Wednesday, November 30, 2016

red rose and madder

 red rose tea bags and madder
I cooked frozen used tea bags with soy beans and water, drained that off and then added linen cloth (right) and silk-rayon velvet.  I added madder extract then and the fabrics turned a pink-tan colour.  I brought them to a simmer,  (not boiling) for at least an hour and then steeped them over night.
In the same potion the next day, I added alum powder from the grocery store plus madder powder from Maiwa and dyed some wool, silk and silk-rayon velvet cloths.  On the line, velvet on the left, and then wool, wool, and finally silk.  (a little pinker)
On the third day, I added a procion mx conectrate of chinese red to the mixture and dyed 4 more pieces of cloth a true red .  From the top, silk hemp, wool, wool, velvet.  Truly a gorgeous red  - the method used was with heat as for natural dye.  Bring the liquid with cloth immersed to a simmer and then steep overnight.
Also, I am still adding red edges to hankies embroidered with circles.

A cardinal came to our feeder and stayed calm while several chickadees flitted in and out and around him.   I admired his redness and stead fastness.

12 comments:

Penny Berens said...

Oh, my goodness....that red is glorious! I think we have talked about this before....I am inching toward bright red....tiny bits of brightness amidst the greys, blacks and browns! Have to get the madder out too! XO

Tina said...

GREAT color and cloth!

Nifty Quilts said...

Gorgeous colors here!

Margaret said...

O wow!

Mo Crow said...

getting a true red is elusive, it burns out easily in glass making if it is overheated or held it temperature for too long, have you read Victoria Finlay's wonderful book Colour: Travels through the Paintbox?

Caterina Giglio said...

absolutely amazing...

Velma Bolyard said...

REDS!!! elusive and lovely and so necessary.

apiecefullife said...

I love red!

jeanne hewell-chambers said...

Such a glorious red. All that cooking and heaving and waiting really paid off. In my journal and on my calendar, I use red ink for family.

Louise said...

These look so wonderful!

Occidental Tourist said...

Loved hearing about the details of your process.

Mystic Quilter said...

Just such beautiful coloured pieces of cloth!!