Everybody’s Talking

Many years ago - back when you could still purchase good cotton for $2.99 a yard - I found myself extremely frustrated with the colors offered. You know what I mean: I didn’t want blue - I wanted sapphire blue, and I wanted a mix of emerald green / royal purple with speckles of burgundy swirled throughout. Of course I wasn’t going to find what I wanted, so I decided “I’ll make my own.”

The fact that I had no idea what I was doing made it a perfect Annie project. I got a catalogue from Dharma Trading and poured over the pages of dyes.

At the time I had three dogs and two cats - along with a ton of allergies - so non-toxic dyes were a must. This meant eliminating everything that to had be mixed. I also didn’t want the hassle of steam-setting the dyed fabric (I’m lazy).

My only rule was that different brands had to work together; one company might have a better green while another a terrific maroon – they had to play nicely. Yes I could and do mix my own colors, but I still like a nice variety to start from.

My dyes of choice might not be yours - personal preferences. At the time I was completely hooked on Deka Silk. I could dye everything from 100% silk to 100% polyester beautifully. I even taught some classes using these dyes.

A few years ago the company stopped importing to the U.S. Yeah that was my screaming you heard. So I’m still experimenting with different dyes; my current favorite is Marabu-silk (which I just discovered is not in the newest catalogue). Sigh.

Here’s some basic guidelines for dyeing your fabric masterpiece:

1. If you want your dyes to hold always pre-wash your fabric - get rid of that finish
2. Very wet fabric means paler colors and not many individual color differences
3. Damp fabric allows good blending and separate colors, and the option of using salt or other mediums for various effects
4. Dry fabric means your colors will grab almost instantly and not run or mix together much
5. Your fabric has to be completely dry before heat setting
6. Dog prints and cat-tail swooshes make very interesting designs on fabric (and you thought only leaves worked!)

The amount of fabric I’m dyeing, yardage or smaller pieces, determines whether I use a suspended frame or flat board.

I work outside using a couple of sawhorses, 4 - 1″ x 2″ boards and C-clamps to hold the boards in a rectangular door shape. This ‘door’ rests on the sawhorses. My damp fabric is attached to the wooden frame using rust-proof thumbtacks; you can also buy the real silk suspension clips, tacks or hooks.

I suggest you grab whoever’s around to help get the larger pieces of fabric into place. Having the wet fabric draped over your shoulder as you’re trying to secure it into place feels like you’re wrestling an octopus – and the octopus is winning.

Be sure to have your dyes already set up so can start applying them as soon as the fabric is attached. This method allows a larger piece of fabric to be dyed at one time, but you cannot physically manipulate that piece for wrinkled effects.

When working on boards I use nice large pieces of foam board and cover both sides with Contact Paper. This protects the boards and allows you to use both sides. I’m not only lazy, I’m cheap. Working on the boards allow me to ‘wrinkle’ and scrunch my fabrics.

Here’s what I do:

1. Put my damp fabric on the board and scrunch it up (you have to work at this a bit)
2. Apply a color: splattering, brushing, dotting, flinging, drawing, spraying – however you want to get those colors on your fabric
3. Apply more colors next to or overlapping the previous colors
4. Re-scrunch the fabric a different way
5. Maybe add different salts to ‘pull’ the dyes

For a really wonderful effect that works best on cottons, get some wintergreen isopropyl alcohol – that’s the green stuff. Make sure you have a good variation of light and dark colored dyes on your fabric, scrunch it, and don’t use any salt.

Put it into a spray bottle and only work in a well-ventilated room; do as I say, not as I did. Now spray your fabric with the alcohol – don’t be afraid, spray it! If you watch closely, you can see the dyes moving from the alcohol. After your fabric is dry it looks like sueded cotton: soft, muted, and gorgeous.

To set those dyes gently fold or roll your fabric up into a package that will fit in your oven. If you’re dyeing polyesters, be careful to avoid hard fold lines for this process. Preheat your oven to 200°-250° depending on your fabric; silk batiste 200°, heavy cottons 250°.

Take a piece of foil double your fabric package size and wrap around it. Seal all edges completely as you don’t want to burn your fabric. Bake this package for between 30 and 60 minutes, again depending on the fabric type and size.

When done cooking remove the package and carefully open - It’s Hot and It’s Steaming. Let your fabric cool completely then gently wash and dry it. As long as you heat set correctly you shouldn’t experience any color loss.

Since we’ve barely touched on all the wonderful ways to dye and play with your fabric let me leave you with these thoughts:

Now, go play…

PS If you want to learn more, we have an eBook on Fabric Dyeing and here are some of our fabric dyeing favorites from Amazon.

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A journey to the artists, origins, and techniques of American craft.

“Beginning May 30, 2007, millions of Americans will discover the importance that craftsmanship has played in the founding and future of our country with the premiere of CRAFT IN AMERICA: Memory, Landscape, Community, a three-part high-definition series on PBS.”

Episode 1 - Memory
The first in the CRAFT IN AMERICA series, Memory takes a personal tour through craft’s history in America beginning with the pioneers of the field. This episode juxtaposes the intimate stories of some of our country’s most prominent craft artists against the larger historical context of craft itself.

Episode 2 - Landscape
The second episode focuses on the relationship between the artists and their physical environment. Craft artists depend on their natural environment for both materials and inspiration. This hour looks at the processes through which natural materials become finished works of craft, and what deeper messages may be contained therein.

Episode 3 - Community
Throughout time, craft work has been a community activity. This hour focuses on the spiritual connection artists have to their communities through craft making. Some express the ideas, beliefs and desires of their community through their craft objects. Some pay homage to the community by continuing craft traditions that are in danger of being lost. Others perform their craft as a community project. The personal stories of gifted artists and passionate newcomers alike reveal the deeply held belief that craft is about more than just the making of an object – it is also about a way of life, a reason for being.

Click here for the Craft in America PBS site.

Click here for the TV schedule.

There are more than 100 artists featured on the Craft in America Web site - this is simply wonderful! Be sure to explore the site, then do watch the show… we are all artists.

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