Yesterday afternoon the top of my vat was looking promising and I just couldn't wait...
The blue on the paper is from the foam that I skimmed off so that it wouldn't clump on the fabric.
The top fabric is cotton, the bottom wool/silk blend, 15 minute soak.
So...I found a piece of cotton, rolled it up and placed it in the top of the jar. To keep the vat from being exposed to oxygen (it seemed like a good idea), I put the plastic bag of water that had been used as a weight to keep the leaves submerged during soaking on the top of the jar where the fabric wasn't sticking out.
During the night either some critter got desperate for water or there was an explosion! When I checked this water most of the dye bath was on the deck surrounding the jar.
Hmmm...
This is the fabric about an hour after being rinsed. None of the color rinsed out so it should be colorfast.
In about 4 weeks there will hopefully be more indigo leaves to play with. I will save what is left in this vat and add it to a second batch.
Random thoughts:
Dyeing with indigo is very much a science. You can get supplies for a chemical vat and follow the directions and will most likely succeed.
Dyeing with indigo is a bit magic. I suspect that there is a lot more flexibility with the variables (ratios, temps, length of time soaking) when working with a natural vat of some sort. For example, I didn't heat this at all. Directions always call for this. And...we've been in the 80's and 90's with lows of high 60's at night. So maybe I was warm enough anyway?
I tend to soak cloth and yarn longer. It's never been a problem.
I am not even close to an expert on this. I just like play, play, play. Experiment. Try again. And research...
Sources of info/places I have taken classes:
India Flint/School of Nomad Arts
Botanical Colors I have been listening to their "Feedback Friday's and found some great information, including the last part of this episode where they talked to Britt Boles. The whole episode is great though, the first part is with Claire Wellesley-Smith.
Indigo by Kerstin Neumuller and Douglas Luhanko
And this little bit with Caitlin Ffrench.
P.S. Here is the fabric dyed with the indigo using the blender method (Another good set of instructions can be found here, at the Dogwood Dyer site), white fabric, and the fermented fresh leaf indigo (on the bottom):
I didn't have a lot of leaves for the yardage with the blender method. It's about 2 yards of silk and I had one blender full of "juice." The color isn't captured very well, it's a very soft aqua.