Wednesday, August 27, 2014

When life gives you lemons?

So, summer is back it seems! Perfect day for ice dyeing even if the day is almost over. I'd hoped the cold front would be thru by now, but not until tonight. I'm going for autumn leaf colors and am soaking 3 silk scarves: white chiffon, white habotai, and previously dyed coreopsis yellow. 
Soaked in warm water and citric acid, piled on a screen and covered in ice and snow:

Randomly ( my favorite part!) sprinkle dye powder, in this case red, orange, terra cotta and yellow:


Now, let the sun do the work! As the ice and snow melt, the dye strikes the silk, and sometimes the crystals cause the dye to split in unexpected ways. 

The results!


Left to right: coreopsis base, habotai, and chiffon!