Best solution for walnut dye

[loflyr55]

I have a walnut tree in my backyard and want to put some of the walnut hulls to good use for dymaking. Any recommendations for best solution for soaking?

 

[IanH]

I don't know how it's supposed to be done, but I collected some black walnuts from the tree with the husks mostly black but not splitting off yet, put them in the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket, and pounded the husks to a pulp with a 2x4. Then I put the whole mess in a pot with clean water, simmered it for an hour, and strained the liquid. Then I reduced the liquid a little more. It made a great stain on walnut for a Henry repro buttstock I did for my dad.

 

[loflyr55]

Boiled pounded walnuts, sounds like a solution to the solution question. Thanks

 

[BillinOregon]

If you have an English walnut, I don't know if it works. If it is a black walnut, wait until the nuts in their husks are falling and gather up a mess. WEARING GLOVES, removed the nuts and toss the husks into a pot that you can heat to boiling. Boil/simmer said husks in a gallon or two for a couple of hours, let cool, strain and catch the liquid. This is your dye, and if you get it on your skin, it WILL be weeks before it is gone.
People make fun of walnut dye as being overdone. I don't give a hoot. It is a nice, natural dye. That said, do not dye your whole kit with walnut dye and then wander around in the national forest during elk season without blaze orange. It is a close color match, at least with Rocky Mountain elk.

 

[IanH]

^^^^^ Good tip!!

 

[necchi]

@BillinOregon gave good tips,,
It's the husks that got the stain.
wait till they drop and gather buckets full, leave the nut's in it don't matter.
get a big canning pot, fill it with what you gathered and pour water in till full, you can even let'm rot in there.
Boil it., pound, mash, stir as it boils, make them husks into mush, (hours at a boil) then take off the fire and let it steep over night.
Bring to near boil the next day (just hot enough so ya can handle it) and strain all that mash through an old tee-shirt to another pot or bucket.
Toss the mash.
Now ya can take all that juice,, and render it down to as thick as ya want.
BUT;
The thing with natural Walnut stain is the stuff has a high sugar content, once rendered,, if left open it WILL ferment with a mold and quickly rot.
It needs to be "canned" while hot, just like tomatoes or a jam or refrigerated to stay freash

 

[loflyr55]

@BillinOregon gave good tips,,
It's the husks that got the stain.
wait till they drop and gather buckets full, leave the nut's in it don't matter.
get a big canning pot, fill it with what you gathered and pour water in till full, you can even let'm rot in there.
Boil it., pound, mash, stir as it boils, make them husks into mush, (hours at a boil) then take off the fire and let it steep over night.
Bring to near boil the next day (just hot enough so ya can handle it) and strain all that mash through an old tee-shirt to another pot or bucket.
Toss the mash.
Now ya can take all that juice,, and render it down to as thick as ya want.
BUT;
The thing with natural Walnut stain is the stuff has a high sugar content, once rendered,, if left open it WILL ferment with a mold and quickly rot.
It needs to be "canned" while hot, just like tomatoes or a jam or refrigerated to stay freash

Add some hops and yeast and you have beer

 

[BillinOregon]

Necchi, I wonder if there is anything period correct that one could add to the finished stain to retard bacterial growth. Also, note that black walnut stain does not require a mordant.

 

[Brownwl]

2 , 5 gallon buckets.
Drill several 5/16"-3/8" holes in the bottom of bucket one.. At least ten holes.
Fill bucket # one 1/4-1/2 full of green walnuts. Put the lid on.

Take bucket #1 and place in bucket #2.
Allow walnuts to seep for 3 or 4 months.
After the elapsed time, remove bucket # one, in bucket # two, you should have a couple quarts of walnut "syrup".
This stuff is strong! Will dye material very dark.
Much much better dye than the boiling method.
Add a little denatured alcohol to your jars to help deter mold.

Go ahead and place bucket 1 back in bucket 2. It should leach more syrup.

Try it, you'll never boil a walnut hull again.

 

[Brownwl]

Denatured alcohol will slow mold growth. One could probably use white vinegar too.

 

[Col. Batguano]

WARNING!

What ever you do, do NOT try to split those husks and peel them off by hand! I tried that a few years ago with my back yard walnuts and my hands turned completely black! I couldn't get the stain on them off with ANY type of solvent! The only way to get rid of it was to sand it off! After a couple of weeks it went away, but it was an embarrassing couple of weeks!

 

[necchi]

Denatured alcohol will slow mold growth. One could probably use white vinegar too.

Necchi, I wonder if there is anything period correct that one could add,,

I don't know Bill, I tried Denatured alcohol like @Brownwl shares and he's right it will "slow" the growth, but it still comes.
The stain still does the job, but it's plain icky to work with,, the stuff is slimy and does not have a pleasant aroma!
Hot canning does seem to work, but even those jars once opened will soon get the stuff.
Neighbor Lady has a huge 40' Walnut in her back yard and in typical walnut fashion gives up LOTS of nut's every other year.

 

[BillinOregon]

I've had mold issues with vinegaroon, too!

 

[IanH]

A preservative such as Camden tablets should work to prevent fermentation.

 

[necchi]

A preservative such as Camden tablets should work to prevent fermentation.

That might work,, the mold spore that causes it is wild and abundant that's for sure.

 

[necchi]

Necchi, I wonder if there is anything period correct,

I thought about that so-more,
I'd guess they gathered husk or whole nut (by the bushel), and just let'm dry. Then made some fresh when they needed it.
Even 1yr old dry stuff can have the stain rendered out, Been there,,

 

[Bobby MacAlphin]

I have a walnut tree in my backyard and want to put some of the walnut hulls to good use for dymaking. Any recommendations for best solution for soaking?

I put black walnuts in my dye pot along with staghorn sumac berries , I use the walnuts green or black and fill my pot about 3/4ths full of water then boil the mixture for two hours , when it cools down enough to hold my hand in the water I put what I want to dye in the pot , usually leave cloth type shirts in it for at least two days but leather leggings only a short period maybe 15 minutes then check color according to how dark I want the leather to be the longer the darker !

 

[Buckskinquin]

Harvested some black walnuts from local trees, put in bag and in shed. Somewhere later, I read letting the husks dry for 6 months promotes the tannin content. Anyhow, I did not boil, only soaked husks in cold water for 3 days. Strained thru cheese cloth. Have not seen mold growth on what I have left. Here’s the color I got with one coat on tulip wood.

 

[FlinterNick]

I use transtin and laurel mountain, before applying i wipe the stock down with hot water, this helps with penetration.

 

[senseisugarbear]

50 yrs ago when I was first learning to Trap...An Old Timer turned me on to the trick of dyeing all my traps. 1/3 of a 5 gal bucket of Black Walnuts that are slipping their Green Husks.. Fill to 2/3 full with water. I usually wire my traps together by the stake ring. fill with Traps to almost over flowing. Agitate a bit ,and set aside for a few days.At about 4 days I check the progress. After about 1 wk the traps are so black, even if they where a little rusted. rinse in cold water and throw another batch of traps in....I usually have about 4-5 buckets going for a couple weeks. works for snares too.I have dyed knife and hawk blades too. I polish and Wax my blades but not my traps.....1 Dye job lasts a couple yrs. They must hold the acrid Green Walnut smell, cuz I never Boil them...Be Safe >>>>>>>>Wally