DIY Marbled Vintage Virgin Wool
It’s time to let them out of the closet… Those long-cherished but seldom used virgin wool blankets are needing some new purpose. Here’s a wonderful way to keep it in the family with this DIY Marbled Vintage Virgin wool tutorial.
The Lovely Blankets:
Ever since I have started to dye I look at everything in a different way – ‘can it be dyed’ way? I tend to push the limits of most of the media I use. After the great results of the shibori and tie dyeing I figured that wool can also have some new life. Real indigo is highly alkaline so using it to dye wool is not good. I do enjoy the colours and permanence that fibre reactive dyes yield.
Once you find a vintage blanket make sure it is clean. I do put mine through the wash as I like them to become felted even more. Some have gingerly taken such good care of them by dry cleaning but I actually like the felted properties for eco printing and also for the slippers as it will then not fray any more.
Wool Dyeing process:
There are acid dyes made specifically for wool (which is a protein fibre) but you can also use Fibre Reactive dye if you employ an acid like vinegar. Since the blanket wool is such a bulky fabric I like to cut it into smaller pieces for easier management.
Soak the wool in a solution of about 50% vinegar and water. Make sure it is well saturated. Wool does not absorb like cotton does. Wool is made of fibres that are actually hair so it absorbs differently than cotton. Once well soaked you will need to wring it in some way. It is difficult on the hands to squeeze it out of such large fabric so you may use the spin feature of the washing machine. You can scrunch it up as much or little as you like and fasten it in some way with cord or I used the binding from the blanket. If you tie it really tight you may leave permanent indents after the heat processing.
The Colour:
I used my favourite colour of fibre reactive dye called navy. It is a dark blue that has some tendencies to be purple which is fine with me! Using some repurposed squeeze bottles (hair colour) mix very strong solutions in cool water since you will not use very much.
As a trick I dip a piece of paper towel to see how strong the colour is. I want a variegated affect so I use small batches.
Squeeze some dye on the bundles which have been placed in plastic bags to catch excess. You will notice that the dye does act differently than cotton. Wool will NOT keep liquid in place. I noticed that it will ‘drain’ through so turning the bundles will help distribute the colour.
Yup, I’m always getting fingers of all colours! WEAR gloves!!! Squeeze and turn before adding too much colour.
This dye has fabulous permanence on natural fibres but will clean off quite nicely from counters and sinks; thankfully!
Setting the Dye:
Having used more dye than I had thought you can see that it did redistribute quite well. After double bagging it goes into the ‘for dyeing’ microwave to process. Give it short cooks and turn often to see how hot it is getting. If it is looking to burst it is too hot. I aim for the ‘just too hot for my hands’ temperature and then take them out and insulate them under old blankets/towels to finish processing. You can leave them for quite a while now, even until they cool. It’s a bit like the ice dyeing.
After the ‘batching’ it will need a good rinse. Don’t be alarmed that there is so much dye coming out. Since wool has a lot of space between the fibres much of the dye is unused and will rinse out. (note to self; use less next time)
The Wonderful Reveal:
The heat and washing will also wash out the natural lanolins from the wool so a finish rinse in some hair conditioner will soften it up again and make it much less ‘scratchy’.
Look at the lovely striations and interesting patterns. Each time I have done this I do get somewhat different results since it will depend on wetness, scrunch, the wool etc, but I am prepared to love them all!
The beauty of the wool is that it is soooo thick and is probably felted at this point so it will be nice to cut as it will not fray. It will be much like wool felt.
Next; what to make?! So many options; mittens?, slippers?…
I think I NEED another jacket! A girl can never have too many right?! Especially since it could just still be sitting in some linen closet wishing to get out in the world! Rescue those wool blankets… and make something! Gotta run and do some sewing…
Love this! I guess I’ll be on look out for wool now! Thank you!
I’m sure that older generation would be happy to know how their blankets can live on…
MY GOD GIRL!!! YOU ARE JUST …AH-MAZZZING!
THANK YOU FOR ALL THE BEAUTIFUL ART PROJECTS YOU DO, I COULD NEVER BUT, JUST LOVE SEEING YOUR ARTISTIC GENIUS 😍
Barb this is just beautiful. I can just imagine how beautiful a jacket will be made from this wool. I read your blog but do you have a site where you sell stuff? Thanks. Sherry
I do sometimes make a lot to perfect the process, I like to really learn every part. I don’t really want to be a mass producer but I do have an Etsy shop I will be posting some new things soon and possibly a wool jacket as well.
Dang! My jaw actually dropped at that gorgeous jacket. I will never look at wool blankets the same way again.
Maybe it’s my age that shows as I do appreciate some of the things from bygone eras. ‘And especially when it can become beautiful! So much to make; so little time!
2nd the OMG … so gorgeous … so many applications for it too!
Well after all those storms this year I can only think of warm and cozy… Anything white here is at risk!
What a gorgeous result!
I like the unpredictability, the surprise of wonderful patterns… magical art.
I love your blogs. You are a good teacher. And you are very creative. Thank you for sharing.
That’s kind to say. I also teach in post secondary school. A big part is trying to inspire the young crowd to have some enthusiasm for what they are doing! I love to see the sparkle in someones eye!
So gorgeous! Thank you for sharing the process. I just found a light blue wool blanket at the thrift store. Time to cut it up and do some dyeing and ecoprinting with it!
So exciting and full of possibilities…!
You can use food coloring very well with the same process you used, it takes very nicely on wool. Wilton’s gel and liquid works great. I use it on yarn and anything that has a good amount of wool in it that I want to give a new life to. What I love is its unpredictability, it does its own thing as the colors break into individual colors that make up the custom color. Black a mixture of so many colors comes out great too. I had a beautiful white woven wool blanket and cut it in half to wrap my dearest dog in for burial. I treasure the other half and still don’t have a project in mind, so it is still ivory white. Thanx Dearest for your kind and generous sharing.
Oh, yes I have read that! I was just wondering how light fast they are? I have had great permanence with the fibre reactive! So sweet for your beloved pet. I too see how the colours sometimes just decide what they want to be.
From one Barb to another… Thanks!!!
You mentioned using a ‘for dying’ microwave. Why do you use a dedicated microwave for dying?
I have read that it is a recommendation since you never know if some of the steam is escaping to the inside of the microwave. I really need to suggest safe practices. You could possibly use a heat source and process it in an old pot using a steam basket or the like. I have had people tell me that they also use ‘Koolaid’ to dye with which should (you’d think) be safe to be in microwave! Not sure how’d the colour be controlled though. So many options!