Skip to main content

Dying with rust



Early this summer I found a method to 'dye' with rust. Essentially I soaked the yarn in a strong vinegar and water solution (50/50?), then wrapped the yarn around something rusty, I used the blade of our old mattock. Then I sealed it with glad wrap and left it outside for nearly a week. It was in the sun most afternoons but it also rained.

The fibre was a soft Tasmanian merino but now it feels a lot harder - evena a little brittle. When iron is used as a mordant they say this can happen, so I'm not really surprised. The colour is quite soft and pleasant, but it doesn't have that saturated dyed look, rather more like it is adherring to the surface of the fibre.
Posted by Picasa
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Timetabled

6:00am Turned the heel and began work on the gusset 9:00am Sorting, sorting, sorting .... 10.30am Took a break to do some spinning and take the photos 4:30pm Can you see the difference?
Post a Comment
Read more

Spinning randomly

Randomly spinning small quantities of tops then Navaho plying them to maintain the colour separations has created a beret with circles. The pattern by Diane Mulholland is freely available on Ravelry and can be used with all types of yarns because it is based on a swatch. It was knitted in the round starting at the brim and working inwards. Approx 12 wpi.
Post a Comment
Read more

Great Beanie Picnic

This lovely soft yarn from a EGMTK batt was sold at the Great Beanie Picnic held on 20th February for the exhibition of the Alice Springs Beanie Festival Travelling Show . The lady who bought it has at least one beanie in the show - she wasn't sure if she would use it for Art Beanie or for herself. either way it has gone to a good home. Most people seemed to be poking around looking for a bargain, and as any spinner knows fine blends don't come cheap! Still we had a good afternoon and I was able to demonstrate/teach a few younger people to drop spindle and showed them how to make a CD spindle of their very own. 
Post a Comment
Read more