Here is my raggedy test page.  Sticking 2" square samples of silk paj onto paper is no small trick.  I think the lower left square is a deeper shade than the rest of the piece.  What do you think?

Comments

Mon, 08/08/2011 - 14:15

Karren K. Brito

That square does look darker, but so do the top 3.  Can't tell if is the dyeing or lighting for the photo.  We'll have to rely on you to see and judge.

I do see light lines in that bottom left square, they are called barré or sometimes barry.  They are in the cloth, caused by uneven beating and usually considerated a serious defect in cloth.  I have never seen the 5mm china silk without them, it must be hard to weave this delicate cloth. They are rare in 8mm china silk.

Mon, 08/08/2011 - 14:34

Karren K. Brito

When you dye a long piece of cloth, yards and yards, it usually collapses in the dye bath into a long wrinkled piece referred to as a rope.  In most dyeing machines this rope is moved to ensure levelness.  The way the cloth is moved depends on the machine; in a beck the ends are sewn together into a loop which is then placed over a whinch, others move like a washing machine, and others use jets of the dyebath to move the cloth.  If the aggitation is too vigorous for delicate cloth  the edges of the folds, wrinkles can abrade and cause rope marks.  Here are some in a black silk crepe piece I dyed:

At first they appear to be wrinkles you can iron out but on closer inspection you can see they are just lighter .  Silk crepe seems to be the most susceptible to rope marks and the darker the color the more they show.

Mon, 08/08/2011 - 15:21

Anne Vincent

Is it best to lift, unfold and reintroduce the fabric into the dye bath?  I've been doing more of this and less 'stirring'.  It requires more presence at the dye pot, but I'd rather do it correctly once than have to do it again.  The temperature did spike a couple of times past 65 degrees C, but I am learning about the canner with larger dye baths.  Could that lead to the piece being less level?