How did I let my sunroom studio get in such a mess?! I have been busy all day off and on on this small piece of territory. It’s only 8’x12′ for goodness sake! But my, what a mess! I have way too much stuff for the space. But I do use it…most of it. I have enough fibre for a while. I’ve been thinking of going through and culling some of it. There are some naturally dyed fibres that are not quite as lightfast as I’d like. They will go.
Speaking of lightfastness…in the past I’ve used Majic Carpet dyes for all my dye jobs. Some set with vinegar and some with citric acid. I’ve determined I prefer citric acid. It seems to hold the colours better over the years.
I am also in the process of switching to ProChem dyes. I suspect this will take a few years, and I still intend to set with citric acid. Citric acid does smell though, so I restrict my dye days to days I can open my windows for a nice breeze…preferably warm. That’s about 6 months of the year here.
In the process of cleaning up I am attaching price tags to work I’ve yet to tag for sale. My cleaning slowed down considerably yesterday afternoon as a result. I cannot believe I let myself get this far behind! Good thing I’m doing it now. I’ll be ready for the CVAF Street Fair (Cathedral Village Arts Festival Street Fair) this May. It appears I haven’t tagged anything since last fall!
Ok so I am not the only one.My studio looks the same.I have been rearranging,boxing and getting rid of the the art supplies I was someday going to maybe never make something with.Now that I have found a new love with wool applique,I need the room.Do you think this may have something to do with living in Saskatchewan with our long winters.Have fun spring cleaning.
Could be! LOL I find I work in spurts. When I’m in a hooking spurt wool and yarn fly everywhere! Then I remind myself I have to spend time on the business aspect of things and finish things off (ie. hemming, pricing, etc.) and then I have to quit the hooking and actually clean up to see what needs to be done! But, truth be told, I’m cleaning up now because the boarder is bringing home her new boyfriend to meet her “Canadian parents” (us). Gotta try and make not too bad an impression.
if you were going to get rid of some of your wool.I maybe intrested in purchasing some.Let me know thanks. g.a.s.
Okay. I just find I’m not using a lot of my plaids. I was going to cut them into 4×12″ swatches and sell them. The naturally dyed stuff is not as lightfast as I’d hoped. Not sure what to do with those. I won’t use them, but perhaps you would? If nothing else they will mellow out to a lighter version of what they are over the years. Course it’s been 5 years since I dyed them already. Not sure what to charge for those. They’re new wool…
I spent the last half hour ripping up a fraction of my plaids. I’ll work on them this coming week and post some swatches on the blog. If you’re interested you can email me. I’m thinking of pricing now. The swatches are approximately 4″x12″…some bigger, some slightly smaller. I will have bags of scraps too, if you’re interested in them instead/as well. 🙂
Curious why you are switching from Majic Carpet to Prochem dyes? I use the MC dyes for wool, and citric acid, have always been happy with the results.
Hi Laura. Mostly artistic. I want a full range of cool and warm primaries to do my own colour mixing. MC doesn’t have a cool yellow, just a warm one. PC has both a warm and a cool yellow, warm and cool blue, and warm and cool red. Add black and I can make whatever colour I want from them. 🙂 I have nothing against MC per se. I’ve used them for years with good results. I have 25 year old rugs dyed with MC. A little faded for being used on the floor more than anything, but the colours are still holding.
ETA: I’ve also been doing some reading, mostly online, and apparently PC Lanaset dyes are the most lightfast on the market. I’m not sure I’m going to spring for Lanaset, but I’m not ruling it out. I’m doing museum quality work now so I have to be careful to use materials that will stand the test of time. I’d like to confirm, first, that in fact that initial statement is true – that Lanaset is the most lightfast dye on the market. Do you know anything about the various dyes?
Sorry, I don’t know anything about Lanaset dyes. I use the Prochem and Dharma brands of dye powders for cottons, have always been happy with them. I’m in the process of dyeing a cool 12-color wheel and warm color wheel for a class I’m taking next month at my quilt guild using yellow, red and blue. I totally understand your desire for the color variations!
My hooking room is far more crowded than yours – and the wool seems to migrate to other areas of the house as well. I found it interesting that you feel citric acid smells when you use it in dyeing – I’ve never had that problem with it – but vinegar, on the other hand, yech!
Yes vinegar has its own unique aroma! ? I’m just really sensitive to smells Deborah. It’s an issue I inherited from my mom.?