Dyeing with Cherry Bark and Soda Ash
Cherry tree twig - I used this nifty carving tool to scrape off the bark.
I let the cherry bark soak in water for 3 days. Please note the interesting yellowish-with-a-slight-pink-tinge coloring.
This is the color the dye turned when I added soda ash to the dye bath. MUCH darker! I used a hunk of white wool, pre-mordanted with alum.I read that animal fibres (like, say wool for example) take up the dye better in a cold water dye bath so the whole process was done cold. I soaked the wool in the cherry bark/soda ash dye bath for 3 days as well.
And here is the final result! I have decided to call it "White Kitty Hairball" as it nicely approximates both the color and the texture of one of my pretty white long haired kitty's horked up hairballs.
This was a happy little 6 day project:)