Dye Sampling for Next Project

I've finally worked out the information I need to get started on the dyeing for the next crackle project, which will be silk. Here is my first post on the project.

Back then I was talking about working with pale neutrals. I have changed my mind about the pale and am going for moderately intense. Or the neutrals may or may not be paler than the more brilliant colors. However, I do want the neutrals to take up proportionately more space the the colors. Much is yet to be decided.

Meanwhile I have worked out some of the details for the initial experiments. I am still using the same formulas I discussed. I will dye the base colors themselves at 2% depth of shade. A 2% depth of shade (abbreviated by dyers as DOS) should yield a moderately rich color.

After I have dyed these colors, I will dye the various combinations of two, using 50% of each color so that the total in each case will result in a 2% depth of shade. Then I will move on to proportions of 45% to 55% and 40% to 60%. Out of these combinations I hope some usable neutrals show themselves. Those that I like I will then try dyeing less intense versions to very pale versions.

For the colors I want to use in the piece, I will try subduing each possible color with a bit of its relative opposite color. I don't think I will want to subdue them very much. I just don't want anything resembling an electric kind of color.

All of these exeriments will be done using lengths of silk yarn, each length weighing 1 gram. This makes it very easy to calculate percentages. It took me a long time to come over the metric system in dyeing, but it was definitely worth the trip.

As I continue to weave the cotton crackle yardage, I am beginning to warm up to what will be the next project.