There is a lot of wonderful hand dyed fabrics out there and I know what it takes to make it. There are several chemicals and steps, none of which I have the patience for, I need it now. I ran out of sky fabric for my postcards so the easiest way is to make it my way. Now I am warning you, do not do this if you are dying fabric to be used in a quilt or garment as it will most likely bleed, run, fade and who knows what other surprises are in store. But for a postcard, it's no problem.
I start by filling a large jar with hot water and some Rit dye, the stuff you find in the supermarket. How much dye? I can't answer that as I just put in enough to make the water colored yet not see thru. Then I add a piece of white muslin. Let it sit for an hour or two or a day or whenever it suits your conveniene, remember there are no rules.
I dump the whole thing in the washing machine with hot water wash, a cold rinse, no soap and voila.
I love the mottled look as it is going to be used for sky (and maybe water) but I think its a bit too dark. So I tied it into loose knots, throw it back in the washer with hot water and about a quarter cup of bleach.
If you are not happy with the color, you can always dye it again, but I got just what I wanted, mottled pale blue.
3 comments:
Very cool. Your final fabric does look like a cloudy sky. Very nice.
Awesome!
I´ve been thinking on dying since a long time before. I have even bought all the necessary stuff!Now that I have seen some advises and the final beautiful results, I will try!
Have you ever tried the batic technique?
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