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Redfox

Dyeing Marabou with Lichen

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Hi Folks,

I'm working on a project and would like to try dying some white marabou with lichen or moss any one have any ideas. I read on line if you boil the lichen for twenty minutes and them put the material in you should be all set.

Thanks,

RedFox

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Is that what you should soak them in after dying, or are you adding that mixture to the natural color solution given off from the lichen?

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Afterwards. The Treatise of Fishing with an Angle has several methods of dying using natural materials. It's online, in Medieval spelling of the title, something like "The Treatisse of Fysshhing with an Angle." One thing I remember is walnut skins for a green color of horsehair line.

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I'm not sure Lichen requires a mordent. Thats what you add to a dye to set it into a material for those not into all this dyeing lark. The Lichen was used traditionally for tartans and producing the natural browns, reds, yellow and olive green hues seen in tartans. Turmeric is another item not requiring a mordent. Also Coffee and tea.

I was going to play with some lichen but its not as common as you think when you look around for it, you are looking at 1kg of lichen for half litre of water if I remember correctly.

 

You will need to heat the material in the dye bath, so heat up lichen in water and then lift the lichen out when the colours leached into the water. Now put in material, bring to boil then allow to simmer untill the water starts to loose its colour and the material has taken it in. Avoid stirring the material too much if its wool or you'll make it into a felt.

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I have several books on dyeing with lichens and many on dyeing with natural dyes. For dyeing purposes there are two main types of lichens. Orchil lichens give purples and crottle lichens give various shades of brown. The method to use depends on the lichen that you plan to use. A quick test would be to measure 50 to 200% of lichen to the weight of the marabou. Add everything to a pot of soft water. If your water is hard you can add a little vinegar to neutralize the water. Bring up the temperature of the water to about 175° F and hold for two or three hours. The color of the water won't change much if at all. Allow to cool overnight. It's only necessary to briefly rinse the marabou to remove the bits of lichen. Bill

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