Diana C. and Eef K.
Here are some tips if you would like to make your own Eco-Dye scarves. Each scarf is unique: no one is like any other. We all develop our own style and way of arranging the flower petals, leaves, and seeds. The tips here are good for beginners. Making eco-scarves is not messy at all and is safe to do in your own kitchen.
Yet, it is important to keep dying utensils, pots, and steamers separate from the equipment you use for cooking. You can pick up a white enamel pot at Goodwill and use it only for alum. Alum is a chemical compound with several household uses, but it should not be used in food, where it could be unsafe. In dying, alum is used as a mordant. It reacts with the cellulose fibers in plants, improving the color-fast quality of the dye on fabric. You can purchase the scarves from Dharma Trading Company in a selection of sizes. You can always find Alum in the spice section in the grocery store.
You will also need a spray bottle of water, string, clothes pins and plant materials for dying. Golden rod, eucalyptus, lavender, and coreopsis flowers and leaves are good choices. You can experiment with the flowers and plants you have. Try fresh flowers, dried flowers and flowers that are a week old; they all have different end results. Additional equipment you may use for the steaming step: an old lobster pot, and two steamers to fit inside the lobster pot.
- Start with the alum. Fill your alum-only pot 2/3 with water and add alum. For 2 or 3 silk scarves, use 1 tablespoon alum. Mix the alum and water, then add the scarves, swirling them around. Put the pot on low heat on your stove and bring to a low heat. Simmer but do not allow the water to boil. Simmer the scarves for one hour. After one hour, take the pan off the heat and cool to room temperature. You can leave the scarves in the solution until ready to dye. It is safe to empty the water in the sink.
- In the meantime, prepare your other supplies. It is important that the scarf stays wet as you continue.
- Lay the damp scarf on a flat surface covered with an old towel. Arrange the plant materials on the scarf using your own imagination and creativity, spraying with water to keep the fabric damp.
- Keeping the plant materials inside the scarf, begin to roll the scarf, jelly-roll style. The clothes pins will help keep the materials inside the fabric. Roll it tightly enough to keep the materials inside the scarf, but not too tight! Continue spraying lightly with water if needed.
- Once the scarf is rolled up, tie the roll with the string, approximately every 4 inches. Again, not too tight! (Once you are ready to remove the plant materials after steaming, you will need to untie the string without using scissors. Using sharp scissors may accidentally cut the fabric.)
- Steaming: Use a dye-dedicated Chinese bamboo steamer. (That is, use it only for dying.) This steamer has two levels, and you can steam two scarves at the same time. Place the scarves, still rolled and tied, inside the steamer(s). Put the steamer(s) inside the lobster pot and add just enough water to nearly touch the steamer. Place the lobster on a burner. You can use the burner on your outside grill. Turn on the heat and allow the pot to steam. Steam the apparatus for one hour. Check the water occasionally; if the water level is getting too low, add boiling water. At the end of the hour, turn off the heat. Leave the bamboo steamer in the pot until everything has cooled enough to handle. At that time, remove the steamer from the lobster pot, and remove the scarves, still tied. Place them in quart-sized baggies and leave them for at least one night. You can leave them longer, but not too long, or they will get moldy.
- When you are ready, you will open the scarf rolls, which requires patience: carefully un-do the knot without using scissors. Unroll the scarf, which you may want to do outside. The petals inside the roll will be a slimy mass. Shake out the old plant materials. Rinse the scarf in cold water and hang it to dry, inside or outside depending on the weather, for at least two weeks.
- After two weeks, wash the scarves on a gentle cycle with very mild soap, like Synthapol detergent. Some people use Dr. Bronner’s soap. Of course, do not put the scarves in the dryer.
Hopefully these directions are helpful. Eco-dying scarves is all about finding what works for you. Have fun!
Sources:
Alum-If you buy it in bulk, you can purchase this at Dharma Trading Company
Silk scarves: Dharma Trading Company
Synthapol detergent: Dharma Trading Company