Question: How do I Color 3 Dimensional Ornaments?

[Crabbyboater]

I'm cutting some 3D Christmas ornaments, using both red oak and poplar.  Wife wants them to be colored (red, green, yellow, etc) and I don't know how to do this.  There are many inside components, so spray painting just doesn't get to everything.  I've tried BLO, but she wants more color.  Went back on the threads and saw what MrsN did with food coloring, but she used 2D cuttings from BB plywood.  I can try the food colorings, but worry about raising the grain and maybe warping.

So do I worry too much?  Or is there some other way to color by dipping the whole ornament into the solution?

Thanks for any help you can offer...
John

[julief]

You might try making a wash.  Mix water with your paint and thin it down.  It seems like a waste of paint but you are going to have to dip it to get all your cuts.

[Spartan scroller]

What about "RIT" brand dye ?   I've seen it suggested in the magazines and have been thinking of trying it on my poplar ones.  Anybody tried this method?
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[Billy in Va]

I have played around with the Rit Dye  some. So far have not used it in a project.  I was able to get the best looking color using the liquid and not diluting it at all.  Pour enough in a butter tub to cover what you need and then dip. Let dry. I still want to do some more testing.  Anyone else tried?

[don in brooklin on]

I have not used yet but I ordered the kit of dyes from

www.kedadyeinc.com

Take a look at the gallery to get an idea of the red colour.

It is on my todo list to test and use.

Maybe someone here could let you know how they work as I got the link before from one of the scroll saw sites.

Don

[jrpeteo]

If you have access to a selection of different kinds of wood, you could laminate thin pieces together before cutting. They would be different colors naturally.
Pete

[BilltheDiver]

I made a bunch of Steve's gum machines for the Grandkids a few years ago and colored them using a food dye from Michaels intended for use in coloring cake icing.  I thinned it in alcohol to avoid raising the grain and dipped the pieces in it.  It added color and the color was good at least a year later.

[xuryl]

I have used food coloring on wooden balls for children's toys, using water to dilute the dye, however this caused the wood to swell and split. Using alcohol eliminated this  problem and also gave better color results.

[Billy in Va]

What type of alcohol?  rubbing or denatured?

[BilltheDiver]

Denatured.  Rubbing (isopropyl) leaves a residue on some surfaces.

[Crabbyboater]

Thanks everyone for your responses and ideas.  I had never thought of using alcohol to mix the colors and I'll give that a try.  Lots of creative ideas here!

John

[don in brooklin on]

I know I saw a post somewhere about the waterbased dyes and it came up today on SSW.

I am going to cut a couple of ornaments and dip in the red when I get a chance. (too much still on the honey do list)

http://www.scrollsawer.com/forum/wood-finishing-and-painting/44091.htm


don

[mrsn]

Like you mentioned I have used food coloring a few times to color ornaments. It is hard to get food coloring to give you a really deep bold color. Instead of RED you get a mostly redish pale pink. Instead of BLUE you get baby blue.  you can mess with the amount of water to food coloring and time you soak them, but it still is sort of pale.
I think something like the RIT dye would give bolder colors, in fact I am almost certian I have seen really good results using it.
I wouldn't think you would get too much raised grain to worry about. You have to remember that most people who look at the ornament will say "cute wooden ornament" or "how did you make that", most of the people who see it won't know enough to look for raised grain.

Hanging ornaments and sparying sort of wildly, will work ok. do lots of light coats from every possible angle, and let the ornaments hang and swing while you are doing it. this is also helpful if you want to put any sort of clear coat on them after you get them dyed.

[Billy in Va]

I cut one of the angle ribbons yesterday and used Red Rit Dye ( liquid) mixed with denatured alcohol.  Used an eye dropper and put a couple of droppers full of alcohol then about the same amount of dye. mixed and applied with a small stiff artist brush. The color came out much better that anything else I have used so far.. ( water and dye. dye straight from the bottle). After it dried - about 30 minutes -  I applied a second coat and it did improve the color some.  I hope to get a picture later. I plan to take it to a show on Saturday and see what happens. I think part of the trick here is to mix what you are going to use all at one time and NEVER try to duplicate that exact color!

[Crabbyboater]

Thanks for your response and advice, Katie.  I've been wondering if the RIT dye might be brighter and you've confirmed it, along with Billy.  I'll give that a try.  Haven't seen you post for awhile, and it was good to see you still here.

John