Ice Dyed Cotton

Artwork by Trish Joseph

Ice dye starts with a nicely timed snowfall followed by a very large grin.

I soak cotton fabric briefly in a soda ash solution, arrange it on a baking cooling rack or similar grid and cover it with gently packed snow. I place the grid over a basin so it can drain freely overnight without making a mess.

I gently sift colors of powered dye onto the item. Planning a specific design is almost impossible so I just cover the fabric with colors I like and hope for something interesting. As the snow melts it pulls the pigments through the fabric.

Complex colors or combinations of contrasting colors make the most subtle and intricate patterns.

Drip by drip the snow will achieve results only Nature can imagine.