Eco-dyeing, the third time around

I had such a good outcome the last time I eco-dyed fabric, I decided to try it again.  Not sure where I read this (maybe on India Flint's blog, but don't hold me to it), but I read somewhere I could eco-dye raspberry leaves.  If you've been around my blog at all, you know I have a ton of them.

So I was off to my basement for fabric I could dye, and this time, instead of a white bed sheet, I used some of my pale blue.  The same pale blue that yielded the beautiful rusted dancers I revealed during last month's marathon (AEDM).

But this time, it was all about experimenting, and I wanted less rust, and more leaves.  For the first piece, I covered my rusty upside down "J" with a piece of fabric, then sorted my leaves into new and "mostly" dead.   These are the "mostly" dead ones.

One of my main problems is, I can't wrap my fabric tightly enough, so I decided to try wrapping them in rubber bands or crochet thread, which I hoped I could make tighter. 

HMMM!  Not exactly the wrap I was going for, but I can't seem to get a tight wrap, no matter what I try.   Note also, some of the "really" dead leaves broke and a couple even fell out of the fabric when I rolled it.

For my second fabric, I chose mostly live leaves and laid them out in a pleasing pattern.  Note I have used only leaves, no stick, no rusty piece.

But wait.  I have a small container filled with rusty filings, so

I randomly threw them onto the fabric and leaves.  The sack in the back right holds my rubber bands.

However, for this piece I decided to use crochet thread.  Hard to get it even and even harder to try to tie off with only the two hands I was born with.

I still had lots of room in my pot and a few leaves, so I chose some that were wind swept into my yard.  I tore an old pair of shorts my friend Sally gave me that she told me was cotton, but I knew as soon as I tore it, it had some polyester in it.  Probably a LOT of polyester.

I don't seem to do too well with rubber bands.  I also have no idea what the sticks are for, unless it's to keep the fabric straight. 

For that, however, I would need a bigger steam pot. 

My fourth set of leaves went on top of a piece of the fabric I had used as part of my scrappy journal cover I made during AEDM last month.  It was white on one side and yellow and white on the other.  I chose to place the leaves on the white side

and tied the bundle with crochet thread.  I think I got a better tie this time, but it could be because the fabric was so thick.

They all fit well in my steam pot, and I steamed them for several hours.  I didn't check, I just removed them from the heat late in the day when I thought about them.

I will unveil them on the 21st, so watch for how well they did.  Remember, the last two don't have any rust, so I'm hoping there will be a bit of rusty transfer.

Thanks for dropping by today to see my latest eco-dyeing experiment.