2. They must be used cold, as the wax melts at 128° Fahrenheit or 60° Centigrade.
3. The colors must be sufficiently fast to allow the wax to be removed without injury to the color.
4. The colors must not fade in light or in sun.
Many commercial dyes that are prepared to be used hot can be used somewhat successfully cold. There will be more or less loss of brilliancy and fastness of color, however. These dyes should be used in a much stronger solution than indicated by the directions on the packages.
The most satisfactory results, however, are obtained by using colors prepared especially for the cold process, such as the “Bateeko Dyes.” They are exceedingly strong and for that reason exact directions for mixing from the powdered form are impossible, as a tiny speck of the powder will modify the color mixed. For exact measurements it is recommended that each package of the Prang Bateeko Dyes be dissolved in 1½ cups of water; that is, about 20 tablespoonfuls, and that the amount of each color used in mixing be taken with measuring spoons from this solution. A pint fruit jar is good to hold the mixture.
The extensive use of dyeing as a means of printing textiles dates from the 19th century, when the modern chemical dyes were discovered. There is still a prejudice among some people against the use of chemical dyes for art work. This seems to be based upon the undisputed fact that in the early days of the dye industry some of the colors were so crude and harsh that people fell into the delusion that all harsh colors were due to chemical dyes. The chemists in the meantime have been improving these products until now one can depend upon the manufactured dyes for as beautiful colors as were ever obtained by the older methods. They are so much more easily applied that it is largely for experimental purposes and as a means of keeping alive a craft of our ancestors that the old processes are ever used.
Some brands of dyes are completely dissolved by stirring in hot water. Some need to be boiled and strained to be perfectly clear from specks. They must be thoroughly dissolved. Most dyes are used with either salt, vinegar or acid. Use whichever is recommended by the makers of the dyes used. For Batik the acid is generally added to the water in which the cloth is to be dipped. Dyes will all work a trifle better in lukewarm than in cold water. Several dippings in a weak dye will give a more permanent color than one dyeing in a strong color.
A decorative Batik Hanging by Jean Paul Slusser, using the Javanese “Tree of Life” motif