As you know from some previous posts, my friends and I did some indigo dyeing while up at my cottage. This photo is an indication of what the back yard looked like. We had plastic drop sheets everywhere so that we could lay out the fabric while it oxidized, before we rinsed it and hung it to dry. We all discovered that we aren't too keen on wearing rubber gloves, so after a while the gloves came off and we all ended up with blue under our nails (among other places LOL).
Indigo is a fun (but smelly) process. I wish I had more photos to show you the process, but I didn't want to risk the safely of my camera while I was working. Once dipped, the fabric is a bright lime green colour and it only begins to turn blue when it is exposed to the air and begins to oxidize. We all wished we could have somehow captured some of the wonderful patterns of blues and greens, but it was short lived.
FYI:
Shibori (絞り染め Shiborizome?) is a Japanese term for several methods of dyeing cloth with a pattern by binding, stitching, folding, twisting, compressing it, or capping. Some of these methods are known in the West as tie-dye. Want to know more...click here.
Here are the fabrics I ended up with, paired with the original photos I had posted of my prep: (captions provide a bit more detail on the prep used)
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| Wax resist using soy wax and a tjanting tool. |
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| Accordion folded fabric clamped with plastic buckles as a resist |
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| Rubber bands used as a resist |
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| Fabric crumpled into a ball and then secured with rubber bands. |
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| Floral glass 'half marbles' secured with thread |
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| Accordion folded fabric secured with clamps |
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| Accordion folded, straight and triangle fold, one clamped with round washers |
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| Accordion folded and secured with rubber bands and string |
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| Stamped with text using Stazon Ink |
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| Hand dyed fabric, soy wax resist using tjanting tool and then over dyed |
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Fabric wrapped around PVC pipe, secured with string and then scrunched together
(Sorry, I forgot to get a photo of the prep.) |
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| Machine stitched then dyed |
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| surface design on cotton velvet, over dyed |
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| Soy wax resist using tjanting tool |
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| Masking tape and soy wax resist using tjanting tool |
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| Soy wax resist using tjanting tool |
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| T-shirt, folded into thirds and secured with rubber bands |
As you know from some previous posts, my friends and I did some indigo dyeing while up at my cottage. This photo is an indication of what the back yard looked like. We had plastic drop sheets everywhere so that we could lay out the fabric while it oxidized, before we rinsed it and hung it to dry. We all discovered that we aren't too keen on wearing rubber gloves, so after a while the gloves came off and we all ended up with blue under our nails (among other places LOL).
Indigo is a fun (but smelly) process. I wish I had more photos to show you the process, but I didn't want to risk the safely of my camera while I was working. Once dipped, the fabric is a bright lime green colour and it only begins to turn blue when it is exposed to the air and begins to oxidize. We all wished we could have somehow captured some of the wonderful patterns of blues and greens, but it was short lived.
Very cool! So many different techniques. What fun!!
ReplyDeleteStay inspired!
It was so much fun Michelle! My finger nails are still a bit blue, but it was worth it!
DeleteAwesome! I am so jealous!
ReplyDeleteThanks Vicki. I can see why you got hooked on hand dyeing. So much fun!
DeleteI would say that is a lot of successful experimenting. It is really interesting seeing how each turned out. Thanks so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks Connie. Some of the results were wonderful surprises!
DeleteWow! It all looks fantastic! Looks like you had a lot of fun with this experiment/technique.
ReplyDeleteThanks Janet. It was wonderful. All five of us ended up with more indigo treasures than we'll probably ever be able to use! LOL
DeleteSuch creativity with the process...thanks for showing how you bundled everything. When I first saw the shot of all the fabric hanging everywhere I laughed...I really missed a great week with you girls. Big Hugs
ReplyDeleteThanks Leah. We'll do it again next year, so plan to join us then!
DeleteLinda, Lovely! I've been wanting to do this again and just ordered a kit from Dharma. Thanks for showing the before and after. Thanks for the inspiration.
ReplyDeleteThanks Lynda. Have fun with it. It's so much fun to see what you get when you finally open up the finished fabric pieces.
DeleteFabulous results, but so much prep work! At least you won't need to do it again anytime soon. :o)
ReplyDeleteThanks Jean. The prep work isn't too bad. It passes the time while listening to TV and sipping wine!
DeleteWonderful Work Linda very inspirating!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Marianne.
DeleteLinda,
ReplyDeleteYou got some nice pieces there. I especially like the accordian fold with the straight and triangle folds. For those of us who would like to experiment ourselves, could you share some of your favorite resources to get us started?
Thanks Kris. I ordered the pre-reduced indigo kit from G & S Dye in Toronto (http://www.gsdye.com/Canada/indigo.html). If you're in the U.S., I'm sure Dharma has something like that too. The G & S website has lots of good information too. As for getting ideas for the prep, I just Googled it, but this post gives you a good starting point. Have fun!
DeleteThank you, Linda.
DeleteYou were very thorough in your documentation. Wonderful results!
ReplyDeleteThanks Bridgit. I may use some of my favourite techniques with procion MX dyes too so that's why I was so careful to track and document what I did.
DeleteLoved all your pieces. I was wondering whether or not you had done a shirt and there it was at toward the end. I know the green is pretty but wow love when it does turn blue. I had so much fun when we did it a couple months ago. We did most of what you did except the wax and the buckle. I really liked how those two pieces came out.
ReplyDeleteThanks Bonnie. It's so much fun you have to stop yourself and remember that you can only use so much indigo fabric in a lifetime. LOL. I did do the two shirts, the tank and the T. They'll looks great with jeans!
Deletethanks for this very informative post. I love how your fabrics turned out!
ReplyDeleteThank you Marsha. It's been great working with them. So much inspiration!
Delete