Mordant and Dyeing Times

The natural dyes previously listed in the blog are all done with the following methods. All mordants were mixed in pot of water and brought to a simmer. The skeins of yarn were then added and allowed to simmer for one hour. Then the heat source was turned off and the yarn was allowed to soak overnight in the mordant solution.

The dyestuff was used at a 2:1 ratio, twice the amount of dye material to the wool weight (often referred to as WOG - weight of goods). This was brought to a simmer and allowed to continue simmering for 30 minutes. The dyestuff was strained off and the strained dyewater was poured back into the pot. The yarn was added and allowed to simmer for 30 minutes. After the yarn was removed it was spun to remove excess water then rinsed in clear water and spun again before hanging to dry. When I refer to spun, basically spin the hank of yarn around your wrist to sling out excess water.

The brazilwood and logwood were purchased from a supplier. All other materials were gathered locally, mostly from my property. The brazilwood chips were added to a pot of water and allowed to soak overnight before proceeding with the usual dyeing procedure. The logwood was an extract (purple) and was just mixed in a pot of water before using. No presoaking was necessary for the extract.