| Author |
Stitching & Crafting Room:  Natural dyes - what did I do wrong?  |
|
|
brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
 Posted - Apr 17 2010 : 2:04:33 PM
|
I saw a photo somewhere of a nice pink/burgundy-colored swatch of yarn that said it was dyed with dandelion root and alum as a mordant.
I went to three grocery stores before I found alum (is it out of season?) in the spice aisle.
I spent hours last weekend going around the yard and digging up dandelion roots. I cleaned them and chopped them in my food processor (I had about a half gallon), then mordanted the wool with the alum, then cooked the dandelions and strained the "tea", put the yarn in the tea, heated up the pot, etc. The resulting color was more like a light chocolate brown than a pink.
Anybody know what I did wrong? Do you have to wait until after the dandelions bloom to dig them? Do you have to dry the roots? Use more of them?
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my blog at http://brightmeadowfarms.blogspot.com ,web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
Edited by - brightmeadow on Apr 18 2010 11:26:07 AM |
|
|
Sheep Mom 2
True Blue Farmgirl
1534 Posts
Sheri
Elk
WA
USA
1534 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2010 : 2:28:54 PM
|
According to this source http://www.pioneerthinking.com/naturaldyes.html that's the expected color. So actually you did everything right. Try this source to find a pink.
Blessings, Sheri
"Work is Love made visible" -Kahlil Gibran |
 |
|
|
brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
|
|
Sheep Mom 2
True Blue Farmgirl
1534 Posts
Sheri
Elk
WA
USA
1534 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2010 : 4:39:36 PM
|
I would ask Grace Gerber over on the sheep and goat thread - she is very experienced with natural dyes. I wonder if it is the mordant you used....different mordants will yield different results. You might check out that angle. Sorry I wasn't more help.
Blessings, Sheri
"Work is Love made visible" -Kahlil Gibran |
|
|
|
urban chickie
True Blue Farmgirl
734 Posts
Catherine
Niles
IL
USA
734 Posts |
Posted - Apr 17 2010 : 9:02:31 PM
|
The alum used for mordant is potassium aluminum sulfate, not the alum pant. Even if the chemical is in the plant that goes by that name, I would not expect it to be in high enough content as to get the same result. I am not experienced in this, however, I have done very little dying and am basing this only on things I have read. That might or might not be helpful lol.
Catherine
Farmgirl #1370
City Girl By Birth,
Suburbanite By Location,
Farmgirl at Heart
|
|
|
|
grace gerber
True Blue Farmgirl
2804 Posts
grace
larkspur
colorado
USA
2804 Posts |
Posted - Apr 18 2010 : 3:07:50 PM
|
Hi Brenda - just got into the house and checked with all my books on natural dyeing because I have never had a pink or burgandy color from dandelion root. I wanted to make sure I was not missing something.
According to all my books you will only get light yellows to browns with alum. You will get Khaki with iron and Greenish cream with Chrome. Sometimes colors will appear with natural dyes because the person who was dyeing might have used a pot or equipment that is interacting and changing the color. Also, not always is the plant pure - what I mean by that is if the plant came in contact with chemicals you will get a strange reaction. Also, if the fibers have been in contact with soaps or other agents that where not expelled before morant process that can also effect. Then there is the issue of the Alum too. I would purchase my Alum for a dye shop not a food store - you will get completely different strengths and purities...
I am so sorry you did not get the color you had hoped for but that is part of the dyeing process - it can be magic or a flop. There are many natural sources of Reds and Pinks that would have been a sure bet - I might suggest you go with one of those...
Happy Dyeing and if you have further questions I am here to help.
Grace Gerber
Larkspur Funny Farm and Fiber Art Studio
Where the spirits are high and the fiber is deep
http://www.larkspurfunnyfarm.etsy.com
http://larkspurfunnyfarm.blogspot.com
http://larkspurfunnyfarm.artfire.com
|
|
|
|
Shirley
True Blue Farmgirl
734 Posts
Shirley
Olympia
Wa
USA
734 Posts |
Posted - Apr 19 2010 : 11:10:13 PM
|
I can also say, the water, do you have well water, or other sources. We have a dye day every year at a friends house, we get some of the most interesting colors,and have decided her well water is doing something. I can do the same dying at my house and I have welll water and never get the results we get at her house. Its just so fun to dye at her house ,Love getting all those different colors that you dont exspect. they are always good colors
shirley |
|
|
|
brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
Posted - Apr 21 2010 : 6:34:01 PM
|
Thanks for the suggestions.
Grace, I didn't really have any dyeing books except "Dyeing to knit" and an extremely old spin, weave, dye sourcebook, and an old herb encyclopedia that had a section on dyeing. (It does list red as a color from dandelion root, but no mordant and no special techniques...) I used a stainless steel dyepot, so it shouldn't have been reactive. So I got busy online and ordered "FOUR" books on natural dyeing...
They just came tonight and wouldn't you know it, not one of them lists dandelion root in the index. However, in one, under the section "collecting your own dyestuffs" it says "Generally, the roots must be dug up in late fall when the plant is dying back." Could that be the problem? I am digging the roots in the spring?
Do you collect your own dyestuff? That was part of the appeal of dandelion root - I have a more-than-ample supply and wouldn't have to spend any money (except of course for the alum) LOL I'm not going to admit how much I paid for the books!
Shirley,
That is a thought. We do have well water, it is very hard, but we run a water softener as well as an RO system. I think I used the soft water, not the RO water. So maybe there were salts in the water. I should repeat the experiment with RO water and see if it comes out different. I don't know if I have a way to get to the pure well water or not - I'll have to ask DH.
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my blog at http://brightmeadowfarms.blogspot.com ,web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
Edited by - brightmeadow on Apr 21 2010 6:35:41 PM |
|
|
|
grace gerber
True Blue Farmgirl
2804 Posts
grace
larkspur
colorado
USA
2804 Posts |
Posted - Apr 22 2010 : 07:59:10 AM
|
We wont ask about the dollars spent on books - they are an investment. There are some incredible books out there and then some not so great ones. Would you share what you purchased - I have some that are out of print but I am always willing to share old time recipes.. Roots are usually collected after the plant is slowing it's growth but again you can collect all year round just keep track of when and then the results of your dyeing. The best thing you can do is start your own dye book - that way you know what you have done. I am horrible at doing that but I tell all my students too.
I do collect plant stuff and infact I will be placing some of my natural dyes on my etsy site with a couple of weeks. Also if you get a group together it is great fun to go out and collect - go home and share and then also share what has happened in the dye pots. Just remember dyeing is not always an black and white issues - there are tons of browns in the middle... Happy Dyeing
Grace Gerber
Larkspur Funny Farm and Fiber Art Studio
Where the spirits are high and the fiber is deep
http://www.larkspurfunnyfarm.etsy.com
http://larkspurfunnyfarm.blogspot.com
http://larkspurfunnyfarm.artfire.com
|
|
|
|
Beverley
True Blue Farmgirl
2707 Posts
Beverley
atlanta
Michigan
USA
2707 Posts |
Posted - May 27 2010 : 9:01:31 PM
|
I have a question too. if you use dandilions and want a yellow do you have to take off all the green parts so they will not influence the yellow color?? I would also like to do this too and learn more....
Folks will know how large your soul is by the way you treat a dog....Charles F. Doran
beverley baggett Beverley with an extra E...
http://bevsdoggies.googlepages.com/ |
|
|
| |
Stitching & Crafting Room: Natural dyes - what did I do wrong? |
|
Natural dyes - what did I do wrong?
