2 in 1

lots of ideas out in bloggity blogland are awesome and i want to try them...today i am trying 2, in the same project! Look out, world! i know!!! crazy huh?

not really, but we'll pretend.

so these cotton gauze swaddling blankets that are so amazing and large and useful especially in the summer or in AZ period, can be bought at Target but then i saw this idea on MADE (wow, i really like that Dana) to make your own cotton gauze swaddling blanket!!! awesome.  and a friend of mine just had her baby yesterday, 2 weeks early, and when i asked her what she might want, she said some lightweight swaddling blankets...ding ding ding!!!

so i went to joann's...and let me interject, i am not really a snap judgement type person...i really love to give people the benefit of the doubt and i even really like it when people surprise me.  but sometimes thoughts slip in, like when i saw the guy at the cutting counter in Joann's, i might have thought, "i'm not sure how much help this guy is going to be, finding the fabric i need" and i didn't like that thought, but there aren't many guys in joann's, especially at the cutting counter, with tattoos etc. but i asked him where the cotton gauze might be, and do you know what??? he knew just where it was!!!!  good job, guy at joann's for knowing your store and for surprising me when i had no right to think any judgement in the first place! good job!

i digress, so i found the fabric, it was reasonable per yard, so i got enough to make 2 blankets and then Lo AND Behold, the heaven's opened and in the circular for Joann's that's by the door...there was a golden 50% coupon! talk about making my day! i should have bought more! 

anyway, got the fabric. washed it. got the RIT dye at Walmart (which is oddly placed by the bleach and fabric detergent), and went to work. 

i referenced these tutorials by Dana at MADE (here and here), these tips from This Mama Makes Stuff and these tips from Delia at Delia Creates.

there is nothing contradictory in what they are saying, just a couple of differences in method.  i went with boiling some of the water, that Delia suggested, rather than just doing all hot tap water.  side effect: water was so hot i couldn't get my hands in there for the first rounds of squishing and waiting but i made do with my ladle:) decided to use a metal implement instead of wood, so i wouldn't be dyeing one of my wooden spoons... but i did think that using the boiling water helped the dye absorb quickly into the fabric.

 gloves are a good idea. i let the fabric steep in the dye for 5 minute intervals and then would go and swish it around, squish it with my ladle or hands, working the dye into it more. then let it steep again for 5 mins.  after about 15 minutes, i went to 10 min intervals until the fabric had been sitting in the dye bath for about an hour or so.  that's when i decided to stop, you can certainly let it sit for longer, but, as you might have guessed, i'm an impatient crafter sometimes:)

then you RINSE the youknowwhat out of the fabric, with as HOT of water as your hands can stand, until only trace amounts of color run off.

yellow was first, here it is rinsed, sitting beside it's white cousin

purple dye bath (darker color = more prone to stain sink, clothes, hands etc.)

A LOT more rinsing with the purple, LOTS!

Then i washed them separately from each other, in a very small load, with a couple of things of like colors.  one wash in HOT water, one wash in COLD water for each blanket. then dried them, still separated. i feel confident with all the rinsing and washing i've done, that in the future they will be fine to be washed with other items in a regular load.

i am LOVING purple lately and i LOVE yellow....but i am just not feeling them together, for my friend who i will give them to.  so we may go back to the store for more supplies (twist my arm! go back to the fabric store??? crazy talk:)) and i'll try another dye bath...maybe turquoise or pink this time:)

here they are after they were washed (twice) and dried.

as you can see the purple one faded QUITE a bit, which is fine, i was hoping it would lighten up some anyway...although in the spirit of full disclosure, it did dye a little splotchy, i think i'll put it back into a purple dye bath and see if that evens it out:)  after that i just need to hem them...and maybe do another one in a different color:) fun to experiment and try new things!