Sunday 18 July 2010

Browns

Not a colour I often get asked for but earlier on this week one of my regular customers emailed me to ask for 200g of  brown . I had some rhubarb root with iron but not much else so enjoying the challenge I set to soaking and mordanting.
 I decided to go for the boiled madder brown, cutch and logwood (chocolate brown)  and because I had  had a brown recently with eucalyptus leaves and iron  (when I was trying to get black) I decided to try that. (Why did I not do just cutch?I haven't an  idea just trying to be too clever by half I think plus the fact that cutch on wool is not a strong brown)
Natural dyes are perverse,  maddening and never do what you want .  The boiled madder refused to go brown -now how often have you seen in dye books "be careful not to raise the temperature of the bath too high as you  will get a brown"! Over dyed orange madder in indigo normally gives a wonderful warm brown but this time gave me a fabulous purple.  If I had been trying for purple I would have got brown. The eucalyptus which gave a wonderful warm brown with iron is giving a soft greens  browns and almost creams ,but here the difference must have been in the soaking time as previously it was soaked for  at least a week after boiling.  The cutch and logwood came out a wonderful dark grey.  I added some fustic extract why I don't know I think that morning my brain was a bit addled  and I suppose because until I rinsed it I  thought it was purple) and it went green so I added some madder extract and that is still in the pot waiting to be rinsed. All these" not browns but something else"  is partly because I  tend not to keep enough records-mea culpa- and also because I do just tend  to dye rather than dyeing for particular colours but  it would have been infuriating if I had not got such a fabulous grey and also the purple from madder and indigo which  is lovely. I can use all the colours and sell them so it is not a problem really but dyeing for specific colour is not my forte.
Here are some of them hanging on the line.
Above a very exhausted madder giving beige, Cutch/logwood/fustic. Eucalpyptus and iron  (also on right). Madder overdyed in indigo. Cutch/logwood first bath.   Next to it just out the bath so very wet is madder and iron.  A lovely dark red not really a brown. Hiding shyly under the  dark indigo-incidentally at least 8 dips- is a brown.Orange madder overdyed in indigo second attempt.
In more detail.
The over dyeing in indigo is patchy because I was using quite a small vat.  Now wouldn't you think I would  know better!
Now I will go and rinse the remainder out.  Also I shall be rinsing out to day some of the hand painted 15micron merino I dyed yesterday with extracts.  They are looking fabulous. I am teaching the way to felt with  this fabulous fibre  at Malvern Hills Summer School in August in one day workshop.

9 comments:

  1. Thanks Kathy.My customer picked them up today taking one of all 3 browns and seemed pleased!

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  2. I'm glad you didn't get frustrated getting anything but brown and liked all the emerging colours. I love them all but the brown.

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  3. I was a bit annoyed with myself for not being able to get it but on the other hand the madder overdyed in indigo was so fabulous and so was the cutch/ logowod midnight grey I was excited too!

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  4. ah well, I'd want the purple over the brown any day:)) this dyeing on demand is always a problem for me: I ended up with loads of reds and pinks - before I finally managed to get the asked for pink tone my friend wanted:)) that taught me a lesson - never to offer a special colour! take it or leave it is my motto now:))

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  5. Well I agree with you Bettina. I find dyeing on demand difficult partly because I tend not to dye precisely but just tend to to throw approximate quantities in and see what happens.
    I am about to start a big dye with lots of garden plants ready for the BBC coming on Tuesday.
    I shall dye lots of yellows and overdye witht he blues so will end up with lots of blues and greens. I tend to run out of the latter very quickly so this year I thought I would go for it!

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  6. Gorgeous results. Brown is just an elusive color, I guess!

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  7. That was funny! when you want colours you get brown galore, so I had a chuckle over you trying and trying...I am a dyer like you, not very meticulous, so alchemy is certainly involved, not to mention good luck...I did love all the colours.

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  8. Hi cedar
    I ma glad it made you laugh. I thought it really funny too. yesterday I got black without trying! I boiled some alkanet by mistake and the fibre is a deep glossy black! Where would be be without mistakes!

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