Petunias - Gladioli - Coleus Leaves

Petunias and gladioli made into a dye bath: result pale peachy pink. (used as middle silk in 3 x silk squares)

• Petunia, Gladioli, Coleus leaves and Cotinus leaves used in first bundle steam dye with 3 layers of silk: alum mordanted habotai/pink dyed non mordanted habotai/ habotai unmordanted.
• In each bundle dye process the flowers and coleus leaves were painted over with jar of petunia dye paste, which may have increased their colour.
• First result petunias a good pink on middle silk, 'blanket' silks showed interesting purple ghost outlines around petal edges of petunias, due to bleed through of petunias in middle layer having been painted with petunia dye liquid paste.  30 mins steam
• Second result with additional petunias steamed out those lines. Probably too long a steam at around 50 mins. (leaves generally need longer steam, but flowers shorter.
• Coleus leaves only pale pink result on first steam, but stronger pink on 2nd longer bundle steam.  [Note to use them with fraction of iron]
• CONCLUSION: Petunias are well worth working with.
• Three pieces changed considerably:  I bundle dyed these pieces several times, which lost the delicate pink 'prints', and turned rather beige; so I bundle dyed with flowers and leaves again; including purple Salvia flowers, and red hesperanth turning purple.
• By sandwiching them with blackberry dyed silk, the tight cord on bundles left nice wavy stripe lines 'embedded' into the background.  [Link]