Art: Winter Week 3

We started the week off with a discussion about plant fibers vs. animal vs. man made fibers. Although many friends were unfamiliar with plant fibers almost everyone had something to share about sheep, llamas, and goats. We passed around the different fibers and friends shared their thoughts on how they looked and felt. Ari stated that he especially liked the silk. Ryder B. enjoyed pulling  the raw cotton into tiny pieces between his fingers.
After prepping the fabrics everyone chose a smock and gloves to wear for protection. Next we carefully added hot water to activate the dye and friends took turns shaking the squeeze bottles, making sure the dye had fully dissolved.  The dye solution was then placed in small jars that everyone could access with their eyedroppers. Once dyed, the wet and colorful fabrics were placed in plastic bags and placed in the fridge to absorb overnight.
On the following day we gloved our hands and rinsed the fabric to remove any remaining dye. Then we began taking off any rubber bands (that give that tie-dye effect, if friends chose to use them). Everyone was really excited to see how the once white fabric had become an entire rainbow of colors.