Dyeing Silk Strips....

I love using silk strips in my work.

Silk is crazy expensive...

So I buy silk clothes at the thrift shop and tear them into strips.

I have a large variety of colors and textures.

  But I wanted to play around and see how I could make them more me...

Enter RIT Dye!

I used the Orange Color Perfect kit with the sprayer.

I sprayed the silk on a plastic tray.

Once it dried a bit, I turned it and sprayed it some more.

I just kept doing that until it was mostly sprayed. 

 I did not want all over color.

Now the hard part...

Patience..

Waiting for it to dry...

I wanted to try some of my homemade alcohol ink too.

Same method...

Spray...turn and spray some more...

This looks a little lighter than the Color Perfect.

This where I forgot to take pictures...

Once dry, I rinsed the silk under cold water til it ran clear.

  Then I squeezed it out very well in a big ball and let it dry.

I have been trying for awhile to get that crinkly texture to my silk strips.

This finally did it...

Here are some finished pieces I used them in...

I am planning another post on these necklaces...

I adore the way they turned out...

I get the same joy I did from the other etched bullet casing necklace I showed you.

These little vials are capped with shotgun shells....

Really!

How cool is that?

If you want to make your own, pick up the Autumn issue of Belle Armoire magazine for complete instructions...

on newsstands now...

That is just the beginning of what these dyed strips can become.

I highly recommend giving it a try yourself...

I will swap one of these necklaces over at Swap and Tell  at Tarnished Royalty.

Thanks for stopping by...

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