I’ve been dyeing some more of my twisted cotton string. I’m really enjoying the process and seeing what colors I can make. I’m also sharing my dye “recipes” for those who want to try dyeing their own string too.
All my dyeing, in this post is done using kool-aid powder. You can find my first set of recipes here. Unlike the first round of dyeing, I did not use any rubber-bands on the string and instead just let the string absorb the color as evenly as possible. I still get a few color variations through-out the string, but not as much as when I rubber-band off some sections. So that step is up to you and how much you want color variations in your string.
Here are the basic steps that I follow when dyeing my cotton string:
- Make a vinegar/water mixture. I mixed 6 cups of water and 2 cups of vinegar then placed my string in the liquid to soak until it was damp through-out.
- Remove your damp string & boil the vinegar/water mixture.
- Pour your Kool-aid powder into a baking dish and dissolve the powder by pouring the boiled mixture over it. Mix the powder with a spoon until completely dissolved then add your damp string.
- Sprinkle more Kool-aid powder on top and let the string soak for a few hours.
- Remove the string, drain the mixture then hang the string to dry with the baking dish under it to catch the liquid that will drip.
- Let the string dry over night then rinse the next day until excess color is gone.
- Dry the string completely on the dry rack.
Lavender (with spots of blue)
My first attempt at lavender came out to more of an old rose type purple-pink. Since then I have modified my color mixture and have achieved a lovely pastel lavender with spots of pastel blue. It’s really pretty. To achieve this lavender color, I simply dissolved one packet of purple kool-aid powder in boiling water/vinegar, added the cotton string to the mixture and then sprinkled a second packet of purple kool-aid on top of the string. The string held the purple color well with just a few spots where blue came through from the dye. I was very happy with the outcome.
Blue & Lavender
This was my favorite color combo so far. It is an interesting blue colored string with variations of purple through-out. It kind of reminds me of mermaid colors or something else fun like that. To make this color dissolve two packets of blue Kool-aid in the boiled water/vinegar and add the string into the mixture. Next sprinkle a packet of purple Kool-aid across the top of the string. You’ll noticed that the purple only covers the top half of the string and that’s ok, because only part of your string will absorb the purple color and the other part of the string will absorb the blue, creating that color variations that we want.
Raspberry Red
This dye bath comes out as a deep pastel color that is really interesting and easy to make. To get this red raspberry color, dissolve two packets of red Kool-aid in the boiled water/vinegar and add the string into the mixture. Then sprinkle a third packet of red Kool-aid across the top of the string. A lovely raspberry color with slight color variations will appear after your string is dried and rinsed.
Cyan Blue
This blue is bright for a pastel color. I like how fresh it looks on the cotton string. To make this color is really simple. Simply dissolve two packets of blue Kool-aid powder in the boiled water/vinegar and add the cotton string into the mixture, making sure all the string is submerged in the dye bath.
I would love to hear about your experience with dyeing string in this way. I’m looking forward to trying out some more colors and combinations. I’m also sharing my dyed strings in the shop!
Happy Weaving!
Kate
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