| I have been having a lot of fun dyeing raw fabric and white cotton clothing with the lees and cap from the wine harvest that we participated in recently. We were up at the vineyard at 2 in the morning (YES, 2 AM) to harvest the grapes before it got hot and before the bees woke up. The bees love the ripe grapes and I can imagine that the honey would be fabulous from those hives. After the fermentation and pressing there is a lot of material left over that can be used for dyeing so I grabbed a bucket, gathered up some of the left overs and went on to experiment with dyeing. I will post results after I do the final rinse and wash. It may work out great or not. We shall see. | 
Petit Verdot/Malbec with Iron Mordant (dry)
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Petit Verdot/Malbec with Vinegar bath (wet) The upper right photo is fabric that was soaked in the initial "juice" and then iron objects and vinegar were introduced after about 24 hours. It has a bluer cast than the fabrics on the left. These fabrics are still wet and will dry lighter than pictured. The two fabrics are a lighter weight PDF and a heavier weight Kona (the darker one). It will be interesting to see how they finish up when dry.
These fabrics were soaked in a vinegar bath also but without the iron materials. I have a T-shirt and a pair of no longer white Levi's that I am working on. David is working on several T-shirts that he has tied and dipped.
The color of the left hand fabric is more true to the hue of the grape juice but a lighter value. I may experiment with other mordants to see if there are some that will give a stronger, deeper color. I have friends that dye fibers, and I am giving them some of the juice to play with. I am sure they will come up with even better results. I will request photos of their results.
Have you dyed with wine before? What varietals and mordants did you use and how were your results?
These fabrics were soaked in a vinegar bath also but without the iron materials. I have a T-shirt and a pair of no longer white Levi's that I am working on. David is working on several T-shirts that he has tied and dipped.
The color of the left hand fabric is more true to the hue of the grape juice but a lighter value. I may experiment with other mordants to see if there are some that will give a stronger, deeper color. I have friends that dye fibers, and I am giving them some of the juice to play with. I am sure they will come up with even better results. I will request photos of their results.
Have you dyed with wine before? What varietals and mordants did you use and how were your results?
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