Years ago when starting to hook not only did I not dye wool but didn't have a wool stash. During the fall and winter went to the thrift store to purchase good wool clothing, dismantle, then wash and dry them to start my stash.
At the time I had no clue about using textures as I hadn't yet had a class with the Queen of primitive hooking.... Barb Carroll. So started collecting flat wool of every crayola color I could get my hands on. Since Barb's classes I've given away a lot of flat wool to beginners but still have some for 'just in case' and for marbleizing.
Recently follower Donna contacted me as she found a 2015 BLOG POST about marbleizing but no results. For some unknown reason I couldn't find the 'after' photos in my archives either and surely don't have old photos of them. So promised I'd do the process again just for her. Here ya go......
To marbleize wool you need 3 colors with the lightest wool sandwiched in the middle. I decided to do 3 pots.
The first three colors are navy blue which looks black in the photo, bright yellow/gold and brown.
A bright blue, tan and olive,
And plum ugly pink/red and bright red.
Karen Kahle published one of her small booklets several years ago which provides all the info on Marbleizing wool, which is in the photo. Gather your twine and roll your sandwiched wool. In order to take a photo and not have the wool unroll I put pins in it to keep the roll in place.
After you achieve the roll you secure one end, twist the roll until it coils up on itself. Then tie it all together. It helps if you have a partner to help because you need at least three hands to keep it secure and I only have two.
Then in the pots they go with water and a little detergent (without bleach). I don't bring my water to a boil because I don't want felted wool but the water does get very hot. The red pot had great bleeders but not the other two pots.
Not quite sure exactly how long the pots were on the stove as I was doing laundry and other chores. I'd stop at the pots and push the wool coils down or flip them over to release some dye. Am thinking the pots were steaming on the burners for about an hour.
Then I poured white vinegar in the pots as the mordant ~ Didn't measure but it was probably 1/3 or 1/2 cup in each pot. Turned off the burners and let the wool steep in the water until it cooled. Took the pots to the laundry sink, rinsed the wool a couple times, put the wool in my washer to spin the water out.
Tomorrow I'll show you the results.
Saundra
www.woodlandjunctionprimitives.weebly.com
By IT would be Nantucket Broom Ride. There have been several changes and some of those changes might be changed yet again. Below is a picture of what it looked like BEFORE.
A couple things I want you to take notice of are:
~the wool used for the whale spout spray
~wool used for hat and dress is the same wool
~black shoes which needed to be outlined
~arms with the multi-colored lines
~grey hair on the witch
And this is what it looks like now. I changed the black shoes to barefoot, the witch is now a beautiful red head (more on that in a few), the hat and dress color has changed as has the wool for the water spout.
The dress and hat wool are different wools and think the lighter colors work better. Looking at the picture above it appears the black between the arms and without an outline is working okay. Frankly, I probably didn't even need an outline at all since the colors are noticeably different against the background.
Below is a close up of the new water spout. When I received my special delivery of wool from a very special friend the water spout was the first thing I changed. It seemed like an incredibly wonderful idea to use the blue/black/sparkle wool. Problem....it is almost undetectable even in photos which usually show everything. So just might go back to original plan but keep some of the sparkle in between the other loops.
Definitely do love my witch being a redhead...hey, who hasn't wanted to be a redhead at least once in their life? I've wanted to yet never went there. But will extend her locks a little so it flows along with the scarf flow. Not too long but a tad longer than the bob she now has.
The back of her hat brim needs to be extended also. Let me say that I'm loving this rug and it is worth the trouble catering to my whims as the wool and time provides. Hey, ain't got nuttin but time.
Next post I'll provide pictures of the textured wools which went into the hooking of this rug. A blogger friend inquired on how to use textured wools which aren't readily available at her thrift shops. Men's sport coats are a great way to get textured wool. So stay tuned for the next post.
Who knows what additional changes will occur on the rug before you see it next.
Enjoy your evening and Sunday.
Saundra
Hate it when life gets in the way of having fun. One half day was spent shopping for a new riding mower ~ hopefully it will be delivered tomorrow. BUT, it is supposed to rain for the next few days so grass won't get cut for a few days after.
THEN..... came home from errands yesterday and my garage door wouldn't open. Thankfully a neighbor's boyfriend was able to determine it was a gear which ground down to nothing from wear. Luckily my ex had purchased an extra gear so my friend's boyfriend was able to successfully replace the gear after 3 hours of work. Now that's a VERY GOOD neighbor.
Anyway, here is the CHUM pattern I took to Woolley Fox rug camp.
Love the colors Barb selected...dang... I should have taken a picture of the textured wool used for the body of the dog. Barb chose a similar color for a soft and plain face but wanted the body different. You will not believe what can be done with a texture. Next time I post an update I'll show you the wool used for the body of the dog.
There is already a spot on the wall for Chum (an antique adaptation), and will be in this computer room.
Have a great Sunday everyone. Do you believe tomorrow is June 1st??? Me either!
Saundra
