Aquarelle Dyeing: Liquid Indigo

I’ve been holding off on my natural dyeing all summer as we’ve been trying to sell our condo. Boy have I missed it!  We had a lull in viewings though in the last week as we prepared for hurricane weather here with Erika-a no show.  I decided a bit of kit dyeing was in order.  I pulled out my as yet unused Aquarelle Liquid Dye kit from Botanical Colors and decided to dye some hemp silk to try it out.

This kit is fab! It includes everything you need to dye a variety of colors with lots of recipes.  Plus it’s fast and not too messy.  A bonus when I’m trying to keep my condo perpetually neat and staged to sell.

I’ve just got my youngest, Amelie, home with me right now while her brother is at school so she was super excited to get to help out. We’ve been doing some preschool at home and she’s been having such fun practicing her letters and numbers, plus learning some cooking and embroidery too! She’s my little sous chef, always whipping up concoctions, and dyeing is really not that much different from cooking.  She had a blast helping me measure!  You can see sheep photo-bombed my pic below :)

I dyed 1 yard of Hemp Silk from* Organic Cottons Plus  * {affiliate link}  as well as my two bias dresses from the same material.  One dress will be refashioned into a top and the other I’m planning on neatening up the finish.  I put them together quickly as wearable muslins so they’re quick imperfect sews that need a bit of work still.

I used an online calculator to get my measurements from ounces to Teaspoons and Tablespoons as well as the charts provided in the instructions.  I used the Light Teal Recipe but upped the Liquid Indigo to about 5%.  My Hemp Silk weighed in at approx. 10.4 oz. based on 4 yards at 2.6oz each. My PH was perfect at about 3.7 (range is 3-4).  Luckily I had these strips left over from my Kombucha.  You can find the dye recipe in full here.  I followed the recipe but after achieving my temps on the stove (my pot is not that big) switched to my bigger bucket in the bath to soak to avoid too much overcrowding.

Pretreatment:  (all measurements below based on my Fiber weight of 10.4oz)

• 10% VegePlus ….3T

Dyebath:  

• 5% Liquid Indigo …….3 tsp
• 5% Disperse (which kept my color quite even)….3 tsp
• 5% Citric Acid ………..2.5 tsp

Rinse:

• 1/4c Vinegar

Since I was dyeing with my hemp silk I went with the liquid indigo, which works best on protein fibers-which I rarely use.  I knew my effects would be lighter as my fabric is 60% Hemp(cellulose fiber) and only 40% Silk(protein fiber).  But the color results were perfect.  A lovely light sky blue.

I’m really happy with the results. Bonus-my husband ADORES this shade of sky blue!  I achieved a nice solid overall color, just a few spots that I can easily work around.    It’s exactly the shade of blue I was hoping I’d get for my Top from Look 2 from my Fall Sewing Plans!

I’ll be saving the other colors in the kit for my cellulose fibers.  Next up is my organic cotton yarn (also from OCP) for my knitted sweater for Look 3.  I’m still undecided whether to go with the Hyacinth Purple or Orange Crush.  But my yarn is mordanted (in alum) and ready to go!

Happy Sewing and Dyeing!