Continued from part 1, making the dyebath
Day 4: Dyeing the fiber
- Dye day!
- Soak 8 ounces of mordanted fiber in water for about an hour or so
- Strain the flowers out of the dyepot
- Add wet fiber
- Heat to simmering
- Let simmer one hour
- Cool overnight
Day 6
I didn't mess with it until the following Monday. Long soaks for best color
are recommended for Rudbeckia anyway.
- Hold breath
- Remove the fibers from the pot
- Behold the results
Not what I was hoping for. Not even terribly interesting for a dye experiment. Some sheep breeds have
similar colors naturally. The hoped for color with black-eyed susans is olive green, and tan is pretty much a "fail" color. Here is a comparison of results from Buchanan's A Dyer's Garden and Dean's Wild Color, along with mine.
So what happened? A common explanation is a weak dyebath, except mine was twice the weight of flowers to fiber. Another explanation is not enough time simmering and soaking. Considering how many days I gave this, I'm not sure that's it either.
- Was it from the mishap making the dyebath?
- Using late season flowers? I picked the second flush of flowers, did that make a difference?
- The variety of flower?
- Growing conditions?
- Not enough rain?
- My soil?
- My water?
But because the results weren't terribly impressive to me, I decided not to
see what an exhaust bath would give me. Instead, I decided to try an afterbath of copper solution. Our soil is copper deficient, so I keep copper sulfate powder to add to my mineral supplement for my goats. It's also sold as a soil amendment for copper deficient soils.
- Mix 1/4 amount of copper in hot water
- Standard amount for 1/2 pound fiber is 1 tablespoon copper
- 1/4 amount is therefore 3/4 tsp copper
- Stir copper solution into dyebath
- Return damp fiber to dyebath
- Simmer for 15 to 30 minutes or until the color changes
- Let cool overnight
Day 7
- Remove fiber
- Wash with a little dishwashing liquid and rinse until water is clear.
- Let dry
Here is a side-by-side comparison of my two experiments.
 |
| Left: original experiment, mordant only. Right: Same fiber with copper afterbath. |
I was thinking the copper might make the fiber greener, but it just seemed to make it darker.
Another afterdip could be an iron solution, which I didn't try. It can be made with rusty nails and vinegar, or with ferrous sulfate purchased from the gardening department (as an amendment for iron poor soils). I have neither of these and was done experimenting with black-eyed susans anyway. Both copper and iron can be used as mordants too, for different color results. And that raises a question.
Will I try dyeing with black-eyed susans again?
I'm ready to move on at this point, but perhaps next summer, when the flowers can be harvested earlier in the season. The plant (without the flowers) is said to yield a different color. Do I want to experiment more? It was a lengthy project, so I honestly don't know. Is there another way to get green? Of course there is, so it's a matter of whether I'm determined to see if I can do it, or is it worth it? Right now, no. In the future, who knows?
4 comments:
I need to mention disposal of the copper solution. Since I have copper deficient soil, I dilute the copper afterbath and toss it out onto the pasture. I doubt I'll ever do enough dyeing with copper to make up the deficiency, but every little bit helps.
How interesting Leigh! If it makes you feel better, my second cheese outing here was not a complete failure but almost. Lesson learned: cheesemaking including draining the whey is a weekend only activity.
TB, that's how we learn! I don't mind telling you that it took me three or four years to finally get an edible hard cheese. I was really slow with that one. :)
Hi, Leigh! I haven't been here on your fiber journal in so long, I'm wondering if I ever was here?? Fascinating to see your dyeing. I've also been experimenting with natural dyes in the past year or so, and have lots of raw fleece in bags in my studio. I mostly discuss these adventures on my youtube channel. I've had the most success with lichen -- wonderful deep oranges. Lots of fun, isn't it?!
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