Its been awhile since I had something new to show my readers. My small A4 challenge group’s theme was Monochromatic. It is never as easy to do as it sounds! I chose to use a piece I stitched from rust dyed fabrics.
I know, I used blue thread for my hand stitching so it technically isn’t monochromatic but I plead artistic license!
Ron expressed an interest in learning some bundling and dyeing techniques. I’m a novice and everything is experimenting so I have no objection to him coming along for the ride. I asked this morning what he was going to do with the fabric he dyes and he said he didn’t know what I was going to do with it, he is just going to dye it!
I thought you would like to see his first dyeing experiments. After he bundled some rose petals and rose leaves in silk and linen he rolled them up and tied them. The long skinny one he did when I was out of the room and he didn’t add any vegetation before he rolled it around a rusty spike. They were cooked in a vinegar and yellow onion skin bath. Some pretty good results! Oh yes, he left the bundles to sit for 3 whole days before unrolling them. The man has infinite patience that I don’t have.
Since the walnut dye pot was still on the stove I pulled a couple of previously dyed fabrics from my stash to see what happened with an over dye. The blue is from an indigo vat, the print was dyed with MX dyes and the one piece is rust dyed.
I also put a piece of hot pink cotton, some cheese cloth and a piece of white cotton batting in the pot. I put them all in at the same time which was a leap of faith but probably not something I should have done. I’m not a dyer, I only play once in awhile if the occasion arises.
I think either the indigo or the rust piece still had residue from the original dye. Which ever one it was, and I suspect the indigo, saddened the dye. So instead of a nice soft brown in the white areas, I got a soft gray. You can see it in the last photos.
I think I like the rusted piece the most but there are no ugly fabrics. They all have a place in a piece that isn’t created yet.
Janice Paine Dawes, Artist 