How to dye wool?

[GermanTreasures]

I still have a knitting mashine in the basement and I have to find some products to sell during the winter months. That's why I want to dye some wool and make some wintery apparel like scarves 'n stuff. I've got enough MX to last me a lifetime (thanks Jaja) so now I'd like to use it to dye the wool.

[Kathy]

I have not done much wool dyeing myself. Are you planning on dyeing roving or spun wool? Don't think it makes much difference other than how you keep spun wool from becoming a big knotted mess.

You can either apply the dye to the wool through direct application(i.e. squirt bottle) and then steam it to get a varigated look or do solid color immersion on the stove top.

In either method, the dye is used as an acid dye sicne you will be using an acid(acetic, citric, or a white vinegar)

The 2 resources I have used for reference when I have done wool are
Prochem's site and GFWSheep

Kathy

[fiberartist219]

You will need to use acid dyes rather than fiber reactive dyes. The process is different and a little more dangerous, but it can be done. The acid gets into the protective coating of the animal hair. Be careful though, when dying wool, it tends to nap!

[pburch]

You will need to use acid dyes rather than fiber reactive dyes.

But you can also use fiber reactive dyes as acid dyes. You just have to use an acid, such as white vinegar, instead of soda ash, and use more heat. It is best to steam-set the results, as the room-temperature recipes might not produce the color intensity you want.

Wool takes color quite well with the soda ash recipe, but the high pH damages it badly. The low pH of the acid dyeing recipe protects the texture of the wool, which is very important.

Paula

[fiberartist219]

Wow. I did not know that! When I was taught to dye wool, we used acid dyes, and we activated them with HCl. If I had known you could use vinegar, I would have gladly used that instead, because the rubber apron, goggles, etc used to handle acid was a pain in the butt. The acid hurt like crazy if even you got a tiny drop on you. Plus, I was told that fiber reactive dyes could only be used on plant fibers (and silk), and acid dyes were only to be used for animal fibers.

Good to know!

[Jaja]

Chris, I think the acid way with MX for wool is not problematic except for two moments
- not to let it felt during washing
- do color tests cause you'll experience color shifts with respect to results on cotton (especially on mixed shades)

I hope you'll show us your first experimental outputs...