30 September 2012

Discharged!

Yesterday, as I was picking out my usual laundry detergent at the supermarket, my eyes stopped at something interesting: Dr Beckmann's Colour Run Remover (English link, svensk länk). Hah! Potential! I grabbed a package straight away.

Today I put Dr Beckmann's colour remover to the test, and it passed with flying colours. In fact, it was so efficient that nearly all the colour on my sample pieces flew away. But let's take this from the beginning.

On the package it reads that you should leave the item you want to strip of its colour soaking for at least 4 hours, perhaps even over night. So I mixed the powder in hot water from the tap,  took a few of my hand dyed pieces of cloth, which I'd folded and scrunched in tie-dye style, and plunged them into the colour remover. Now, I was expecting to leave the fabric there for 4 hours, so I wasn't paying much attention to what was happening in the bucket. I should have. Oh my! Dr Beckmann was quick to get the job done. Not even a minute had passed when I noticed that the first items I'd added to the liquid were turning very pale  So, I had to take everything out immediately. The first two samples were so pale that there was hardly any patterning on them at all anymore. But the other two: Yay! Cool! Bellissimo!

Before:


After:
 

Before:


After:


You wouldn't belive, would you, that this piece of fabric actually came from the bright blue one I show you above? Where did the rusty brown come from? It's gorgeous!

I also did some icecream tub dyeing with EMO Tuotanto's fibre reactive dye later. I'm trying to explore this product, since it's a Finnish brand, and a lot easier to get hold of for me than Procion MX dyes. I hope to discover ways of using the EMO dyes in the same ways that I've used Procion MX dyes. That would make me a very happy puppy.



I can't wait to get to the rinsing stage with these! Yum!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a great week! - Annika

4 comments:

  1. Wow! That was quick discharge! I am thinking of trying some this week after seeing Gerrie Congdon's post about Regina Benson's work - yum!
    http://www.gericondesigns.com/weblog/
    Your tub of dyeing is gorgeous! It looks like an autumn celebration. Have fun experimenting!

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    1. Thanks Jeannie! Yup, I'm having fun exploring new territory. The tub dyed pieces are in the washing machine right now. And I love discharge techniques: the result is so immediate. Thanks for the link: very interesting work!

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  2. Every time I see your wonderful experiments I get excited to try, and then I think of all the experiments I've successfully done which are sitting around sadly waiting to be used! I think instead this is the week I learn how to use my airbrush (for AC stenciling.)

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    1. Airbrushing... That sounds great. Go for it! And show us what you made. :)

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