Dye Tests

Dye Tests

Like Two Trains Passing in the Night

I did a collection back in the fall using vinyl tape and indigo dye. I loved it and even stole one for myself, but I was limited to doing a single color with a contrasting natural stripe.

What I really wanted to do was two different colors. I did a few tests back then but I couldn’t figure out the right way to do it. Either the colors were bleeding into each other or they weren’t lining up correctly. There would be little gaps that didn’t get dyed at all.

A failed dye test. See how the brown spreads into the grey.

But over the past few months I’ve been doing some tests in my spare time. It turns out there’ s no trick or anything to it. Just lots of practice. I’d cut long strips of leather and dye lines on them over and over. After a few months I started getting the hang of it.

So now I’m working on turning that into a new collection. I’ve already started dyeing leather and drawing out ideas. I think I’ll go with a W&R classic of brown and blue to start things off.