|
You have your materials and tools laid out a
place to work comfortably and your working designs ready. Now you are ready to actually
begin dyeing and printing the fabric! The adventure begins…
You should have a piece of cotton fabric to work on suitable to your
final needs - a cushion cover for example don’t try for anything too ambitious to
begin with.
 Dyeing
The first process is to experiment on gash pieces of cloth with the
dyes to see what they will produce. It is best to begin with lighter colours such as
yellow and layer over with darker colours as a light colour over a dark one may not show
up. You might want to dilute some dye and try pouring it over the cloth or moving it
around with a roller or brushes. Try splattering a darker colour with a brush and flick it
over the surface. A roller or a paintbrush will give a more 'controlled' effect whereas
pouring dipping or splattering is unpredictable.
 You might want to try
tea and coffee next or it could be used beforehand. It may be that you want an all over
soft cover, which could be achieved by soaking the fabric in tea and then using the dyes.
Coffee can be used to achieve a darker brown or to add effects using granules that have
been soaked directly onto the fabric. Fruit teabags can also be used directly after being
dipped into hot water.
When you feel that the fabric has had sufficient colour added to it
leave it to dry. You may want to iron it at this point to eliminate any wrinkles ready for
the next process.
|
