Thinking I Blew It...

Decided to dye a little this evening... Got a pot of hot water working and stirred in the salt and dye as directed... Washed a natural guinea hen and a silver lace Andalusian skin as well as a half-dozen snowshoe feet.

Once the post was good and hot, but still well below boiling I dropped the goods in the bath. And I stirred for quite a while and kept the heat low... Then I let them soak for an hour longer than the directions suggested was needed.

Well, the guinea is completely falling apart and the first feather I pulled from the bath was an Andalusian and it looks badly burned, with curled fibers and a general "singed" look.

One rabbit foot hid in the washing suds and was added a bit after the rest, and it shows, even while wet.

Not liking my odds on this one...
art

Or as the Tee-shirt says;
Alaska Men, the odds are good... But the goods are odd!

Hey Hap try the Microwave method thats on here,I use it and it works GREAT!
http://www.flyanglersonline.com/flyt...wavedyeing.php

Hap,
You need to get a candy thermometer so you can check the temperature of your dye bath. It should be no higher than 140 Degrees Fahrenheit.
Steve

My guess is that the extra hour in the dye bath cooked the skins. Overcooked meat always tends to fall apart. You may have to salvage what you can by sorting and bagging the feathers if they are not damaged.

Yup, I was right... Toasted the lot... They feathers were frazzled and not recoverable... And I tried hard!

The rabbit feet came out deeper pink than I really wanted, but will do nicely for my purposes.

The guinea and the Andalusian went in the garbage...