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Post by teriann on Dec 22, 2011 23:50:05 GMT
It took a bit of collecting to get enough flowers for this experiment. Our property is very dry and sandy and most of the plants only have a few flowers open each day. It took a couple of hrs to collect a quart zip lock bag full. But the rest of the experiment is a lot of fun. You just simmer the flowers then alternate alum mordanted wool with plain wool to get four different colors. I expected color 2 to be more mauve. It's a bit more "pink" than it looks in this picture but it isn't mauve.
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Post by MTRuth on Dec 22, 2011 23:58:03 GMT
It's always amazing to me what color you get from natural dyeing. Why a yellow flower gives you pink is hard for me to understand. I love seeing all your experiments though.
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Post by teriann on Dec 23, 2011 0:26:10 GMT
I got a kick out of this one in particular because, if you just boil up the plant and pitch in untreated wool you just get a coppery brown. It's a nice color but you miss all of the drama. But, if you just use the flowers and if you use alum mordanted wool 1st it picks up the green, then the unmordanted wool picks up the pink, then mordanted wool picks up what's left of the pink and green and a little yellow for the coppery color leaving just the yellow for the next unmordanted wool.
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florcita
Junior Member
www.florcita.eu
Posts: 48
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Post by florcita on Dec 23, 2011 9:40:15 GMT
Oh look at that! how pretty and what a great range of colours! I've only dyed with St Johns Wort once, but they were dried and chopped stalks and leaves... got more of a yellowish-green.
Will try with flowers (next spring! )
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Post by zed on Dec 23, 2011 20:39:50 GMT
You can use the plant dried? I have the shrubby version growing in the garden, I could pick it and dry it
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Post by Shepherdess on Dec 23, 2011 21:42:30 GMT
very interesting how it pulls the colours out.
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Post by karen on Dec 23, 2011 22:29:34 GMT
Gorgeous colors again Teriann
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florcita
Junior Member
www.florcita.eu
Posts: 48
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Post by florcita on Dec 24, 2011 12:49:11 GMT
The version I got was: dry the shrub... then chop it in little bits... leaves, stalks... everything. And then use as you use any other natural dye.
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Post by teriann on Dec 24, 2011 13:13:44 GMT
Fresh flowers that had just opened gave the best, clear colors. Flowers that had started to wilt and whole fresh plant tops worked too but the results were more drab. I didn't collect enough to dry any.
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