Lots of projects going on in the basement these days. Check out what Eleanor’s been working on.
This morning I’ve been working on my dye project. I started with 5 Cushing colors. Mixed up small batches- powdered dye, add boiling water, splash of vinegar. Let cool for 5 minutes or so. Add wetted and slightly soapy samples. I tried 3 samples in each jar- 2 furs and some wool yarn. I let them sit in the jars for about 45 minutes. Rinse in cool water. This is what I’ve got-

They are still wet, but this is my observation so far. The yarn all came out beautifully. The furs… well, not so great. The pearl lamb was the worst. It is a very washed out, greyish version of any of the colors. Actually, looking closer, I can see that none of the furs dyed well close to the skin. The longer the hair, the better they look because more of the hair picked up the color. I would have to say that this first batch was not a success.
The other question is how they will dry- will the back (leather part) get wrinkled or hard. I’ll report on that later, but I might not know for several days.