How Long Do I Steam Ecoprinted Silk?

Have you been waiting for spring so that you can get out your ecoprinting equipment?

The first sign of spring is here, and I’m so ready to start ecoprinting.

My trees and plants suffered through some awfully cold weather this winter (-14 degrees), but Mother Nature can’t be stopped! In fact, some of the plants in my yard look better than they did at this time last year - which makes me excited for what's coming next with summer months ahead.

But, before I get started this year, I want to find the answer to a question that has plagued me for some time.

"If I'm ecoprinting on silk, how long does the bundle of silk, leaves, and flowers need to be steamed to get good results?"

I read about ecoprinting and study what other eco-printers are sharing. I want to learn and practice and experiment.

I read that eco-printing silk requires two hours of steaming in order to pull the color out of the leaves and flowers.

But what if that amount of time isn’t really necessary? What if I could get good results in less time?

My Experiment: Stage 1

I did an experiment with a silk scarf.

I cut the silk scarf into three (about) equal sections.

The leaves I used were peony, Japanese maple, and some small, dry mum flowers.

I put the pieces end to end like it was a whole scarf and placed the leaves equally all over. I placed an iron blanket over the whole scarf.

My favorite method for steaming silk scarves is to roll a stack of sheet plastic, silk scarf, leaves, and an iron blanket. Roll it up on a wooden dowel and wrap it tightly with twine.

Stage 2

I heated the water in my electric skillet to 250 degrees and put the roll on a piece of metal that holds it out of the water.

After steaming for 30 minutes, I took the roll out of the skillet and unwound it to the first cut. I laid out the piece of silk to dry.

Then I re-rolled it and put it back on the plate.

After another 30 minutes, I took the roll out again and removed the second section of silk and laid it out to dry.

The roll went back into the skillet.

Finally, I let the roll steam for another 30 minutes for a total of 90 minutes for the last section.

Look at the photos below and see the comparison of the three silk sections*.

#1 - 30 minutes steaming

#2 - 60 minutes steaming

#3 - 90 minutes steaming

*Each photo of the silk pieces has a piece of white paper underneath to show the colors

My takeaways

I can see reducing my steaming time brings trade-offs.

#1 - 30 minutes steam time: I see that the pink from the Japanese maple leaf is stronger here, but the color from the peony leaves is weaker. The dry mum is non-existent on any of the pieces.

#2 - 60 minutes steam time: I can see stronger peony leaves and slightly weaker Japanese maple leaves. This is my favorite of the three pieces of silk.

#2 - 90 minutes steam time: The peony leaves are the strongest (both in color and detail) with 90 minutes steam time but the Japanese maple leaves are weaker. They look watered down.

My conclusion is that there is such a thing as too much steam time, but only you can decide what matters the most in your ecoprinting.

Additionally, the time of day and the time of the year that you pick your leaves and flowers makes a difference to the final results.

So experimentation, taking notes, and having an open mind all add to the fun of eco-printing on silk.

Is there an ecoprint experiment that you would like to share? Have you had success or failure in one of your ecoprinting projects? Please drop a comment below and tell about what you’ve learned.