The only problem with my plan to knit the entire Golden Dragon is that so far none of the yarns I have been able to source have knitted up looking suitably gold, coming out rather more mustard yellow or sandy brown. How might it be possible to make the knitted yearns appear more metallic and golden?
I distinctly remember many years ago visiting the V&A and seeing a knitted dress which appeared to have had silver foil melted to it. Yet unfortuately I did not make a note of the designer to research how this technique was achieved. Surely the heat required to actually melt the foil would cause damage to the soft yarn?
Perhaps then painting the knitting would be the best solution. Painting the material manually with a brush might apply too thick a coat, causing the paint to seep into the yarn, causing it to stiffen and lose flexibility when dry (and flexibility was one of the key features which led me to knitting in the first place. Then perhaps spray paint? But again, spray paint can be quite forceful, meaning the knitting may become saturated, when ideally what I am looking for is a metallic sheen on the surface of the wool.
An air brush seemed to provide solution, offering a little more control than a spray paint, and compatible with oil, acrylic or enamel paints. I decided to test this method using some of the knitting samples I had already produced.
I distinctly remember many years ago visiting the V&A and seeing a knitted dress which appeared to have had silver foil melted to it. Yet unfortuately I did not make a note of the designer to research how this technique was achieved. Surely the heat required to actually melt the foil would cause damage to the soft yarn?
Perhaps then painting the knitting would be the best solution. Painting the material manually with a brush might apply too thick a coat, causing the paint to seep into the yarn, causing it to stiffen and lose flexibility when dry (and flexibility was one of the key features which led me to knitting in the first place. Then perhaps spray paint? But again, spray paint can be quite forceful, meaning the knitting may become saturated, when ideally what I am looking for is a metallic sheen on the surface of the wool.
An air brush seemed to provide solution, offering a little more control than a spray paint, and compatible with oil, acrylic or enamel paints. I decided to test this method using some of the knitting samples I had already produced.
While the effect of the airbrush (using Humbrol acrylic paint) does not show up particularly well in the above image, there is a slight metallic coating. It was only after painting that I realised I had mixed the suggested paint ratios incorrectly, making the paint used here far more dilute. Perhaps with a stronger paint mixture, or indeed more coats (or a different gold paint) a brighter, more noticeable effect could be achieved. What I am pleased about is that the paint remained on the surface of the samples, not soaking all the way through, which means that despite being a little stiffer, the knitting has maintained its flexibility.
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