Rust Dyeing

Steel wool pad wrapped inside of distressed acrylic felt and rusted in white vinegar with some salt tossed in.

The first time I rinsed the felt to get the rust flakes off of the piece the rust dyeing also went down the sink! Why? Could it be that I didn't pre-treat the felt, or that the dyeing process wasn't done yet? Back to the soaking vat for 2 more days; this time the piece completely dyed rather than random areas. I allowed the felt to dry first and then semi-rinsed it fearing that the rust dye would again go down the drain. It didn't. To dry it the second time I sandwiched the felt between tissue paper and wax paper and allowed it to dry flat. The tissue paper is visible behind the distressed felt. Okay, so if the felt dyed the tissue paper maybe the felt still isn't rinsed enough? A little forethought; this may be the only time the felt will look this way so I photographed it before heading into the 100 degree garage to rinse it.

Later: I rinsed and rinsed the felt and the problem seems to be that the rust settled into the distressed areas with a very tight grip and might continue to flake off! The torn muslin piece I rusted at the same time was vastly improved after rinsing it; the color that is left is lovely. The felt now looks more coffee stained than rust dyed. Interesting.

I could absolutely kick myself but who knew that two cast iron skillets, muffin tins and a divided sourdough bread pan would have been nice to rust fabric in?!! Seeing how I've rusted tins and washers I should have known not to toss the rusty items during the hectic packing for the move! I think that I may have even donated a skillet during the unpacking! At least I had the sense to bring the baking sheets, horse shoes, and rusted bars with me. Old Teflon baking sheets rust well once they've been scratched and I have quite a few of them!

I picked up a tarp at the dollar store last week to put down on the garage floor. There is something about having a brand new house that almost keeps me from making messes! Before I got the tarp I did manage to splatter the floor with spray paint and some of the rust. The tarp is the perfect size for the area I work in so I'll need to stock up on them!

The rust dyed pieces are now drying on the wood clothes rack that I've had for so long that I don't remember not having it! I think the only thing holding it together is the layers of paint from paper painting sessions. I was planning to look for a large enough plastic container for the rusty rods but decided that if the one I have isn't in use why wait! I have a tendency to buy containers on sale and when I return for more I never find them again. Talk about a bunch of mismatched containers! It's a Virgo thing . . .

I saved an old sheet that I'm cutting down so that I can continue experimenting with rust dyeing. I have a piece of lutradur soaking right now. Definitely addictive!

Even Later: the rust dyed felt dried in about 3 hours, what wouldn't in a boiling hot garage?! The felt isn't as rich as it was, pooh, but I'm wondering what would happen if I bleached out some areas. At least it appears that the felt has stopped flaking. I have 3 pieces soaking in vinegar and the one with steel wool bits spread out over the fabric and then rolled around a bottle is already rusting!