Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Holes, Dyes and Pretty Scarves

I'm starting to get my inventory ready for the upcoming Southern Highland craft show in July. One of the things I sell are hand dyed silk scarves. I use 3 different kinds of silk - chiffon, China and crepe de Chine - all take on a different look when dyed. The chiffon is very airy with intense color, the crepe has a rich look as the weave itself is so beautiful and China is the most fun to dye. It wicks so beautifully allowing the color to meander and mix with other colors. I work with acid dyes and usually 3-4 colors per scarf.

Often you get some great patterns.
Acid dyes give a brilliant color to silk. I'm not a lover of red, but it's a popular color for scarves.
Today was "blue day" so I mixed up 1 cup each of many blues and purples, donned my tight fitting rubber gloves and went to work!
What I DIDN'T do was check the gloves for holes. Bummer, I didn't realize it til after the fact!
Oh my!
I had to run to the supermarket - too warm outside to wear gloves so I tried to keep my blue hands concealed as much as possible. The lady at the checkout looked at me a little strange and finally asked if I had been canning blueberries. Nope, no blueberries today, just blueberry colored scarves!

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