Dye experiments

A lot to copy/paste here.
A lot of dye experiments and different attempts to colour Makies.

First from poklfil regarding Idye:

Essentially I am going to narrate a step by step on experimenting with iDye polyester & nylon fabric dye. No Makies were harmed in this process and I felt due to the nature of the experiment for now, It wouldn't be a good idea for them to be present, since this is my first go.

As mentioned in a previous post this dye is specifically used for dyeing synthetic fabric. It states in the packaging that it could be done using the boiling and non boiling method. I kind of created my own method as I went along smile I will point out that at no time did I need a rolling boil and there was just a little smell, like you were burning plastic on a flame but it did not permeate the room or the rest of the house!

Step 1 - I bought myself this morning from Tescos a 24cm stockpot stainless steel pan with lid (£12.99) and stainless steel slot spoon £2.50) - I felt this essential as the dye says don't use the same pots that you use for cooking. Because of my time limitations, I just bought new but you could buy from a Charity Shop.

Please excuse my dirty stovetop smilesmilesmile My son's had used it the night before and I didn't clean it before starting smilesmile

Step 2, I gathered the following ‘ingredients’ as such

Assorted makie bits
a pan lined with foil
Dye
scissors (to open the dye & intensifier)
slotted spoon
plastic cup
Gloves (rubber or latex - already on my hands when I took the pix smile)
pomegranate for snacking (optional)
wooden coffee stirring stick (not shown) or unused chopstick leftover from Sushi takeaway.
Stockpot - stainless steel (It also suggests you can use enamel)
Some paper towel for drying.



Step 2
Fill the pot with some hot water- I put in about 4 inches worth - Place on stovetop



Step 3

Place about 1/4 teaspoon of the dye powder into the plastic pot and add a little hot water and stir until mixed.






Step 4

Add some Makie bits to the water in the pot. Turn on the cooker to heat the water. I then added the dye liquid to the water in the pot. I stirred a bit then added a small squirt of the intensifier. Just before boiling point (steam coming up) I covered the pot and let it sit, stiring periodically. (pomegranate - NOM!)









Step 5 - This is the part you go Holistic. It's all up to you how dark you want your Makie to be so you will have to watch the coloring as it goes along. I do suggest you buy some bits, and use a timer and experiment with shades before you commit to doing your Makie

After about 10 mins of stewing- the results so far






I also decided to try dipping some bits in for different lengths of time, so this one is about 3 mins. I also decided as the water started cooling, I would start up the cooker again and gently add some heat, again so it just reaches just before boiling point then switch off again









Step 6
I decided after about 15 mins it was a lovely brown that I liked so I removed the bits with a slotted spoon- word of advice- count how many bits you put in and make sure you get that many out- it's hard to tell with the dark colored water LOL



Step 7
Rinse the pieces under cold water thoroughly



You can see that the temp (in Fahrenheit) is about 168 which is almost about 3/4 way to boiling point- It seems that you can keep it at approx this temp (give and take a few degrees) that it is perfect for dyeing Makies and hopefully won't cause shrinkage. I'm hoping the lab can do more testing to confirm that. I just covered the bottom of my thermometer with plastic wrap to stop contamination.






I thought well, while I am testing, I would see if pieces of another color could be dyed too.
If you go back to one of my earlier experiments, I used a water based artist ink and painted it on the bit (watered down) This is one of the bits. The first pieces was watered down and painted on. The 2nd piece was the ink directly being dropped onto the nylon piece itself






This was the bit that had the ink directly put onto it- After about 3 mins in the dye bath



Here are all the bits I experimented with, all done- They were all rinsed under water and this is how they turned out. Please note that they are a bit darker as they are still wet.
This picture is under inside lighting



These next few pictures are daylight outside










Take note of these two pieces- they were the ones that had some existing ink coloring on them. The one with the non watered ink came out splotchy tho the lighter colored ink panel (watered down ink) actually came out fine so we could almost say you could dye over an existing lighter hue.



I also wanted to test if the coloring rubbed off. When I have colored fabrics in the past, the colors have run or bled a little when washed. I did rub a bit against a paper towel (while still damp) and there was just a touch of color, so I decided it would need a wash!

Test piece- before washing



Placed in cup of warm water- you can see that some of the color bleeds a fraction






The package suggests you wash your fabric in mild detergent so I thought what the heck, I would try using some fairy dish washing liquid. So I added a smidgen, agitated it a bit









After rinsing, you can see the color didn't change after washing in detergent, so I am happy with that



Had to hang out the Laundry- so out they went onto the line for half an hour too!



Part 2 - the results to come whilst I make a Quiche for dinner first

The results are IN!

These parts have all dried nicely and you can see that the coloring lightens a bit once dried.

Without further adieu

One of the 15 minute legs - washed in soapy water



backplate



another leg



QR code - notice how it evenly dyes all the parts - this is 15 minute dye



QR code back - even the chains are nicely coated



This is a 3 minute QR code back- I was holding the chain for a minute then let it all immerse so hence why two different shades



ame QR piece only the front bit



Another QR code piece - This is the one that had the water down acrylic ink applied to it. You can see from the front and back that it coated the piece well, can't see any evidence of the dye






This is the other QR code bit that had the acrylic ink applied by dropper at full strength. It had saturated the piece when I applied it directly. So it seems when I dyed this piece, it couldn't replace the ink that was already soaked into the makiebit



This little piece of leg had been brushed with watered down acrylic ink. The dye took especially well - This was bathed for about 5 mins I think



I must say I am especially pleased with the results.

Looking forward to Dr Duckies Visit where she, I and the contingent of Makie Laboratory assistants will hopefully perform sensitive experiments on Cosma Shiva

I think the dyeing process will be more successful on a new, never played with Makie doll. With Cosma, I plan on giving her a good wash and rinse before dyeing her. I think any foreign blemishes from handling the dolls will affect the dyeing process

I also think we should be able to mix the dye powders to create different colors and hues. Because we can use such tiny amounts I think the combinations are endless.

One thing to remember also, if you do plan on dyeing your doll, I would suggest you buy all the extra hands you want to go with that doll and dye them all in one go