Some Success

 Today had a slightly more positive outcome. 

I had left some silk fabric in a jar, just sitting in the glasshouse. As our weather has been unseasonably cold and wet, the jar has not heated up a lot. But there has been sunshine, so it has had some warmth. 

I took the fabric out today - some colour!!

And there was a little dye bath left. So I have put some of the failed-to-dye fabric in the jar with the plant leftover which still has colour in it. 

I am hoping something will happen but am not being very scientific about it.

The stink lilies were still flowering but today's high winds and heavy rain broke some of the plants so I have taken the stamens out and pulled the flowers off. I will try, yet again, to get some fabric coloured. But this time I won't bother heating it artificially, I'll let the sun do the work - if is shines. 

Disappointing!

 When I reheated the fabric the colour disappeared!! I added some of the leftover dye bath in the hopes of a better result but the colour has disappeared. Now I have some off-white/pale grey/brown silk pieces. 

Ah well. I might be able to use them as threatening skies, perhaps. Or maybe I could overdye them, one day. 

I do still have one small piece of silk in a jar, just sitting there doing some slow sun dyeing. I'm not holding out great hopes. 

Waiting, waiting.

 I went out to the glasshouse this evening. The pot that I let simmer for a while yesterday has some colour in the water and the fabric. Not a lot but some. The plant-stuff has totally lost its colour. I threw that out. 

Then I looked at the pot that was simply soaking one piece of velvet silk - no colour in the water or fabric. So that one is now simmering - with all the fabrics from the other pot as well. The water is actually looking quite dark but I am not assuming that the fabric will take it up. 

The jar looked promising, colour in the water and the fabric appeared coloured. Not so! When I lifted the fabric out, it had taken no colour.

 I will leave it for a while, until we get some warm weather again (28° a few days ago, 13° today, as the high!!). It is not forecast for a few days yet but, seeing the weather has changed so dramatically in the last two weeks, I will not worry about it. It is only a small amount of fabric and I can leave it for months - especially if I forget about it. 

We have some stink lilies in the garden - well named! They are just starting to flower. I have taken the stamen out - it is the stinky part.

It is also known as Dracunculus vulgaris.

Now I am wondering if I will be able to dye some fabric with the flower. I have posted on an Eco Dyeing FaceBook page to ask if anyone has any knowledge about this but no answers so far. 

I have also been looking up old notes I have on mordanting silk and then using plants. Will have a go this weekend - maybe. 

I am trying to reinvigorate my interest in dyeing. Hope it works out. No plans for using the silk, it is just that the flowers are so amazing that I feel I really ought to try. And silk sounds like the easiest fabric to try. 

If I get some reasonable results, I may tear up the silk and weave with it - who knows?? I haven't really looked at what silk I have. It has been years since I have dyed silk, so here's hoping I still have appropriate fabric. 
 

Eco Dyeing when you don't really know what you are doing

I have a couple of friends who went away for what sounds like a fabulous time with India Flint last year. I think it was last year, it may have been this year. Time seems to be losing its meaning. No, I'm pretty sure it was about a year ago.

They came home with some stunning dresses, wraps and pieces of fabric. So we got together and made some dresses - well, I may never wear mine, it just doesn't look dress-shaped. But we cut and sewed and had a lovely time.
They got their act together and dyed theirs and have been wearing them - gorgeous.
I put mine in a plastic bag to protect it from the moths. After quite a few months, I took it to our get-together last week and actually wrapped it up into an eco-dyeing bundle.

I am not altogether sure what was in the bundle. I took some stuff that I had collected years ago for eco-dyeing. I even took some very old (withered) avocado pips, some very desiccated hollyhock flowers from at least a year ago and some dried up eucalyptus leaves.
I bundled it all up and, on the insistence of my friends and with their help, put in some old pieces of iron, then wrapped it around a copper pipe.

Into the water it went and it boiled for an hour or two, while we had a very good lunch, chat and generally pleasant time.

Then I brought it home and put it in the glasshouse, to keep doing whatever is it that is does. One of the ladies had also done a dress and sent us a pic of hers today. So I thought I had better look at mine. Lo and behold, there were mouldy bits! It could be lucky that I actually rinsed it out today.

It is presently drying in the high winds we are having  - gotta love spring.

It is remarkably square! I am still not convinced I will ever wear it but it does look very interesting. There are some purple spots in it, I think they are from the old hollyhock flowers rather than the avocado pits. Those hollyhocks are well worth the effort.

There will no NO pictures of me wearing the dress. But it is lovely fabric. Merino-silk.