Originally Posted by Sandra-P
I need to know if there is a special pretreatment that is used prior to dyeing fabric? Other than washing the fabric, is there a special mixture of something that you use before dyeing?
Also, is paying 6.99 a fat quarter seem in line with what it should cost to buy a "pretreated" piece of fabric to dye?
It depends.
For regular dyeing with fibre reactive dyes, all you need is fabric that has had any sizing or oils (such as skin oils from excessive handling) removed. A trip through the washing machine with either Synthrapol or regular detergent will do just fine.
The price quoted seems excessive for regular fibre reactive dyeing.
However! There is something different: cyanotype. A cyanotype is the process by which a building diagram is turned into a blueprint. The medium (paper or fabric) is treated with cyanotype solution and kept in a lightproof wrapping until ready for exposure. You place anything that will partially block the light on the medium, then expose it to sunlight for awhile. When you've exposed the medium, you then rinse in plain water and there you go! You have a image in blue and white of whatever you placed on the medium.
Cyanotypes can be incredibly striking and beautiful. If you use a flower or leaves or blades of grass, you often get an image that almost looks like an x-ray. It can be very haunting. You can get even more variation by starting out with dyed or printed fabric, treating it with cyanotyping solution and developing.
Fabric pre-treated for cyanotypes starts at around $20/yard for 44 inch wide plain woven medium weight cotton. When you add up the cost of fabric, the cost of the chemical pre-treatment and the need to keep it in lightproof packaging, that's a pretty reasonable price.
If the fat quarter you are thinking of is for cyanotyping, then I'd say that the price is reasonable, particularly if it was already dyed or printed before being treated for cyanotyping.