Rust dying

[Fabricslut]

I took a go at rust dying yesterday for the first time. I didn't have any rusty bits to use so a wrapped my 2 cast iron frying pans in muslin with some interesting circular patterns. I even managed to get some of the name engraved on the bottom of the big one. Lord knows what I'll do with them but I'm now wanting to brave the frigid temps here today to go out and dig in the garage for more inspiration.

For those who've tried this, what is the most interesting thing you've used when rust dying?

[Ruth Lane]

I like your 3 circles rusted piece. I used an old tail pipe from a car that I found in the woods..

[Fabricslut]

Thanks Ruth. I tried to round up some rusty garden ornaments but they're frozen in the ground. I guess it will have to wait till spring.

[lilian]

oh, this looks good....wauu..

my first attempt you can see here..
http://cafeolivia.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2008-02-10T12%3A1...

as you see I used an eatgere !! but not so exeptionel figures..
I wired it with iron flower "thread"
(sorry I am danish and dont know all the right words..!!!, hope you do understand the meaning)

[Liz Plummer]

Lovely circles piece! I've mainly gone for scrunching fabric up in various baking trays , although I have got a good print of spanners and things like that from my husband's DIY tools! I love the serendipity of the results - one of mine turned out like an antique map! Oh and one thing I've used that I forgot about till I just looked at my blog photos is an old child's bucket which had gone rusty! I think I used that for the piece in the third link - I scrunched it up like shibori and wrapped it round it.

Here are a few of the pieces on my blog - for the map you have to scroll down the entry a bit (first link):
http://lizplummer.com/blog/2007/10/13/painting-on-tissue/
http://lizplummer.com/blog/2007/05/03/rust-dyed-fabrics/
http://lizplummer.com/blog/2005/11/22/484/

[Fabricslut]

Great pieces Liz. I got black bits on one where the fine steel wool that I used literally disintegrated into the fabric. I call in 'burnt toast' because that's what it reminds me of.

[Liz Plummer]

I once got black by accident and apparently if it comes into contact with, I think it's tannin, it turns black. It used to be one of the only ways you could get black. I think. And if you use madder with rust, instead of getting reds you get purples. Apparently. I'll have to try it sometime. Mine's still rather hit and miss! I suppose the rust is an iron mordant and mordants affect the colours of natural dyes.

[Dawn Kopczynski]

Hi everyone!
OK so I took my Husband out to walk along a construction site that used to be a part of a railroad bed. The snow is starting to melt here and things are being to suface. We found a few bits and brought them home. I wraped them up in old sheet and poured vinegar over them and left them for 24 hours to soak. Not much happened , what did I do not right?
Thanks
Dawn

[Fabricslut]

Dawn,
This is how I did it: I mixed water with a good bit of vinegar and soaked the muslin. I squeezed out the fabric leaving in good and damp then wrapped the frying pans with the fabric and placed it all in a sealed plastic bag for several hours. I tried a couple of other pieces and left them overnight.
When you say that you left them to soak, what exactly did you do? Was the fabric sopping wet or damp?

~patti

[Dawn Kopczynski]

Hi Patti

Thanks for your reply. I did wet the sheet first with vinegar and water. I then put the sheet in a bin and poured more vinegar over it. I did get a little rust but not much. Maybe the fabric was just to thick for the rust to get to. I won't give up though will try again. I really like the effect of the rust dying. I will report back with my next try.

Dawn

[Liz Plummer]

I usually leave them a few days or a week to rust, although often most of it will happen in 24 hours. Is the rust good and orange? Because apparently that's the best condition for rusting (presumably it comes off more easily... not sure...). I also wrap them in plastic to keep them damp.

Liz

[Tracy Murray]

I think that there has to be some air to create the oxidation of the metal. Left for a longer period of time works better. A week or more.

[Tricia]

Hi,
Love your experiments, they remind me of something I did when I was an art student years ago before I took my textile degree. I experimented with a load of rusty old keys. They make wonderful prints. You might like to try something like this repeated, I think it would be fascinating.

Tell me can you let me know how you managed to get your copyright onto your photos, that's a snazzy,clever idea. I don't suppose you think that there is some facility on my digital camera that I haven't found yet that will let me do this is there?

I wonder whether I could do some rust dyeing on my felt, might be worth a try. I did rust dye some mohair and it looks like blond/golden hair. Well, I look forward to seeing your next experiments. Regards Tricks