Dip-Dyeing for 3D Effects

I was waiting for the weather to get better so I could do this outside, but that didn't happen.  It's still wintry for at least three or four days each week.  And it's cold the other days.  Bleah.  But dyeing always makes me happy, so I commandeered the kitchen for this latest experiment.

The ...Fire Blog technique this month involves making a three-dimensional piece from hand-dyed fabrics.  For Nienke's cool tutorial, click here, here, here,  here, and here.   Nienke's personal blog is here.  

I can't find my marbles, so I used some glass bits that I keep for flower arranging.  I used soda-soaked fabrics and rubber bands to make the first bundle in each piece.  

I mixed up four colors -- lemon yellow, golden yellow, red, and deep purple.  First I dipped the bundles in the lemon yellow; then, after letting them drain for a bit, I dipped them in the golden yellow.  

Nienke suggested wrapping each bundle in plastic after dipping in dye to keep the colors from blending too much and I liked the pieces better that way, so I wrapped mine.

After the initial dipping, the fabric is turned down over the dipped bundle and secured with another rubber band.

I dipped in red after the yellows and wrapped each dip in plastic.  Then I dropped all the bundles in the purple dye.  I let them batch over night, then washed them out as usual for hand-dyes.

I think I should splurge and use two gloves next time.


Next up: cutting and pleating.