Nuts About Rust – How to Rust Dye Silk – DIY a Silk Scarf

Rust dye silk!!! Seriously? Yes, seriously! We are nuts about rust!!! And not just rust but we love just about anything that’s chippy, vintage, and well-loved. Here are some simple instructions on how to rust dye a silk scarf.

So, what is there to love about rusted nuts and bolts? What can you do with rusted pieces of metal? Can you I really rust dye silk? Is it hard to rust dye silk?

Let me show you how to make something beautiful out of metal that is consider trash.

My friend Renee is The Junkyard Queen. That makes her better half the Junkyard King. They are downsizing and were cleaning out their barn/shop and invited me to see if there was any rusted stuff that I wanted.  Oh, yeah!!!

The King had several rusty containers full of rusty nuts! I was in rust heaven! He had buckets of bolts, too. Do I need rusty stuff. No, I don’t! Was I inspired? Yes, I was. The King’s trash, my treasures!

To rust dye silk here is what you will need:

1. silk scarf,
2. Rusty stuff
3. Vinegar
4. Bowl
5. little spray bottle filled with vinegar.
6. Plastic and plastic bags
7. Jute

To rust dye silk – grab a silk scarf and a bowl of white distilled vinegar.

Saturate the silk with vinegar and squeeze out the excess.

Cut some pieces of jute.

Wrapped the rusty nuts in the wet silk and secure it with the jute.

I added as many of the nuts as I had room for and I used various sizes.

Put the whole tied-up thing into a gallon ziplock bag, sealed it and left it in my hot garage.

It got up to 100º that day. Whew! You just got to love that Texas heat! It is perfect for rusting silk.

Check on it ever so often. If it seems dry in places, spray a little more vinegar onto the scarf.

I have a little spray bottle filled with vinegar. Be sure to label it “VINEGAR”. I do that since I have several spray bottles with other liquids in them. They are all labeled.

After several hours it was looking pretty good. I didn’t really time how long it took. It varies depending on heat, humidity, thickness of the fabric, etc.

Remove the jute, being careful not to damage the silk.

I was anxious to get the jute off and see the results but I worked carefully so I didn’t damage the silk.

Oh my goodness!

When you are pleased with the results, fill a platic container with salty water to stop the rust process on the scarf.

You migh want to use a 5 gallon bucket or  plastic wash tub. Becasue of the corrosive nature of the rust I didn’t want to put it in my sink.

Wash the silk in Syntrapol, or Woolite.

Rinse the silk in clear water and hang it up to dry. Then, press it with the iron set to the silk setting with just a little steam.

Isn’t it exciting to see how a few junky, rusty nuts (and I’m not talking about the Junkyard King and Queen) can transform a plain white scarf into a beautiful, wearable piece of silk art.

If you try this project, I would love to see your scarf!

If you would like to purchase this beautiful scarf go HERE!

Matthew 6:19-21 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust^[e] destroy and where thieves break in and steal, ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (ESV BibleGateway)

Thanks so much for stop by!

’til next time,

Nathalie

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