Variegated? Space Dyed? Overdyed? Understand the Dyeing Process Behind Those Wonderful, NewDecorative Threadsby Elaine WarnerOriginally published in Needle Pointers, Apr/May 1990 and revised in October 2000 Editor's
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is on the upswing and decorative threads have become the "in"
thing. Many articles have been written informing you, the consumer, about
these new threads as they become available so now it's time to give you
an in-depth look at some of them.
VARIEGATED
vs. SPACE DYED vs. SHADOWDYED vs. OVERDYED - it's a fine line that separates
them.
For years we have all used a variegated thread in our stitching, whether it was in some form of embroidery or in knitting, but what actually denotes a thread as being variegated? Well, the literal translation is "marked with spots, streaks, etc: varied coloration." However, in the world of stitchery we were first introduced to it as being a thread with measured blocks of color, usually hues of a color evenly spaced from light to dark and then repeating light to dark. This process is usually done by large machinery (mass produced) on bleached or natural ("gray goods") threads. Of course, we also had available a few threads that gave us varied coloration but all were, and are, mass produced on bleached or natural thread. Spaced Dyed threads are just that, space dyed. Now this process is either mass produced or hand done in various ways on bleached or natural goods. The literal translation of the term space dyed is "The area or distance over, between or within". I have taken the liberty of referring to my method of dyeing on natural goods as Space Dyed because the color/colors are somewhat measured. The dye is usually measured into a liquid state and then sprinkled, brushed, dipped or air-brushed on to the goods. I prefer to work the color into the thread by hand. The majority of the time you will find space dyed threads are vari-colored. Shadowdyed is a play of light and shadow applied to previously dyed, natural or bleached goods creating the illusion of an interception of light. It is usually monochromatic, taking a specific hue and applying it in different values to the threads. The end result is similar to the peaks and valleys created by light cast upon a piece of folded velvet. The next category is Overdyed thread, with which I am most familiar. Overdyeing is dyeing color on top of previously dyed color. Once again, the dye is usually mixed into a liquid state but is applied by hand so that the dye is worked in to the base material. In most instances the dye colors are unevenly spaced and do allow the previously dyed color (base color) to become an integral part of the color scheme. All of us have played around with dyeing something, but a few of us decided to make it a commercial venture and with this decision immediately removed ourselves from the realm of the kitchen sink. I cannot speak for others, but I can give you some insight into the techniques I use to overdye. First of all, I treat overdyeing as an exact science as well as a business. Exact placement of color is predetermined for consistency in color placement on the stitching strand. Since I prefer to use chemical dyes, and only stainless steel and glass are chemically inert, I use only glass containers for all of my dyeing. The chemical dye is first diluted into liquid form and a setting agent is added. I like to develop my own colors, so several colors are mixed to obtain the ONE right color. The base color being dyed upon has to be taken into consideration, of course, so a greater percentage of the time we must remember that blue dye on blue yarn does not necessarily give you any shade of blue. Each dye color is worked into the thread by hand. After all colors are applied to the thread being worked on we then, carefully, run a hand through the applied dyes to make sure one color "bleeds" into another. Further setting of color is done by placing the yarn pans in ovens. After this process has been completed the yarn is thoroughly washed until the water is clear. A final wash of cold water finishes the setting of color. Then all yarn is hung to dry naturally which often takes a week to ten days. We try our best to assure color fastness, but of course there is no way we can guarantee it. I don't think there is anyone producing hand dyed threads who would tell you their product is colorfast. We also try to obtain the exact coloring from dye lot to dye lot but we can only come close. Dye lot variances are caused by a change in the weather (humidity level), chemicals and/or mineral levels in the water or the amount of each color particle mixed which comprises THE color (dye manufacturers also have dye color variances). I hope I have helped you in understanding what is involved in bringing a vari-colored thread on to the market for your stitching pleasure. Use it, enjoy it and LOVE IT!
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