Friday, May 15, 2009

Dyeing Questions

I don't have any pictures of my threads yet, but hopefully will be ready next time I post.

For those of you who haven't dyed before, the salt acts as a reactant with the dye to force the dye into the fabric or fiber. There are other more expensive products out there, but my friend who does this a lot uses salt.

Soda ash is commonly used to set the dye, but my friend said I could use baking soda. I always have that around and it is very cheap! I used it on my threads yesterday and I will find out if it worked. If not, I will add vinegar to the bags and set my dyes that way. It should work.

My local library has a big meeting room that several of us gather in and do art. We are making floor cloths with canvas this month along with dyeing fabrics and threads. Th local quilters also meet there monthly.

I had lots of extra dye from my experiment even with a friend using some to dye background for a wall hanging she is making. So I ran out and bought some t-shirts for the kids and we are dying those. I spent $11 at the quilt show for the dyes and instructions. Well worth the money!

1 comment:

Cyn said...

Hi Beth,

Okay, we'll wait for pictures.

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Do you have pictures yet? LOL!!!

Cynthia
Windy Meadow