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002 Alkanet_1
• Southern and Eastern Europe
• Sprawling woody based perennial plant from the borage family
• Dyestuff: Seeds are difficult to obtain, usually sold as dried chopped roots
Procedure Notes:
• No mordant is required / Alum gives purple and lavender colours.
• Use equal weight of dyestuff and fiber
• Simmer dyestuff in water for at least one hour to extract colour (has a strong unpleasant odor – ensure work area is ventilated).
• Extracted dye is pale green brown and looks unpromising.
• Strain off dye liquid, add fibres and simmer for at least an hour for strong colours.
• Alkanet is sensitive to pH value and mineral content of water used.
Dye Date: November 13/ 2005
Source: Louet Sales / Shuttleworks
Quantity Used: 16 grams
Yarn / Fibre used: 100% (handspun) breed unspecified
Supplier: Local Alberta Wool Producer – Raw fleece – washed, carded and spun by J. Dixon
Proportion of Dyestuff to fibre: 1:1
Dyestuff: chopped roots
Mordants used: Alum, Iron
Mordant procedure used: (See Section A)
Water: City of Calgary tap water
Lightfast: Not tested
Wash fast: Moderate colour loss with first wash with Palmolive DW soap
Judi’s Notes: Dyestuff was added to hot water, and simmered for one hour. Wet fibre added and additional one hour to simmer. VERY SMELLY! Fibre was very dark grey / blackish, but bath did not exhaust fully.
