Purple tiger

Purple tiger
Originally uploaded by tigerb.

Back and forth folds at 90 to 150 degree angles before tying produced the purple tiger.

Red Scorpion

Red Scorpion
Originally uploaded by tigerb.

This was a red veil scrunched around three 1" cords and tied very close together. The scalloped black border at the top was an experiment in not binding the end of the veil to the cord evenly.

Lily Pond

Lily Pond
Originally uploaded by tigerb.

Here is the Lily Pond, turquoise and chartreuse Procion MX dyes doing just as they please. Sold to the lovely Nalingee a mere four days after completion!

Jade Shibori

Jade Shibori
Originally uploaded by tigerb.

This is the Jade Dragon, a green veil overdyed with navy after an interesting shibori fold. It almost looks like a woodcut print.

never hurry, NEVER hurry!

Gigantic D'OH! moment last night.

I'm hurriedly dyeing some veils to take along to the Reda workshop in Cedar Rapids this weekend, because a friend of mine told me there might be someone who could sell for me on consignment. (Since I'm taking the dance workshop, I have no time to sit and vend.) So last night I pull out my plan for a coral-to-gold wash, I throw the silk in the vinegar, I apply the dye, I get a second piece of silk going, I'm buzzing along...

...and then I notice, while rinsing, that the veil seems to be folded over. Huh. I'll just unfold it and...

...except I wasn't dyeing a 108" long silk veil in 5mm. I was dyeing a 72" long silk sarong in 10mm! Yes, I accidentally dyed sarongs instead of veils. ARRRGH!

Never hurry. Take your time and do it right. This shall be my motto. Henceforth, anyway.

you know you're a fabric dyer when...

You know you're a fabric dyer when...

...you carefully paste up your instant hot chocolate rather than just dumping all the hot water in.

...you get roses and exclaim "a coral to gold wash! I want to try that!" instead of saying "how lovely!"

...you forget to stop at the store you wanted in the mall because the guy you're walking behind has such an interesting tie-dye shirt on.

...you can no longer detect the smell of vinegar because you're so used to it (silk dyers).

...you find yourself looking around for your mask before opening any jar of anything.

...you're the one who wants the leftover nitrile gloves from the wallpaper-removal project and you don't understand why nobody else wants them.

...you weigh yourself and are surprised the unit isn't grams.

...you are subconsciously shopping for dye supplies everywhere: office supplies, hardware store, kitchen gadget place, medical supply, grocery store, coffee shop....

sigh, pricing again

Looks like I might have to lower my prices on the multiple-color 3yd x 45" veils. A couple Chicago vendors are selling somewhat-similar veils for $35, so I am considering matching that. Heaven knows sales aren't so great at the moment. My best market for veils right now is the local pros, and they don't need to buy new veils that often. It might be smarter if I concentrated more on the student market, since every new student who stays in class needs a veil at some point, and they're not so eager to shell out $40 for a veil, even if it is silk.

The question, really, is whether I can afford to stay in the veil business. On the one hand, $40 for these veils is even with most of the market, and I think that the profit I make on a veil is pretty accurately compensating me for the time it takes to design and make one. But if I can't sell them for $40 and they sit around in stock... obviously I am not being compensated. :-D If I come down to $35, well, that's a slimmer return on my time. But it's probably worth trying out a "sale" to see how that goes. If sales are still low at the "sale price" then what's the point? Then I'm simply dyeing to amuse myself. That's okay... but it means I will start picking and choosing my projects very carefully.

The thing that's really kind of amusing is that people think solid veils should be a whole lot cheaper than the multicolored, like half the price. Obviously they've never stood over a hot dye pot, stirring to get an even color! I think I'll stick with my "$5 less" rule.