Doomed!

I'll send you some Aida! LOL

Cheryl

I've been informed that I got my Mindys from another group mixed up. Both are members of a group that will remain nameless in this post, and I made a mistake about which Mindy was nasty to me.

I apologize to Mindy of Sugar Maple.

The other two reasons are still valid tho! More than I wanted to pay for Lugana, however pretty, and I'm totally gunshy about mailorder hand-dyed fabrics now.

Caryn

I had to admit I scratched my head a few times about you having a run in with the folks at Sugar Maple; they are so nice. I forget - are the prices on their page in US or Canadian? Might not be so bad!

Cheryl

I clicked on the US shoppers link when I looked, so I assume the $44 for the half yard of Lugana was in American Dollars.

Meanwhile.....back on Cinderella...beading continues....

Didn't get as much done last night as I planned, I'd totally blanked out on fact that I had to go watch my middle DD get an award at school. She rocks, btw! lol

Caryn

Caryn,

I learned how to dye fabric during my trip to Jasper last year- it was actually *VERY* easy (I was scared to death to do the first brush stroke, but it was really fun and SUPER simple)

I believe the name of the paints we used were "Pebeo" (sorry if the spelling is off) The one thing I kept forgetting was to remember that the color 'spreads' very far when painting the fabric. I ended up with some really neat pieces.

Anyhow - Cheryl had a good suggestion to try on aida first if you are reluctant.

Sarah

Would these be the ones?:

Trading is my favorite source for dyes, and they have excellentinstructions and helpful people. Dyeing is easy and addicting ;-)They have a ton of dyes you can use: usually use the fiber reactive Procion dyes, though I've nevertried them on fabric for needlework. Best wishes, Ericka

I believe that was the brand name Ericka! I don't think they were specifically for silks though. Regardless, they were gorgeous colors and we had a blast.

Sarah

Erika - I really don't have the urge to go "whole hog", would Ritz or even the tie die "strips" work for a first attempt on some Aida or other "cheap" fabric?

Or even doing the onion peel or beet juice thing?

Cheryl

Pebeo were developed as silk paints. However, you can use them for painting on natural fibers. Since they were developed as paints, it's easier to use them for painting than a thickened dye. (Silk paints are not like the the squeeze bottles of fabric paint. They're very thin paints, and the color goes down inside the fabric weave.)

I've used both, depending on the effect I wanted. If I want a solid or slightly mottled color, I'll use a dye like Procion. If I want something with "controlled" color shifts, I'll use a watercolor style paint like Pebeo.

-- Jenn Ridley : snipped-for-privacy@chartermi.net WIP: Water Lilies, Rose Trio, Be Mine, Emperor's Coat II, Carousel Most recently Finished: Romance, Halloween Circle, Always be a Wildflower Stitching log:

Yeah, probably, but it isn't that tough to go "whole hog" ;-) Depending on what sort of product you want, Dharma may have a starter kit that gets you up and running for not much money, and the colors are just luscious. And if you don't have to recreate particular colors, you can just invest in some basic colors and mix and match to your heart's content--great fun!

Best wishes, Ericka

Oh dear - the fabric set is under $20 with out "the book"..... On to the wish list it goes!

Cheryl

hee hee ;-) Be cautious about fabric--different fabrics take dyes and paints differently, and natural fibers usually dye better.

Best wishes, Ericka

I have to run to both AC Moore and Michaels tomorrow - I'm planning on scouting the dyes to see what they have. I've got a ton of Charles Craft Aida and was looking for something offbeat to do with it!

Cheryl

While we are speaking of dyeing (not dying as per the subject line)...has anyone stitched on batik? Does the wax come out thoroughly enough to open the holes for stitching? I think it would take a lot more time but should have some very interesting and artistic results.

Ohh - let us know what happens. I have made a top from commercial (ie bought at the fabric store) batik. It sewed up ok IRRC

Cheryl

People quilt with Batik, so I don't know why you couldn't stitch on it.

Elizabeth

One of my stitchers recently showed me some cool veggie dyed samples (on Belfast or Cashel linen, can't remember which). The colors are amazing and it's fun trying to guess the plant....

I'm thinking on doing some coffee dyes this summer. I'll be up in Maine for an extended time, and can't do much stitching there. I thought it might be fun to take some linen scraps and play with the coffee grinds each day.... Who knows? Could be a new product line at the shop. The "crappy linen", as we call it, sells very well. :^)

Lucy Boyer Cross Stitch Unlimited / StitchStash.com Arlington, MA USA

I'm seriously considering some onion peel or beets!!!

I'd call the coffee grounds line some thing cute like the daily grinds!

Cheryl

groan!!!! LOL

Mavia