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toadbriar May 15, 2006

....works as well for me with dyeing as kool aid, on wool & 100% wool felt!
enough water to cover some wool felt in a zipper baggie, a sploosh
(which is like a splash but a little more - prolly too much but hey
it's cheap right) of vinegar, & as many drops of food coloring as
looks right, in the water. put the bag in a tall bowl & nuke on high
for 2 mins. I rinsed the felt & there was not even any color bleed
when I blotted on white paper towels. the felt took the color perfectly
evenly & it's wonderfully vivid, & there's no weird feel to the wool.

cheaper than buying drink mix, just got to mix drops to make colors.
If I wanted a bright fuschia raspberry hot pink, or that special bright
kool aid blue, I'd still buy kool aid, but I think I can mix most of the
colors I'd use.

toadbriar May 15, 2006

McCormick, the cheapo 4 droppers in the box from the spice aisle.
I did get an odd feel on some roving when I used kool aid -
a little crispier, almost sticky but not quite. could even have
been my imagination because it smelled fruity, it seemed like it
SHOULD be sticky! Or maybe washing it out stripped the lanolin
& made it feel more harsh? You might do a test on some roving
to see if food color + vinegar makes it feel less clumpy or changes
the texture.

ooo! looks like they've got neon colors too:

could get some nice pastels with those...

I doubt this is much useful if you're looking to dye like a yard of
mohair or something, but I tend to cut out my pieces first &
then dye, & I work pretty small.

I don't think vinegar can hurt!

toadbriar May 15, 2006

oh dear lol....it sounds like you're having adventures! Did you have
all manner of household creatures getting underfoot & trying to "help" too?
I do not mean husbands....rofl

I am tempted to paint cheetah spots on the white greyhound....she is SO
certain that I cannot accomplish anything without her long pointy nose right
in the middle of everything (who knows, she might be right) but then she
gets offended when I trip over her.

are you doing water + koolaid, nuking, & then adding vinegar after? That
could be the problem. try instead to mix the vinegar into the water &
koolaid. it's the powder that hasn't got sugar in it right?

hahahahaha - you discovered why I put my bags into a tall mixing bowl or
a tupperware....it's cause I don't wanna move my frickin fridge! rofl 
if the bag leaks or falls over or whatever, it'll just dump out into the bowl.

it's pretty awesome being a grownup & making my own mess in my own
kitchen. If I messed with microwaving fabric & ziploc bags full of food dye
in the parental kitchen, mom would have totally pitched a wobbly. 

toadbriar May 15, 2006

oooh Lisa what a cool effect! & you're SOAKING in vinegar...
I guess I don't have to worry about using too much 
thanks for the link - it's so liberating to play with this kitchen
stuff that is so safe.

Winney May 16, 2006

Very cool ...glad for this info. Its a real treat to experiment with the colors...those dots look really neat..Winney

Eileen May 16, 2006

Renae,

I can't understand why the batt is still all snarly. Even badly shrunken (felted!) sweaters can be stretched out again in a tub of hot water and hair conditioner, with a bit of gentle tugging here and there.

Eileen

plushkinbear May 23, 2006

:hug: Kim,
I dyed mohair with egg (food colors) and the result was awesome!

here is the link http://www.teddy-talk.com/viewtopic.php?id=6502

I should try to dye wool too! Sounds so much fun!
Thank you for the idea.  :hug:

Just Us Bears May 23, 2006

Those colours look great Julia....can't wait to see your 'rainbow' bears!

plushkinbear May 23, 2006

:crackup:  :crackup:
Hayley, I love to experiment   but as for making rainbow bear...I'm too slow to finish my unstuffed poor babies..     

but I love the idea!
I''ll definatelly use food color for my next big project 

Julia :hug:

Cleathero Creations May 23, 2006

Those colours are fantastic, I'll have to hunt out a good piece of material to dye!