I had a wonderful day in Lismore with my fibre friends from the guild. We took cotton garments to dye using ice. We first washed the garments at home. When we got to Lora's we soaked them in soda ash for 15 minutes. 1 cup of soda ash to one gallon of water. This solution can be covered and used one or two days after but no longer as it turns to ash. I took two baby gros, some lace and some embroidery silks that I wanted to try. I just scrunched up one of the baby gros and the other I twisted very tightly and then bound with elastic bands. This one had a much more interesting colour finish even though they were next to each other. I have since done more dyeing and the best twist is from one shoulder of the garment. This gives dyes in slanted bands.
Using rubber gloves and a face mask we placed them in a container over a drip tray. Lora had catering dishes I have used a dish drainer over a bowl. We covered all the fabric with ice and then shook dye over it. Lora had placed a level teaspoon of dye in a small plastic bag and we cut off one of the corners as his gives better control of the Procien dye powder. I used Intense blue, Veridian and Emerald green over my garments. When I used the dish drainer at home one bag of ice was enough.
Then it was just a matter of waiting until the ice melted and our treasures were revealed. I loved the colours of all the glistening ice cubes. I left it overnight then washed it with warm water and soft soap and rinsed until the water ran clear. I am particularly pleased with how the embroidery silks turned out and I will try that with other colours in my stash that I don't like. I must be more careful of how I place them next time as they did get a bit tangled.
