On Thursday I decided to use up the last of my PFD yardage and do a few dyeing technique experiments. I also had some red, yellow, and blue dye solutions left over from last week’s dyeing, so I decided just to use that rather than mixing new colors.
The first technique involved folding the pre-soaked fabric accordion style, folding the long ends into the middle, and finally folding the piece in half to make a little package. I diluted the dye solutions by half and put them in three bowls.
Next I dipped one long side in the red dye, then the other side in the blue dye. Finally I dipped the two short ends in the yellow dye. The whole thing was put folded into a plastic bag to cure.
The second technique was quite simple. I poured what was left of the diluted blue dye solution into a cup, scrunched in half of the next piece of fabric, poured in the remaining diluted red dye solution and scrunched in the rest of the piece of fabric. I REALLY like the way this one turned out. It reminds me infra-red satellite photos.
The third technique required four different strength solutions of blue. I laid the fabric flat on some plastic wrap and painted the solution on in bands from dark to light using foam brushes. I then added some salt and covered the flat fabric with more plastic wrap.
The fourth was similar to the third, only this time I also used four varying dilutions of red dye solution. Again starting with darkest and moving to lightest I painted bands of color. I also added salt to this piece and covered it with plastic wrap.
I would like to try this method again with two colors, but instead of striping start at the edges with the more concentrated solutions moving to the center with the least concentrated, blending red and blue only in the center.
Because of space limitations, I had to place this piece on top of the third piece and a little of the red dye found its way onto the blue piece, thus the red/purple splotches on that piece. I could have said I planned it that way, but with dyeing, even planning does always turn out as you expected.
The salt didn’t seem to do anything as it would with paint, but it could be because the dyes were diluted. The slightly scrunched plastic wrap did leave some variation, though, as you can see by comparing how different the back of the red and blue piece looks. The blue one turned out that way as well, but the difference is not as pronounced.
This is the last dyeing I’ll get to do before our move to Virginia. Once there I’ll order more fabric and start working with some of the other primary color sets I have, and start to do more experimentation. It will probably be at least August before I’ll be set up to do any dyeing, though.
I did work my way through almost all of Dyeing to Quilt over the past several months. There are just a couple of techniques that require some simple equipment that I don’t yet have. I’ll play with those after the move.
