Comments on: Dyeing for the weekend

By: hanne

hanne — Mon, 28 Mar 2005 16:56:28 +0000

I,m dyeing wool in the microwave-owen, and for larger portions, in my baking owen . As long your not using pots and pans for cooking later, then it is ok, just remember to leave your windows open, it stinks!!:O))I use some old heatresistant porcelain/ glas pots. ( if you know someone who’s having some dead washingmashines, get the glas from the front part of it, it is exelent for dyeing.) For dying I am using lanasyn or remazol coulors, and I have only bought three or four different colors, and then I mix them, it’s the fun part…. Go ahead It’s SO much fun!!!!!!!!

By: Ari

Ari — Sun, 27 Mar 2005 20:43:35 +0000

I played with natural dyes about 20 years ago. I used a coleman stove in the backyard and an enameled canning pot to cook my dyes. If you use enamel, it's very important that you inspect your pot for chips or cracks every time you prepare to dye. This works well if you 1. are dying larger quantities 2. will be able to watch that pot carefully at all times.

A crockpot is a very good way to control the temperature of your dyebath, keeping it from actually boiling which can damage your wool, without having to babysit it at all times. To help reduce cleanup, line your crockpot with one of those Reynold's Oven Cooking Bags. We use these all the time for stews, they will work just as well for dyebaths.

Enjoy your adventures in dyeworks!

By: rachel

rachel — Fri, 25 Mar 2005 22:10:42 +0000

i just dove into the dyeing world too… head first. initially i bought a few different shades of blue from Jacquard’s Acid Dye line, but my first results were so beautiful that i ordered almost all the other colors.

i use an old enameled turkey roaster on my stovetop. it’s oval, so the water doesn’t heat evenly, but i think that’s what causes so many shades to show up from so few colors.

i like the big shallow roaster because i can see a lot more of the fiber or roving and can control colors better that way.

i also want to say that i LOVE my Jacquard Acid Dyes. i’ve never used any of the others, so i can’t compare really… but the process is so easy. a little vinegar, a little heat, a little dye, et voila. i don’t even measure anything!

By: Andrea Corey

Andrea Corey — Fri, 25 Mar 2005 21:00:21 +0000

Hey ladies! Microwave dyeing is TOTALLY the way to go! Here’s the process I use in case anyone is interested. I wet my yarn for a while to make sure it’s really thoroughly wet, then I pull it out of the water and drop it on a metal pan caters use. I then use bottles to apply the dye (whilst wearing gloves) and pat the dye down and into the yarn with my other hand. I then put the yarn, dripping and whatnot, into a glass bowl, cover it when thick cellophane stuff (I live in the USA and get mine in bulk from costco) and microwave for 15 min, making certain the glass mixing bowl is covered. I periodically look at the yarn if I remember to to make sure it’s not on fire (this hasn’t happened yet!) Then I let the yarn sit and steam outside the microwave, covered, in the bowl until approx room temp - or warm but not hot. That allows the dye to totally exhaust, etc. Use white vinegar as a mordant and cha-ching, YOU will be the maker of some really great stuff. I own a business doing this stuff - http://www.craftyinagoodway.com - though my yarn e-commerce side of my site is not up yet. Anyway, acid dyes are economical, and the ones Dharma sells, Jacquard, have proven to be pretty great. ALSO, there’s this dye removing hand washing scrub stuff called Reduran that you’ll probably want to have on hand. http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/1980-AA.shtml

Like our good friend Stinkerbell, I use acid dyes from Dharma Trading Co. I am working on figuring out what natural dyes do in my water. A great source for natural dyes is thedyeworks.com. They have a WHOLE educational SECTION with lots of info in it. And here’s the thing. The original owners of The Dyeworks, whom I met two weekends ago in Missouri, have tested this stuff, it’s not toxic, the mordants are safe, etc.

Also, there’s a great book called The Ashford Book of Dyeing. It’s GREAT but she says all sorts of stuff about microwaving that I’ve tested and not found to be accurate…

Hope this helps. I really love dyeing, so I tend to blather on about it!

By: Tiffany

Tiffany — Thu, 24 Mar 2005 21:10:54 +0000

PS - I got a cheap microwave at a yard sale for dyeing. You can even buy a new one pretty cheap these days. I have found that the colours come out more vibrant with microwave dyeing or steaming than in the crockpot. I just plug my microwave out on the deck and try to keep everthing out of the kitchen.

By: Tiffany

Tiffany — Thu, 24 Mar 2005 21:07:06 +0000

I took spinning classes at BB

I use the Maiwa dyes from Granville Island at the Net Loft. They have wonderful vibrant colours for about $5/30g can.

By: Heidi

Heidi — Thu, 24 Mar 2005 20:39:39 +0000

I agree with Adrian–crockpots are the way to go (or stainless steel) and Jacquard Dyes. You’ll be able to fit almost two pounds of wet roving into an 8qt crockpot. And if you’re new to dyeing, I wouldn’t bother to go with the really expensive stuff. But do invest in a mask–I don’t follow all the safety rules when dyeing things in my kitchen, but I definitely use a mask when measuring out powdered dyes and mordants, especially the fiber-reactive dyes. And for what it’s worth, Oxiclean is really good for clean-up.

By: Adrian

Adrian — Thu, 24 Mar 2005 13:15:35 +0000

Thrift stores always have Crockpots. I have an army of them because my local Goodwill charges $5 each.

I’ve never heard of Ciba, but I have heard of Lanaset and what I’ve heard has always been good. I use Jacquard Acid Dyes and get them at http://www.dharmatrading.com. The colors kick ass. I mix colors from two sets of primaries (cool and warm) and black. I buy premixed brown, though.

Wear a dust mask and gloves and put wet newspaper down when you’re mixing the dyes to catch the powder.

Have fun!

By: stinkerbell

stinkerbell — Thu, 24 Mar 2005 11:50:55 +0000

I dont know but I do happen to think Claudia (claudiasblog.net) is one hell of a dye person she might have some tips and pointers. Plus she is as smart ass as me and that I appreciate

By: Kitty Kitty

Kitty Kitty — Thu, 24 Mar 2005 06:38:05 +0000

Piggia brought up a really funny story. Well funny now, but not at the time it happened. In 2D surface design class during finals week we were all working in the lab trying to get our projects done. It was 3am and one of my classmates picked up just a cheap what they thought was metal pots. The acid that was in the dye ate through the pot and we had flowing stream of boiling dye all across the worktables. We all ended up with a red marble effect to our designs that exam, but no one ever told the teacher how it happened since the classmate would have flunked. So know your metals for sure. That class also caused me to have to dye my hair auburn since it fell over into a bucket of cold dye during the other final exam.