well, i finally had everything i needed to get some wood dying done tonight. it was like i had my own rainbow factory in my garage! i will most definitely be doing this more often! it's a cheaper alternative to buying expensive wood toys. here's what i used :

* set of 9 10z colors from Vitacritter
* 9 16oz. bottles of 70% rubbing alcohol
* about $35 worth of wood parts from Casey's Wood
* 9 large disposable drinking cups
* a pair of viny gloves
* lots of newspaper!



here is the set of colors as they came from vitacritter. it's neat, they even send you labels to put on your mixed alcohol bottles so you can tell them apart! the company ships really fast. i very much recommend ordering from them. they also sell larger bottles of color, which i am sure i will move on to eventually.



these 16oz bottles of rubbing alcohol cost me about $1.50 a piece (and they were on sale buy one get one 50% off!) you pour out one ounce of the alcohol (which i poured into my larger "home use" bottle of alcohol so it didn't go to waste) and replace it with the one ounce bottle of color.



the colors look so drab in those bottles. but not to worry!



i laid out the wood pieces across my work bench in rows. i actually started out with less pieces because i didn't realize just how far a little bit of color goes! so i added more pieces to this lot once i started coloring.

this dye sticks INSTANTLY to anything it touches, so you must wear vinyl or latex gloves. i hand dipped each piece into one of the cups holding the color, swirled it around to make sure it was covered all the way, let the excess drip off into the cup, and then placed the piece on newspaper to dry. i washed color off the gloves in between each color, and poured the remaining dye back into it's respective bottle.



so vibrant! some of the pieces to the right side aren't totally dry yet, but you can still tell how nice the colors are.

compare the alcohol levels in this picture and the last picture. i was amazed at how little it really took to dye the pieces. a little really goes a long way! for larger pieces, vitacritter says you can brush on the color.

my next step is to get a band saw and some 2x4s to start cutting my own blocks!

What an organized set up, Emily. That is a great alternative to paying high costs for huge toys for Ivy. Great job!

well, part of the reason for the organization is for the photos but i really have to be organized or all the colors will get all over each other!

i will still buy toys, but this will help keep costs down for sure. i might try building some toys tomorrow night. i have a bunch of plastic parts and chain to play with. oooo and new BIG drill bits. i LOVE power tools!

I bought one of those cordless drills I just love!

Cool! So when can we start ordering toys from you?

Looks real good. Power tools are a must.

Excellent job Emily! If you're going to dye very large pieces of wood that can't be dipped, I found that those sponge brushes work perfect to paint the dye on.

Has Ivy picked out a favorite color yet?

wow those look great !!! you know I am going to be having a retail area at the shelter and I will be looking for people who want to have toys foods etc.. there to sell, I rather go through the little guys then these big companys.

Wow! You are so tidy! I would have had dye every where but on the wood! Is Ivy still blue?? LOL

and i'd like to donate to places like yours i am hoping to send out goodie boxes to shelters like yours, gabriel, oasis etc.