How can you prevent color damage during the process of boiling wax out of batik?

Name: Dobrusia

—ADVERTISEMENTS—

Country or region: Poland

Message: Hello,

How to prevent the colors damage during the process of boiling wax out of the batik? Usually they are not supposed to be washed in high temperature (even after using fixative)... I'll be grateful for advice.

When the colors wash out during the wax removal step in batik, it's most commonly caused by not using the best type of dye.

The best type of dye to use for batik on cotton is a cool-water fiber reactive dye. (See About Fiber Reactive Dyes.) After the unattached excess dye has been washed out, the dye that has properly bonded to the fiber will withstand even extensive boiling without weakening in color. This is because fiber reactive dye forms an extremely strong permanent bond to the fiber. Good fiber reactive dyes include Procion, Remazol, and some (but not all) Dylon dyes.

Some people use a type of dye called direct dye for batik, but direct dye requires hot water to set the dye, which melts the wax. (See About Direct Dyes.) It is possible to use direct dye with cooler water, but cooler water results in less wash-resistant colors, which are more likely to run badly when wet. Even when a direct dye is properly set by boiling the fabric with the dye for an extended period of time, the color will tend to run to some extent whenever it is washed, because direct dyes do not form a strong chemical bond to the fiber. Direct dye that has been used to dye clothing in solid colors can be made more wash-resistant by applying a cationic dye fixative, such as Retayne, but I don't know any way to use this product for batik without causing permanent staining. (See Commercial Dye Fixatives.)

Steam-setting helps make direct dyes more permanent, though they can never be as wash-proof as fiber reactive dyes. Unlike boiling, steaming can be done without ruining the batiked design, and it can be a good way to remove wax. After allowing the dye to dry, you must wrap it in many layers of paper. The ink from fresh newspaper will stain the fabric, but unprinted newsprint paper, or newspapers that have been kept for six months since the time they were printed, can be used against the fabric without causing ink stains. The paper will absorb the wax as it melts, and prevent the dye from one part of the fabric from contacting another part, while still allowing the moisture of the steam to penetrate the fabric to set the dye. Steaming can be used to set certain dyes on cotton as well as on silk. For information about how to steam your fabric, see the section entitled "How to Fix Your Silk Dye", two-thirds of the way down my page, How to Dye Silk.

It is better to use a good fiber reactive dye for your batik than it is to use direct dye, even if you can steam the fabric. If you cannot find a local source for good fiber reactive dyes, you can buy it online by mail-order. See my page, "Sources for Dyeing Supplies Around the World". Scroll down to the section of European suppliers. I don't have a listing for a dye supplier in Poland, but you might be able to find one by contacting the local office for a large dye manufacturer, such as Dystar or for Huntsman Textile Effects, and asking for the names of local suppliers to whom they sell dye.

Even when using a good fiber reactive dye, a few people experience problems with pale dye colors. This can be caused by failing to use sodium carbonate (also known as soda ash or washing soda), which chemically sets fiber reactive dye on cotton, or by using a polyester-blend fabric instead of 100% cotton, or through other errors. For more suggestions, see the FAQ at my web site, including the answer to the question, My colors are not very bright. What did I do wrong?.

(Please help support this web site. Thank you.)

Posted: Sunday - May 15, 2011 at 04:43 PM

Follow this blog on twitter here.
Tweet

getBlogName(); > getCategoryName("<$EntryCategoryFolder$>"); >

How can you prevent color damage during the process of boiling wax out of batik?

> >