New Batik

[tiedyejudy]

I have been doing soy wax batik for a couple of years now, mostly on shirts.  But I needed to make one more art quilt for an exhibit in November, and I always get the itch to do autumn leaves this time of year, so....

I really love soy wax... have I said that before?  I know if I wanted to do multiple dye layers I would need to re-wax, but this particular theme works well because I pre dye the leaf colors, trace the design, wax, then overdye with the darker colors.  Some day I think I will try it with another design, but for now, this is my fave!

[deb]

*sigh*

Batik envy here - that it LOVELY!!!!

[2D4]

Beautiful Judy.....


Jo

[kateb]

Oh my gosh that is FABULOUS !!

[sharonhep]

Judy,  that's gorgeous.  I have done traditional wax batik, but have never tried soy wax.  Just got some from ProChem.  Did you dye your lighter colors first, wax over them and do your background and then dye darker colors over it all? 

Sharon who is making a fall art quilt today

[tiedyejudy]

Thanks, all!  Yes, Sharon.  I used low water immersion to dye the yellow, orange, scarlet colors.  Then I traced the leaves, waxed, then again used low water immersion to add the browns.  I have been doing this on shirts for a couple of years now, so figured it was time to try some wall art... would like to expand my subject matter, but this one is soooooo easy to do!  I will have to think about what else I can do in a couple of steps like this one...

[sharonhep]

Thanks, Judy!

That was how I envisioned it.  I'll try it soon.

Sharon

[Jaja]

Looks very vivid. Unfortunately, there's not any sigle supplier who sells  soy wax here. I'd certainly want to try it out too, since easier wash out is very strong argument for me.

[tiedyejudy]

Hi, Jaja.  I'm wondering if you are able to communicate with the suppliers you buy from to see if they would be willing to import soy wax?  The argument you might use is that it is much friendlier to the environment, since you don't need to use harsh chemicals to remove the wax, and it heats at a lower temperature than parafin and beeswax, so you would need less energy to melt it.  I know that the supplier I use is willing to consider new products suggested by their customers... can't hurt to ask, right?  Sometimes they just need to see that there is a market for an item, although I know you folks have some regulatory hoops to jump through that maybe we don't have here in the states.  Wish I could figure a way to spirit some over to you!  You would definitely love the results!
Judy

[fiberartist219]

This is really beautiful! It is my favorite batik that I've seen so far.

It looks like it would be so much more complicated that what you described. It is just so gorgeous because it looks like it has a lot of depth to it.

[mishoga]

Judy, that is beautiful.
Have a couple of questions for you. On the LWI, do you keep the water very cool so the soy wax doesn't dissolve?

I just tried the soy wax yesterday (BTW, the melting pot, little wax burner I purchased from ProChem is great and I know they sell them at Michael's and AC Moore)
I have two garments ready to dye with designs waxed. I usually put my garments in the boiler room to cure but I'm nervous to do that with the soy because of warm temp. If I just leave the garment saturated with the dye for let's say 48 hours, will that work (at room temp)?

I need to learn to work with that little tool for waxing.
excuse any types.

Man, I dyed two garments the deepest burgundy. It is a pain to wash that out. Some colors are so time consuming to rinse out.


Paula, if you stumble upon this, I lost my password. Thanks

[tiedyejudy]

Yes, Mishoga... I use cold tap water to mix my dyes unless I'm using Turquoise, then I mix it with a little warmer water.  But when I apply to my project, the dyes are room temperature.  I only let the piece sit in the LWI for an hour before applying the soda ash, which by then is also room temperature.   Then I launder an hour or so later using hot water.  The wax stays intact until I wash out.  My garments 'cure' on top of the washer in my laundry room, which does get some sun from the window in the door.  I would gauge the temperature to get up to the 70's most of the time.
I can't imagine you would need to leave your garments for 48 hours unless you are concerned that the room temp is too cold... even then, I would think you would be able to launder much sooner than that.  As for the tjanting, I'm happier applying my wax with an artist's brush... I use a stiff bristle straight edge for outlining the design, and a cheapie paint store brush to fill in the middle of larger shapes.
Have fun, and post pictures!
Judy

[mishoga]

Judy, your work is looking so beautiful lately.
How's that site working for sales? I'm still on Etsy but thinking about purchasing a ecommerce site from intuit.
OK, I'm going to try the dye job today. I'll let you know how it comes out. Have to find a technique to replace the elmers.

[mishoga]

Is it possible to get crack lines with soy? It almost seems as if my dye job has crack lines.
Also, Judy and Paula, if you are dying a garment the darkest shade, doesn't that have to cure for awhile?

[ktaltre]

Mishoga,
Jane Dunnewold (from the Surface Design Demo dvd-2009) says you can get soy wax to crackle by putting it into the freezer for awhile after applying the wax. She also uses thickened dye to paint over/around the wax.
I routinely batch my dyeing for about 24 hours, and I've heard of 3 day batching times; however, many dyers use shorter batching times. Turquoise and any dye with turquoise in it may need longer batching times.
I like to let my dyed cloth sit around to take a break from it, deal with it the next day.
k. taltre