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dyeing

Using tea as dye to turn white to cream?

Pearl Sutton

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I got some lacy curtain stuff second hand I want to use for a cool outfit. It's bright white, which is a bad color for me, I do well with a softer shade, cream or something like that. The 4 pieces had one tag between them, it's trashed, I can make out the words cotton and polyester, but no clue of %'s or what specific parts are made of.

I use commercial dyes, but they only work on natural fabrics.

If I wanted to tint these just a bit darker, and it turns out there's more polyester than I would guess, what are the odds that tea will stain it nicely? Does black tea dye polyester? Doesn't need a lot of color shift.

It's REALLY pretty lace and will go REALLY well with what I'm doing, it just needs to be a color I can wear easier.

If not tea, any other suggestions?

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Megan Palmer

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Have you considered onion skins?

I’ve only ever used them to tint white embroidery canvas because I didn’t want any white bits to show so don’t know how colour fast it is.

Pearl Sutton

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Megan Palmer wrote:Have you considered onion skins?

I’ve only ever used them to tint white embroidery canvas because I didn’t want any white bits to show so don’t know how colour fast it is.

If anyone has any info on onion skins, I'd love to know it. Mostly what color does i come out?
And I need to be able to wash any dye thing I use. Cold water is fine, but need to be able to wash them. I'm chemically sensitive, and wash the weird fragrances people use off me when I come in from the rest of the world :D

Pearl Sutton

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This is how I want to use this lace, bottom hem. The neckline also has lace, I'd just be using this for backing to show off the blue lace.

This is the new lace with my lace petticoat and a sweater, both of which are the color I wear easily, not the bright white of the new stuff. THAT is the color I want it to be. And why I'm thinking tea.....

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If anyone has any info on onion skins, I'd love to know it.

https://permies.com/t/44102/dyeing/dyeing-onion-skins

😊

yellows to orange depending on fiber and mordant.
probably could get off towards tan with the addition of something🤔
change the ph maybe?
I doubt but don't really know if it will dye polyester....

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Jay Angler

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Do you have enough of it that you can cut off a bit to experiment with.

I'm concerned that the flat fabric and the lace thread are not necessarily the same material or percentage? Labels often say, "100% cotton exclusive of trim" and in this case the thread that makes up the lace could all be considered "trim". It could be 100% cotton, but unlikely. More likely to 100% artificial something.

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Pearl Sutton

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Jay Angler wrote:Do you have enough of it that you can cut off a bit to experiment with.

I'm concerned that the flat fabric and the lace thread are not necessarily the same material or percentage? Labels often say, "100% cotton exclusive of trim" and in this case the thread that makes up the lace could all be considered "trim". It could be 100% cotton, but unlikely. More likely to 100% artificial something.

Do a small burn test? Instructions here for people who haven't seen this before: https://permies.com/t/274034/natural-fibers

It says both "polyester" and "cotton" in what bits of label I can read. I KNOW it's not 100%. That's why I'm not just using my good dyes on it, they don't work on polyester at all.
I'm debating taking a cut and trying to dye it with tea.

Jill Dyer

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Since tea stains the tablecloth. . . I'd say it's a pretty fair bet that it will do the same for your lace. Fibre content on labels usually has the higher percentage given first, if that's something that can be read. Tea is one of those things high in tannin - so is coffee. Making either stick to cotton permanently is iffy. The dye exercise may have to be repeated. Could the trim be velcroed on?
Also consider walnut skins (the green bit from around the nut) this is quite strong, so maybe build up the concentration - same goes for tea, especially black tea. Green tea has less tannin, so is also an option.
Polyester has to be coloured in its liquid state before turning it into fibre, so depending where it is in the lace, there may be a speckled effect. Trial dip in a cuppa highly recommended to avoid nasty surprises.

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Jay Angler

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Jill Dyer wrote: Could the trim be velcroed on?

I find Velcro too often sticks to what you don't want it to stick to.

A row of very tiny buttons might do the job though? They'd have to be very close or things would droop.

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Jill Dyer

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Jay Angler wrote :-

A row of very tiny buttons might do the job though? They'd have to be very close or things would droop.

Maybe just handstitch and be resigned to unpicking when the time comes to re-dye. . . must admit, I'm no fan of velcro either!

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