Hand-made Osnaburg short/Rebozo baby wrap (PART 2: Dyeing)

Yesterday, I completed the dyeing portion of my homemade osnaburg rebozo, and I would share my thoughts and results.

First, I had already purchased my dye when I purchased my fabric. The dye I bought was Dylon brand in Tropical Green and Ocean Blue. My first mistake was purchasing only one packet of each color. I didn't realize that I was limiting my options so much by not purchasing at least two packets of each, even though it looked like it should be more than enough. Each color dyes only 8 ounces of fabric. My fabric weighed 12 ounces, and I needed each color for 2/3 of the fabric, so that seemed perfect, right?

I had a choice of two methods to gradient (ombre) dye my fabric. One method involves placing the fabric in a deep container and slowly adding increments of water in time intervals, so that the water level rises as the dye solution dilutes. The width of my fabric was 28.5 inches, so 2/3 of that width meant I needed a container at least 19 inches tall to complete my gradient for each color. I did not have a container that tall. The few containers that I had that were tall enough had too much length and width, which would increase the water volume needed to attain 19 inches of height, which would dilute my dye too greatly to be of any use. Here is where additional packets of dye would have been helpful.

The second method to gradient dye my fabric was to have my 4 cups of dye in a smaller container, submerge the 2/3 of fabric into the dye, and slowly over time pull the fabric out by increments. I had seen posts online elsewhere that showed this method working out okay, so I opted for this method.

I had my container. It was math time. The dye required 60 minutes of exposure for the full color, so I divided 60 minutes by 8 increments to get a gradient. That meant that I could divide my fabric into 8 increments and leave each increment exposed to the dye for 7.5 minutes before I pulled the fabric up to the next increment. I decided to do 2 inch increments on my fabric and added the remainder to the final increment so that my "rail" or edge was a bit bigger than the other increments.

I had decided to hang my fabric on a hanger and suspend it over my dye with a curtain rod. I propped my curtain rod on both sides with a chair. I coincidentally found a "space-saving hanger" that had holes positioned 2-inches apart that worked perfectly to support moving the fabric up in 2 inch increments. It was too perfect. I think it would be a good idea to make a chain of zip ties to attain a similar home-made result. I put my dye container inside a cooler for splash protection.

Finally, it was time to dye. I soaked my fabric in salt water according to the dye package directions. I mixed my green dye and submerged my fabric to a 19-inch marker I had placed on my fabric. I let it sit for 7.5 minutes, then pulled it up one notch to my first increment. I repeated the process of letting the fabric sit in the dye for 7.5 minutes then pulling the fabric up a notch.

Gradient dyeing with Dylon Tropical Green

After my final dye sitting, I pulled the fabric out and rinsed until the water ran clear. I put the fabric in my washing machine, and washed and dried the fabric.

Next, it was time to do the blue dye. I repeated the same process as with the green dye, beginning with a salt water soak.

I finished with another spin through the washing machine and dryer. My fabric dye job was complete.

I am disappointed that the gradient didn't take. There is some overlap of the green and blue in the middle, which I am happy with. If I had to do this all over again, I would try to find a deeper container and purchase more dye so that I could do the dilute method instead of the pull-out method.

Hand-made Osnaburg short/Rebozo baby wrap

Hemming my osnaburg fabric

Today I attempted my first try at making a short baby wrap (Rebozo wrap). I am expecting a child due in September, and wanted a nice short wrap to do some basic rebozo baby wearing carries.

My goal was to create a colorful green and blue wrap, either gradient dyed or some sort of decorative mottled/marbled dye pattern. I'd like something visually striking.

Yesterday, I purchased 3 yards (2.7 meters) of Osnaburg fabric from a local fabric store. The width of the fabric was approximately 45 inches (114 cm). I also purchased two packets of Dylon brand fabric dye in Tropical Green and Ocean Blue.

First thing I did when I arrived home was I threw the fabric in the washing machine to pre-shrink the fabric. I didn't want to have a finished product with perfect measurements, only to lose my measurements upon a first washing. So I washed it on medium heat, and dried in my clothing dryer on medium heat. I did unfortunately lose a scary quantity of length, and I did not record those measurements.

I cut the fabric down width-wise (using a snip-and-rip technique) to approximately 31 inches (78 cm), and checked out my fabric to see how much length I had. I was afraid it may be a loss as I was measuring only 100-some inches (2.54m) but I thought I would need 2.7 meters of length to start with. I decided to continue my project knowing it was at risk for being too short. After trimming my fabric so that it was an even rectangle, I had a length of about 100 inches (2.54m).

Today I hemmed the fabric. I now have a fabric rectangle measuring 28.5 inches wide (72.3cm) and 95 inches (2.4m) long. I had hoped to attain a final measurement of 30 inches (76.2cm) wide and 106 inches (2.7 meters) long, so I had missed my mark on both length and width.

I was a little worried, but I still had hope, as I am a short/thin sized person, so it was possible that a Rebozo fit for me might actually be okay smaller than for an average sized person.

Undyed handmade Osnaburg rebozo/wrap modeled by my 6 year old

I just tried the rebozo on using the carries I intend to use. I do not have a newborn sized model but I used one of my daughters dolls. And fortunately it almost seems the length might be too long for me. I will wait until after the birth of my child to make any length adjustments, but my length worries are no longer an issue. The width seems a bit too wide yet as well. I am optimistic that this might actually work out perfectly for me.

So, the fit and hems are completed. Next step will be for me to dye the fabric. I am still undecided on what technique I will use.