I'm always game for trying new ideas and experimenting with art techniques. To be perfectly honest, I admit that I seldom follow any instructions without altering them for my own purposes or visions of "what if I do this?" running through my head. I was recently introduced to some video tutorials on Ice Dyeing Fabric. The results are very interesting, kind of a mix between a watercolor wash and tie-dye. I normally don't use fabric in my style of artwork, so my brain immediately went to thinking of using paper as a substitution... "What if I could Ice Dye paper and use it for Janoodling?" And so, the fun began!
I began by using 140# watercolor paper. I placed the paper on a wire rack in a shallow pan that would hold the water as the ice melted away. In the original fabric instructions, powdered dyes were sprinkled onto the ice. Since I didn't have any of them on hand (and in my quest for instant gratification), I decided to use the Jacquard liquid dyes that I typically use in my artwork. I sprinkled a few colors on the ice in separate areas in hopes that they would create interesting patterns as they mingled in the melting process!
Below is a photo of the ice and dye covered paper, awaiting success!
Well, much to my chagrin, I am not always successful in accomplishing the desired results of my visions! In this case I didn't factor in just how much water that the ice would create as it melted. In hind sight I would have realized that the liquid dyes would dilute greatly with that amount of water (I'm used to the vibrant colors they produce in my usual work!). In the end, I was not completely satisfied with the results, which is why I [forgot] to take a photo of the papers. The longer I looked at the results, I saw some areas that I found quite interesting and decided they needed to be salvaged! There were areas that had been totally washed out from the extreme amounts of melted ice water. After the paper was completely dry I came back to just those sections and reworked them with my familiar wash techniques. I am very happy with the results and feel the combining the two techniques created a very desirable effect. I am not discouraged, I have already come up with a few ideas to "tweak" my technique for obtaining more successful results!
Below is a photo of the final results. I ended up using the paper to create "chunky pages" (for a project to be seen in the near future). Please note, the darker outside edges of color, they were created by the ice with the washed out area caused from the excess water. I wish you could see it in person, the high concentration of color on the edge created a marvelous effect!
Hope this has inspired you to do an experiment, maybe there's a technique you've been wanting to try... go ahead, jump in and make it your own!!
Until next time... Blessings to you all!!
They look great! Maybe try it with less ice?
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