So I will gladly share!
Hello Dear Friends! A few of you have asked about my walnut crystals & walnut stain. Let me fill ya in!
The way I understand it... walnut crystals/walnut powder comes from the dried husks of the black walnut. The green that is around them turns black & dries up. I have never tried to make my own. Several years ago I purchased a pound of the powdery, black stuff from a seller on Ebay... that particular seller no longer offers it or exists. A little goes a long way so I haven't had to purchase any more. I'm sure when I need more though... I could attempt to make my own or find another seller.
I put mine in an old jar for safe keeping...
I mix up small portions at a time & let it set on the counter until I need more made up. I haven't had troubles with it starting to stink & really don't feel it needs to be refrigerated.
To mix it up... I use a small mason jar. Fill it with HOT tap water. Add a 1/2 teaspoon of powder... more or less... honestly, I don't really measure it. Stir it well... and be careful. This stuff WILL stain! It would be horrible to drip it on your good carpets or splash it on your favorite outfit! To give it a little spice... I add a swiglet of vanilla (yes, I know 'swiglet' isn't a word or a measurement... but understand that I just simply add 'some'). Oh, and I don't buy the expensive vanilla for this either... if is just the store brand. It works fine.
I have many herbs on~hand that I purchased long ago for some potpourri making... cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and anise. Today, for the blog post, I just added a few of all of them to my jar of stain. You could use ANY herbs of your liking & they could be ground. It isn't necessary to have whole spices. Mine will just seep in the jar until this batch if done. The ground herbs will leave a little powdery dust on your fabric when it is dry... but, as I have said many times over, primitive is primitive... there are NO RULES FOR PRIMITIVE.
I pulled a piece of white linen to stain today...
I set it on an old baking sheet & used a sponge brush to blot the stain on the fabric...
When the fabric is fully stained... use paper towels to soak up the excess stain. With linen especially, it is important NOT to twist the fibers to wring out excess moisture.
Hang the fabric out to dry. Before I walk away... I use the same sponge brush & dab a few more spots of stain to the fabric to make sure it isn't
evenly stained ~ I like a few darker spots. To me, it makes it look more naturally stained...
Also, watch out for big, brown dogs that like to pull pretty things off the clothes line!
(Silly puppy... I think he wants to be a primitive artist too!)
A close~up of the linen after staining...
I did start stitching on the second school girl sampler yesterday... but didn't get as far as I had hoped. My time got caught up with kids... bicycle riding, dirt biking, grasshopper hunting, trampoline jumping, swimming, basketball, dog running... and whatever else they felt I needed to be a part of. Yes, I enjoyed it and I know I will miss it when school starts... but goodness, they really know how to wear an ol' mom out!
Another reminder... the new patterns will be released on my blog tomorrow afternoon!
Wishing you warm smiles...
Betty