Flattery
Well-Known Member
Re: The Nine Gates - COMPLETED
Hey, Murdoc.
What kind of dye are you most interested in? I can throw out some information but each color is pretty specific in its formulation.
To make jet black, as used in the center of this book I did recently:
You'll have to collect black walnuts. It can take anywhere from 6-9 months depending on your climate for these to ferment. Essentially, you do the following:
1. Place 8-10 whole nuts into a pot, and fill with water so that the nuts are almost covered, but poking out the top of the water level. (Note that you'll never be able to use this pot for cooking ever again.)
2. Bring it to a boil, with the temperature knob just above medium heat. This will steam the color out more than boil it out. Once the water level is reduced 1/4 of its original level, you'll have a little bit of thick, coffee-looking extract. Pour this into a heat-resistant container though a strainer or seive.
3. Refill the pot with water as you did the first time, and repeat this boiling and straining procedure until you have as much dye extracted as you want.
4. Once the extracted liquor cools, pour it into a large jar, and place the walnuts you boiled inside with it. Keep this in a dark, somewhat warm place for several months.
5. You'll have to check on it often to see when it's right. You can tell it's ready when it smells like cheap wine.
6. Strain the solution, and it's ready to go.
7. Collect about three pounds of green juniper tree needles. Look for a tree with reddish bark.
8. Let the needles dry, and burn them into ash. You need three cups of ash.
9. Add the ash to 2 cups boiling water. Let it boil for about 15-20 minutes, and wear eye protection and gloves. This makes a kind of low-grade lye that is caustic.
10. Once the lye is produced, strain it, and the left over liquid solution is the alkali modifier.
11. Add 1/4 cup of this modifier to 1 cup of your dye solution. Use it warm. It will go on gray-ish but in a matter of seconds turn black.
12. To make this lightfast, you'll need to boil bark for several hours to extract the tannin-rich resin. Strain this, then add to the dye solution, or apply it after the dye. You can also add the bark to the walnut solution and simmer it for half an hour.
The steps above for juniper ashes and such apply to all the dyes I make, and I make them in large quantities. I generally do it twice a year so that I have enough on hand.
Alternatively, to make brown, don't let the walnuts ferment as long. Maybe 2-3 weeks.
Cheers!
Hey, Murdoc.
What kind of dye are you most interested in? I can throw out some information but each color is pretty specific in its formulation.
To make jet black, as used in the center of this book I did recently:
You'll have to collect black walnuts. It can take anywhere from 6-9 months depending on your climate for these to ferment. Essentially, you do the following:
1. Place 8-10 whole nuts into a pot, and fill with water so that the nuts are almost covered, but poking out the top of the water level. (Note that you'll never be able to use this pot for cooking ever again.)
2. Bring it to a boil, with the temperature knob just above medium heat. This will steam the color out more than boil it out. Once the water level is reduced 1/4 of its original level, you'll have a little bit of thick, coffee-looking extract. Pour this into a heat-resistant container though a strainer or seive.
3. Refill the pot with water as you did the first time, and repeat this boiling and straining procedure until you have as much dye extracted as you want.
4. Once the extracted liquor cools, pour it into a large jar, and place the walnuts you boiled inside with it. Keep this in a dark, somewhat warm place for several months.
5. You'll have to check on it often to see when it's right. You can tell it's ready when it smells like cheap wine.
6. Strain the solution, and it's ready to go.
7. Collect about three pounds of green juniper tree needles. Look for a tree with reddish bark.
8. Let the needles dry, and burn them into ash. You need three cups of ash.
9. Add the ash to 2 cups boiling water. Let it boil for about 15-20 minutes, and wear eye protection and gloves. This makes a kind of low-grade lye that is caustic.
10. Once the lye is produced, strain it, and the left over liquid solution is the alkali modifier.
11. Add 1/4 cup of this modifier to 1 cup of your dye solution. Use it warm. It will go on gray-ish but in a matter of seconds turn black.
12. To make this lightfast, you'll need to boil bark for several hours to extract the tannin-rich resin. Strain this, then add to the dye solution, or apply it after the dye. You can also add the bark to the walnut solution and simmer it for half an hour.
The steps above for juniper ashes and such apply to all the dyes I make, and I make them in large quantities. I generally do it twice a year so that I have enough on hand.
Alternatively, to make brown, don't let the walnuts ferment as long. Maybe 2-3 weeks.
Cheers!
