Dyeing for Texture
These dirty greens were dyed on my new fave fabric, Economy Muslin, not a very glamorous name for this lovely fabric. It is bleached, and mercerized which is really important because it dyes so much better, crisper and deeper. I dyed these pieces using the scrunchy method and I am thrilled at the textured results.
This is a close-up of the weave and the next one is just a full on shot.
What I like about this stuff besides the price is that it is soft, has a very narrow selvedge, irons beautifully and is so white to start. Everything I need to produce yummy results.
The shrinkage is minimal, I lost about a half inch off the half yard I dyed. Which turns out to the exact width of Wonder-Under and these will become fused fabrics, doncha know. The selvedge to selvedge width is 42.75" which is typical. Not quite 44" but still great.
To get these dirty greens I used yellows, #1, #2, and #3 plus a small amount of black in the mix. For more on dyeing using black see this blogpost.
So I am set. I have the dyes, and the fabric and now it is getting to be nice outside. In the 70's today.
I had an 8am dentist appt. yesterday and now my teeth are sparkly pearls, got my hair cut, bought a bunch of new plants and potted them up (to replant when the soil warms up in April) and got a new pair of blue jeans. The daffodils are opening and I spoke to the goldfish yesterday.
I hope they take the hint and reproduce.
Aah... now you're into my fave kind of dyeing! I do mostly clothing that way, but also fabric. I could spend all day every day just dyeing stuff!
ReplyDeleteIt's a dirty little job, but ....yada, yada...
Judy
That last piece, bottom right, is sooo beautiful. You should try to dye more and get more of the blue in little areas like those. A really stunning piece.
ReplyDeleteLovely, not colors I would have thought you'd choose but it will be very fun to see how you use it!
ReplyDeleteLovely, not colors I would have thought you'd choose but it will be very fun to see how you use it!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE those greens (my favorite color) and the effects are very dramatic! Whatever you decide to do with these will be wonderful. Can't wait to see how your creativity shines with these.
ReplyDeleteColleen
It's funny how I wrote you just the other day and said I wouldn't be dyeing in awhiel as I needed no more colors. As soon as I hit the 'post comment' button colors started running through my head that I needed. Last night on another infamous insomnia night I sat down and made a list of 5 colors that I have really been missing. Now as I said before I really havent dyed much, so this will be a new adventure for me...how to come up with the colors I want. It is a fun adenture though, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteThe wooded land is influencing you perhaps. The colors are great...and I'm all about the budget muslin.
ReplyDelete