In a message dated 11/14/2006 7:00:24 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
It was interesting to see them dye the fibre though...when it first came out of the dye pot it was yellow, then once rung out of liquid and probably exposed to the air turned blue before their eyes! Discussion????? That is how a vat dye works. The most common vat dye is, of course, indigo (also found in woad). The dye is not water soluble--needs to be chemically reduced to dissolve in water. The fabric is dipped in the vat, then as it is lifted out and exposed to air, the dyestuff re-oxidizes, and the blue color forms. Tyrian purple was also a vat dye. As the murex were killed in the process, the species was just about wiped out, but a similar dye, from a related species, is still used in central America. There, they have figured out a way to make the shellfish give up its dye without killing it. Since the color forms in the fibers, it is very fast. It is true that you get color rinsing out or rubbing off at first, but that is generally excess dye. Ann Wass _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
