Saturday, November 12, 2011

Fun with pancake dyeing!

I did these pieces a few weeks ago just for fun. Wound up using some of it in my current rug. Here is the formula (all ProChem, except the aqua):

Cup #1:  1/2 Aqua (Cushing)
Cup #2:   1/8 399 + 1/32 370
Cup #3   1/4 813
Cup #4:   1/2 124 + 1/32 106

I have a large rectangular pan that takes an eighth yard piece of wool, so I cut up several pieces using pinks, pink plaids, yellow, natural, goldenrod, light blue, and soaked them in synthrapol. I added a bit of water to the pan—not much as I knew I'd be added approximately four cups of dye. You can always add more water as needed after applying the dye.

I put each piece in one at a time, adding the dyes consecutively across the width of the wool. Each color took up approximately 1/4 of the wool. I used this method each time I added a new piece of wool. I wound up adding six layers, and repeated the process in another pan I had. By the time, I finished the dye was used up. I did add additional water, but not enough to cause the dyes to blend too much. After ten minutes or so I added vinegar to each pan. Simmered the wool for around 40 minutes. Here are the results:


I think if I did this formula again, I'd rethink the aqua. It was overpowered by the other colors, so didn't make a huge impact.

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