I spent the morning at my monthly ASG meeting, where I presented the program for the day on fabric dyeing. I’ve been experimenting with this craft for a number of years now and always find it a rewarding, if not always predictable, art form. Here are a few of the points I made at today’s meeting:
- What I have learned about dyeing fabric is that it is not an exact science – you can use a number of methods and the results are similar. Do not get too hung up on getting everything precise. Instead, experiment, develop your own methods and style and keep good records.
- I buy all of my dyes (and other dyeing supplies) from Dharma Trading Company. They have excellent prices, great service and will provide help when needed. Their catalog and website are full of instructions.
- Koolaid is a fun and safe way to dye wool and silk. knitty has a great tutorial with complete instructions for stovetop or microwave method along with a sample of the different colors of koolaid. Another great chart of colors can be found here. You will know when the dyeing process is finished because all of the color from the koolaid will be taken up by the fiber and the remaining water will be crystal clear.
- I-Dye by Jacquard is a relatively new dye that comes in premeasured, dissolvable packets which you toss into the washing machine. There are two types available: one for natural fibers (cotton, wool, silk, linen, rayon); other for synthetics (poly and nylon). The main thing I learned from experimenting with this dye is not to open the washer while it is running. I now have a shirt spontaneously dyed the same color as the dye I was using.
- When mixing dye powder into liquid form, always add the liquid to the powder and not the powder to the liquid.
- For those concerned with the toxicity of dyes, two new companies have come on the market with dyes produced without toxic mordents. Greener Shades has come out with an acid dye, available in 9 colors, to dye silk, wool and nylon. The colors are set by a soak in a vinegar bath followed by ironing with a hot iron. The other product, ColorHue, is hard to track down. After an extensive internet search (and lots of broken links) I finally found the product at Ginny Eckley’s site, Art Threads. Information about the dyes are also not readily available but the literature claims that this is a highly concentrated cold water dye for use on silk, linen, wool and rayon. They are no-rinse, instant-set dyes, available in ten colors. Nothing else is required except water.
- Fiber reactive dyes are still my favorite. I have had great luck dyeing cotton fabrics and recently have been experimenting with dyeing silks. The silk results are rich and beautiful but can be unexpected and unpredictable; that is OK for the applications I am using them for. Also, I can’t speak to the colorfastness on the silk as I am using them mostly for leaves and other floral bits in some of the handmade flowers I make (hence, no washing).
To celebrate hand dyed fabrics and share a bit of the love I am giving away a set of 12 pieces of hand dyed 100% cotton fabric, 4” x 6” in size (pictured above), just right for small crafting projects, like fabric postcards and artist trading cards or scrapbooking. All 12 of these colors were dyed using only three primary colors. Here is a fantastic site where you can find information on mixing dozens of colors from only a few basic dye powders. Wow.
Leave a comment on this post before Monday morning (February 21st, 6 a.m. EST) and I will select one name as the winner.
Now go get your hands dirty.