Ironing out the details
I spent my time this past week trying various experiments involving adding iron to my natural dyes. I didn't always get the results I expected, but there are a number of interesting effects to explore.
These three yarn examples show some of the colors I was able to get. First I dyed yarn using eucalyptus leaves (bottom right), which resulted in a warm tan color. I dipped this in an iron solution, expecting to get a dark brown, but instead it gave me a dark charcoal gray. Not the color I had hoped, but it is certainly striking. Next I tried a dye made from rosemary, since I have a huge bush of it. By itself, the rosemary only gave a weak, vaguely yellowish beige. Adding a small amount of iron turned the yarn a silvery gray (bottom left). Finally, I used a bright yellow oxalis dye and added some iron, which colored the yarn olive green (top).
So far, I have only been dyeing the yarn either by complete immersion or by partial dipping in the color. I would like to try other techniques, such as tie-dyeing or painting with a brush. Those ideas are going to have to wait until I can find a bit more time.
This weekend I happened to have three days off in a row, Friday through Sunday, which fortuitously coincided with KublaCon. I was able to spend all three days attending the convention. I took big stacks of games with me, though I ended up playing more of other people's games than my own. I did have a fun time, and I picked up a few things in the dealer's room.
Spending all that time at the convention meant that I didn't get much done around the house, though. I'm going to have to work on that next weekend.
These three yarn examples show some of the colors I was able to get. First I dyed yarn using eucalyptus leaves (bottom right), which resulted in a warm tan color. I dipped this in an iron solution, expecting to get a dark brown, but instead it gave me a dark charcoal gray. Not the color I had hoped, but it is certainly striking. Next I tried a dye made from rosemary, since I have a huge bush of it. By itself, the rosemary only gave a weak, vaguely yellowish beige. Adding a small amount of iron turned the yarn a silvery gray (bottom left). Finally, I used a bright yellow oxalis dye and added some iron, which colored the yarn olive green (top).
So far, I have only been dyeing the yarn either by complete immersion or by partial dipping in the color. I would like to try other techniques, such as tie-dyeing or painting with a brush. Those ideas are going to have to wait until I can find a bit more time.
This weekend I happened to have three days off in a row, Friday through Sunday, which fortuitously coincided with KublaCon. I was able to spend all three days attending the convention. I took big stacks of games with me, though I ended up playing more of other people's games than my own. I did have a fun time, and I picked up a few things in the dealer's room.
Spending all that time at the convention meant that I didn't get much done around the house, though. I'm going to have to work on that next weekend.