Hi Megan
I dont think rust is soluble in water so it will not work like a typical dye. You would need to find a way of attaching the rust particles (iron oxide) to the fabric, and that would depend on the type of fabric.

You could try weaving some thin steel thread or wire into the fabric which would naturally rust overtime releasing a continuous supply of rust to the material, and depending on the way they are woven in could produce some interesting patterns. However, depending on the exposure to oxygen and water the iron threads will eventually break down.

M
www.realbronzes.com

Welcome to ArtMetal, Megan!

Rust will certainly stain fabric rather permanently, as those if us who live in the tropics and work with steel know all too well. Different "rusts" will stain differently - there are different compounds of iron oxide that have different colors.

Fe2O3 is the basic reddish-orange rust we're all familiar with, known as hematite. Then there is the Fe3O4 which is magnetite, the magnetic black oxide of iron. There are about a dozen other oxides of iron, too. Then there are the other iron compounds that occur when iron is buried or submerged, such as iron phosphate, iron sulfate, etc. These also can be used for dyeing, I'm sure.

Several of the non-ferrous metals have oxides or other compounds that are colorful and could be used for dyeing, too.

To quickly rust steel you can spray it with household bleach or hydrogen peroxide. Also salt water. To corrode copper alloys you can use ammonia, vinegar and salt to get a green patina. Urine works, but is slower. There are a couple of good books written on patinas that should have the information you need. If you search the archives here for patinas you should find references to them.

To use these compounds for dyeing will require some specialized knowledge of the proper preparations, mordants, etc. There are textbooks on natural dyeing that can probably be found by searching on Abe Books, Bookfinder or the like.

You've chosen to explore an area that is very broad and that has a lot of history, so there should be a lot of information out there. You just have to hunt it down and assimilate it. Good luck!

Rich

Hi Megan, I use rust in alot of my art. The quickest way I have found to rust steel is to mist the steel with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, and salt. It will start to rust almost instantly. Give it about 10 min and you should be able to just lay your fabric on the metal and soak it right up. I hope this Helps. If u Have any questions please let me know!

David Hebert
www.designermetalworks.net