[Regia-NA] Dyeing (was Re: mustard plants)

[Linda Rice]

Carolyn, that's lovely! Can you tell us where you are getting your silk
cord and threads from? Do they do mail order?
Is this the same silk you dyed for Herveus to make Margret's rabbit
bands with? I *really* liked that!

Thanks bunches,

::Linda::

-----Original Message-----
From: list-regia-na-admin@lig.net [mailto:list-regia-na-admin@lig.net]
On Behalf Of Carolyn Priest-Dorman
Sent: Wednesday, June 11, 2003 8:07 AM
To: list-regia-na@lig.net
Subject: [Regia-NA] Dyeing (was Re: mustard plants)

Vara wrote:

>With silk...do you add acid? when I was spinning and dyeing silk caps I
>remember alsways having to add an acid to get it to dye properly.

Hmmm.  I use commercial yarns for silkwork.  The last couple years I've=20
been working with two basic silk yarns:  a Chinese reeled silk that's=20
almost cordlike (it would make lovely fringe and tassels!) and a fine=20
Japanese degummed organzine for tablet weaving.  I have never tried
adding=20
acid, though.

Here's something I just finished for a friend.

http://www.cs.vassar.edu/~capriest/image/mirabels-hlad.jpg

It's madder and weld, the first big project I've finished with the=20
organizine.  The colors are fairly accurate to the original, unlike many

digital photos:  they even show where the madder got streaky because I
was=20
too faint-hearted to stir the tangly skein as much as I ought.  But
overall=20
I was so pleased with how it worked up that I went out and bought a half

pound more of the stuff--lots of tablet weaving in its future!  So far
it's=20
given me good yellows, oranges, reds, blues, and greens, although I
haven't=20
tried it with the bugs yet.

The Chinese takes the dye less well altogether, though, even though I=20
extensively degummed it just in case.  After a great deal of trouble I
got=20
one decent shade of medium woad blue, but all the other colors were
pretty=20
bland, even the weld which has otherwise *never* failed to be vivid on=20
silk.  *sigh*  Maybe I should have left it white....


Carolyn Priest-Dorman              =DE=F3ra Sharptooth
  http://www.cs.vassar.edu/~capriest/thora.html




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