Indigo has always had a draw for me but as something not easily grown in our climate here in Scotland I'd always thought it one of the last things I should try. Going the whole hog for ease of process I opted for Freeze-dried Indigo crystals which give you a dye vat in a few minutes. The fermentation process to get the right chemical reaction has already been done for you.
So Indigo crystals plus Soda Ash makes the basic solution to the right ph. Then Spectralite is added and gently stirred in to remove oxygen from the liquid - we only want oxygen to complete the colour change after the liquid has been absorbed into the fibres.
The colour shift is great fun. Alchemical magic of green to blue happening right before your eyes :D
So Indigo crystals plus Soda Ash makes the basic solution to the right ph. Then Spectralite is added and gently stirred in to remove oxygen from the liquid - we only want oxygen to complete the colour change after the liquid has been absorbed into the fibres.
The colour shift is great fun. Alchemical magic of green to blue happening right before your eyes :D
I tried indigo on raw fleece and all the variants I could that were pre-dyed. The bright yellow Shallots give a lovely green.
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