I just got back from two messy fun days at Judy Dales’ stunning house with the rest of my crit group. We dyed a mountain of silks using acid dyes and microwaves. I learned this technique from my good friend Kris McDermet who dyes wool for her beautiful originally designed contemporary braided and hooked creations.
After spending years dyeing cottons and silks using the usual multi-day laborious procion dye technique-this method give instant gratification!
Me-happily pawing through my newly dyed wet silk
You see the results in minutes and can immediately overdye if you’re not happy. Acid dye gives intense colors on silk. And what you see on the wet silk is very close to the final dried result. This group of women did not shy from some wild experimentation.
Judy Dales measures out organza
Marilyn Gilles squooshes a yard of silk into a teeny container
And except for the occasional poop colored mistake, the results were spectaculor. I now have 15+ yards of gorgeous silk heaped on my studio table waiting for the iron…
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