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Developing Colors in Foxfibre® Yarns and Fabrics

Color Developing: Making Yarn or Fabric Color Change Happen by Washing or Boiling

The raw colors of the cotton shown in Vreseis yarns may display only a hint of the colors to come once "developed" by washing and/or boiling. Here are some of the techniques to develop the color before weaving, knitting, or crocheting it, including what spinners and weavers over the years have figured out and shared with me.

To understand by seeing an example: compare the green chenille 1000 yds./lb. (on the left) and the boiled green chenille 600 yds/lb (on the right). These yarns are made of the exact same green cotton; the boiled yarn has had its color fully developed by boiling and the un-boiled one is yet-to-be-developed.

1. The higher the pH of the water (the more alkali or basic) used to wash or boil the cotton, the darker the colors will become. To raise the pH, you can use common laundry detergent, baking soda, or washing soda. To lower the pH, you may want to try lemon juice.
2. Your tap water may have a slightly high pH on its own, without amendment.
3. I use about 2 Tablespoons baking soda while boiling about a gallon of water. I add 1/4 cup washing soda to my first few loads of laundry when I wash the fabrics for the first times.
   • The more minerals in the water, the brighter your colors may be.
   • If you wish to see the final color then boiling is the best way.
   • If you like the colors to darken over about 5-10 washes, then just launder the finished products in warm or hot water and dry in the dryer with as much heat as possible. It is the heat and the moisture that bring the color out.
   • These colors do not wash out, but they do fade in the sun. It is exposure to sunlight that wears them out.
4. If you want the final color right away, then I recommend boiling the yarn before beginning your project.
   • Make sure to have enough water for your yarn so it is completely covered by water when pressed down (at first it will only float on the surface, you have to keep pushing it down at first).
   • Make sure that the water is basic by adding something like baking soda.
   • Bring the yarn in the water to a simmer and keep it simmering for a good 20 minutes.
   • About twenty minutes of boiling gives the maximum color for the browns.
   • The longer you boil the green the darker it will become until it maximizes at around 1 hr.
     
     • The green color is actually quite like litmus paper (also called pH test paper). It turns yellow when exposed to acids and then goes back to green when exposed to bases.
       For example: if you make a shirt out of the green cotton and you drip some lemon juice on it (an acid) a yellow spot will develop. This spot will disappear with laundering as long as you use a normal detergent that is basic (Woolite™ and other pH neutral detergents will not bring the color back).
     • The green is the most susceptible to tanning in the sun; it quickly tans if in the sunlight. This is somewhat reversed with laundering, but I do not recommend making curtains out of the green, unless you do not mind it developing into a tan color over time.