Wichita Weavers, Spinners & Dyers Guild

The guild is ringing in the ‘new year’ on September 6th with a fun day of dyeing with pokeberries! We will meet at Marnette’s house; any guild members or visitors who do not know the location are encouraged to submit a contact form for directions.

You will need to prepare your yarn or fiber in a vinegar mordant:

Fill a stainless steel or enamel pot with water. Add 1/2 cup of white vinegar for every 4 ounces of fiber.
Gently heat your pot over medium heat (160 – 180F) for 60 to 90 minutes.
Remove the fiber and place it immediately into your pokeberry dye vat.

Note: If your yarns are not going directly from their mordant bath to the dye pot, it is best to have them in an acid bath while they are waiting; this can be done by adding 1/4 c. of vinegar to the soak water.

The last meeting of the Guild’s 2013-2014 year ended with a perfect day for dyeing outdoors, hosted by Marnette in a lovely setting.

Members brought dyestuffs and fibers to share (and some wonderful food, too).

The natural dyestuffs included black walnut hulls, brome grass pollen, turmeric, pink ivory sawdust, and an indigo pot. One member brought a nice range of acid dyes for those who wished to experiment with mixing and painting.

The indigo pot was a favorite with everyone… the magical color change as the fiber came out of the green liquid and turned blue as it hit the air was simply mesmerizing.