what to do with the precious remains of a vat?the frugal dyer tried grinding the pigment and using it and came up with a simple method.
here we go:
- discard the liquid taking care not to upset the sediment
- dry the sediment in the sun until cakey
- grind it to a fine powder using a mortar and pestle or a dedicated food processor
- make soy milk using about 50 beans
- sieve the milk, you don't want any particles
- add the milk to the powdered pigment
- paint it to fabric pre treated with soy milk
- you can use stencils, leaves or any other object
- you can also use to create color washes and shadings
if the pigment is too liquid for stenciling or stamping:
- mix unflavored gelatin or agar-agar in hot water and let it gel
- add it to the liquid color
soy milk is the traditional binder for color pigments. i would suggest curing the fabrics for at least a month and then rinsing. expect some color loss, but nothing dramatic. if using the fabric for an art piece there's no need to rinse.
neki desu