Help me, oh LJ hivemind! D.I.Y. dithering!

[cupcake_goth]

Thanks to some excellent thrift store luck, I have a bunch of b&w striped fabric. (Helpful Hint: bedsheets are a great source of bulk yardage for fabrics. Especially if you're willing to add a lining to a skirt you make from them.)

Anyway, yes, b&w striped fabric. I just finished cutting out all of the pieces for one of my usual skirts (knee-length, ruffle-edged, and tiers of ruffles down the back panel), and those pieces are now gently simmering in a pot full of black RIT. This will turn them into a black and grey-ish purple striped fabric, yay!

I have enough of the fabric left to make a second of the same type of skirt. My question is this: do I want to cut out the pieces for the skirt and then lightly tea-dye them to an ivory shade? I already have some b&w striped skirts, and the same goes for black and pink stripe. An antiqued ivory/sepia might be a good addition to my skirt collection. But I'm dithering about it. What do you folks think?

[Poll #1515631]

Comments

[maudelynn.livejournal.com]

Dye it pink :D

[untouched-sugar.livejournal.com]

Is your icon Robert Downey Jr with a teacup?!
...
Oh no! Drool on my keyboard?!

[maudelynn.livejournal.com]

Why, yes it is :D

[torreybird.livejournal.com]

OTOH, what about dyeing it a lovely shade of palest blue? In a mostly-black ensemble, it would add a great surprise as a lining.

(laughs quietly to self - blue! when the only correct answer is TICKYBOXES!)

[cupcake-goth.livejournal.com]

Bloooooo? What is this blooooo you speak of?

[amethyst-clan.livejournal.com]

Variety is always good. And if you don't like it, you can sell it.

(But I imagine you will. :))

[bijouxdejais.livejournal.com]

The first idea which came to mind is trying a tie-dye or an ombre stripe. If you want to try something different, that'd be a relatively easy approach.

[bijouxdejais.livejournal.com]

^(using the black RIT)

[mimimanderly.livejournal.com]

I had to pick ticky boxes as a last resort. I'd say tea dye it with a qualifier: only if you actually have something to wear with it, and actually think you'd wear it. Otherwise, it's wasted effort. Why not save the fabric in anticipation of needing it for something else?

[raienna.livejournal.com]

Not to mention wasted tea.

[untouched-sugar.livejournal.com]

Tea dye it, and do a blouse to match.

Or, get out the felt-tipped pens and draw tiny tickyboxes down all the white parts.

You DID suggest that, after all...

[sillycecelia.livejournal.com]

Leave it b&w, turn into a skirt, and write lines of poetry down the white parts!

[sabishii-sakura.livejournal.com]

Sepia sepia sepia! And then you must take oldtymey pictures!
If you think you'd find use or be able to sell it, then do it. If not, then don't.
But I think it'd be pretty!

[cherry-faery.livejournal.com]

I spent a slightly too much time really thinking this over and I think the sepia or ivory tones will look interesting. I do think, however, that they should probably stay fairly light, lest you get finished with them and find that you hate the color or it just doesn't look good against your skin. If that's the case (which I don't think it will be) then you can still re-dye it another color. As for other color suggestions, red is the first one that comes to mind. Pale blue can also be paired nicely with pinks and would work nicely in a cupcake-y way.

In any case, good luck and happy sewing!

[sidhe1.livejournal.com]

I think a sepia tone would be awesome, especially if you add steampunk accessories with the complete outfit! =)

[devikat.livejournal.com]

Turquoise or purple. Both goes really well with pink and black. Just ask "Duchess RavenWaves"...

[devikat.livejournal.com]

And then I forgot the link...

http://blumina.deviantart.com/art/Duchess-Ravenwaves-109881772

[krafen.livejournal.com]

Well, I certainly love tickyboxes, but I could only choose one option, so I voted for sepia.

I trust you have appropriate tops and accessories for such a skirt? Although, I suppose if you don't it would be a good excuse to obtain some.

[requieminblack.livejournal.com]

Well you know what MY answer will be, hehe. I am in the process of tea staining a corset, a blouse and a tank top as I type this. :)

[jaborwhalky.livejournal.com]

Dye it pink.

[spiderpiggle.livejournal.com]

sparkling idea! and IF you don't like it, you can always sell it :]

[staxxy.livejournal.com]

die it deep red, to match the many deep red jackets and blouses you have. You really do not have enough deep red skirts.

[cupcake-goth.livejournal.com]

The mixed fiber content of the fabric means I wouldn't be able to get a deep red. The darkest it would go is probably a raspberry color, which would be pretty, but SO not one of my colors.

[fangirl715.livejournal.com]

This may be scandalous for a confirmed tea-drinker to say, but try test-dying sections with both tea and black coffee--sometimes the color comes out better with coffee; I believe it may prove to be a somewhat cooler shade that would work better with what I've seen of your wardrobe. Also, I'd go more with ivory than sepia, but that's strictly MHO...

[raienna.livejournal.com]

Coffee can give a better color. I second that.