradise

At 6am the roosters were crowing.

At 7am Ian was frying eggs and making smoothies.

By 8am, we’re skinny dipping in our private pool and rinsing off in the outdoor shower.

Market visits

There’s a bit of rain but it doesn’t stop us from walking around our little town towards the Ubud Art Market. I’m determined to not to buy anything, except for a rattan roundie bag.

There are a bunch of shops that have them, but I’m looking for one that fits my DSLR camera with 24mm lens. I walked into a shop with the cutest old man who helps me to find a bag that’s wide enough to fit my bag.

We found one, and I’ve haggled a price that’s reasonable for the both of us. But I completely forgot that the only cash I brought with me was for my batik master class which I was headed to after lunch. I promise him I’ll be back to purchase it.

Lunch at Yoga Bali Cafe

We stop for lunch at this cute cafe hidden away from the busy streets.

Learning Batik

We walked back to Penestenan Street to Wayanna Batik shop.

Anna and Wayan are standing by the door ready for my arrival, and I jump on a scooter with Wayan (the artist) to his uncle’s studio. This is where he creates his batik paintings, along with his cousin who is also a batik artist.

Because this wasn’t a scheduled class, and I requested so last minute, we delved straight into the painting process. I was a bit bummed that we didn’t have time to go into the initial wax drawings, but after 3 hours of painting, I still felt I had the full immersive experience.

We talked stories and Wayan watched while I painted, telling me how I could get a better result by using water to make the colors more muted, and mixing colors for vibrance.

I felt in my element, and 3 hours whizzed by.

By the time I was done, it was nearly evening.

The canvas needed to dry overnight so I had to come back tomorrow to see my final work.

Café Vespa and renting a scooter

I walked over to Café Vespa with a huge coconut in hand (courtesy of Wayan and his family), ordered a latte and waited for Ian to meet up with me.

While I spent my afternoon painting, Ian spent his day hiking the Campuhan Ridge and exploring the town solo.

We walked back home and not that we were complaining about the walk at all, but we really wanted to get a scooter. It was just so much more convenient.

Like serendipity, we got home and our host Wayan Budiana meets us to let us know he has an extra scooter that we can rent.

Vibes at La Pacha Mama

For dinner, we showed up to a very fancy restaurant called Bridges, but it was so fancy that we could not be seated unless we had a reservation—which we didn’t… so we drove up the hill and found an even better spot.

We walked into La Pacha Mama and were stoked to see a live band playing a mix of old school Spanish music and Cuban music. The cocina styled decor was super cute, the waitstaff was amazing, and the food was divine.

I love my days in Bali.

MEET Amélie

Sep 1, 2017 | Meet, Photography

We all wonder and wander in our own little way. Everybody’s got a story to tell. If you want to have a chat, I’d love to MEET you!

Meet Amélie

A curious French girl with a passion for the sea. Amelié lived in American Samoa for the last 5 months, and she shares some of her #islandlife experience, and her favorite parts of living in American Samoa.

Tell me about yourself, where you’re from, what do you do?

I’m Amélie Tagliaferro. I come from Marseille, a city in the south of France. I just turned 22 years old. I’m still in school, studying at an agriculture and environment engineering school. I picked this internship [with the National Park of American Samoa], which was awesome because I wanted to specialize in marine biology. I also want to work in the national park but in France. I love fish, and that’s about it!

How did you find yourself in American Samoa?

I knew about [this internship] through Lydia Begue who was a previous student with my school, and she interned here also. I was looking for marine biology programs in a national park, and asked Tim Clark (the former NPS Marine Ecologist), and he was like “Ok! Come!” and then he left. And I’m still here.

Describe yourself in 3 words

Funny. Respectful. Curious.

Describe your experience in 3 words

Peaceful/Relax/Chill. I’m less stressed than before.

Adventure. I found myself here. I know I want to work in this kind of ambiance, because I was in the ocean all the time! Which I loved.

Amazing. It’s the sum up of all my experiences.

What is your favorite spot in American Samoa?

Tafeu Cove!

The coral and the fish there! It’s a nice beach with a little waterfall. And the coral is just really really cool! They have giant clams, they have fish… And you can only get there with a boat because it’s pretty isolated and remote so that’s all very cool.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years? Long term goals?

I wanna live on an island. In the Pacific Ocean – that’s my first choice.

I don’t know if it will be in 10 years. I may be back in France, but near the ocean or near the sea, but not like a lake. Only in an ocean or sea. And tropical, or at least temperate.

Favorite kind of music?

I like chill music. The Good Vibes playlist on Spotify. Indie music… It’s totally the mood here.

Favorite beach?

So many! Fagatele Marine Sanctuary. Sailele beach. Larson’s Cove.

Favorite place to eat in American Samoa?

I love the Turkey Deluxe from Yahweh Cafe. Maybe I was really hungry… that could explain why. But it was really really good!

What’s your spirit animal?

I love all of them! It’s pretty difficult to find just one. I mean here, with my name, they called me Malie at first… so I could say sharks. But I also love turtles, and octopus, and dolphins, and whales, and moray eels, and clown fish, pipe fish, sting rays! Basically everything.

But I don’t like barracuda! I don’t know, they have a strange angry face. I don’t like those.

Speaking of sharks, how many times have you seen a shark while swimming?

Three times while snorkeling, and two baby sharks like 2 days ago.

Name one thing that you’ve learned from your time in American Samoa

Don’t drink the water!! Haha… Don’t drink the water from the sink! I did it a bunch of times, and it’s really bad. I just keep forgetting like, when I’m showering.

Yeah, it’s really bad. I got sick. It’s not usual because in France you can totally drink [the water]. Like, you’re in the shower and you can drink all the water. You can ask for a glass of water in any restaurant and they just give it to you and it’s free because it’s just from the tap.

What is your life motto?

It’s not a slogan but I think this one is so funny… it goes: I whale always love you.

But my real answer would be:

Enjoy every moment. No regrets! Follow your feelings.

Follow Amelié’s adventures on Instagram: @ameliemelofish

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