This might sound a bit strange, but have you ever considered simply adding dirt to your mixture? I can't think of a way to get a more realistic "earth tone." If this forum defines hyertufa as containing moss or other organic materials, then I haven't made hypertufa with dirt, but I HAVE used dirt, cement, and sand to fashion an extremely durable slab of "dirtcrete." It's been outside now for about two years and shows no signs of breakdown. I don't know why dirt couldn't also be used in a hypertufa recipe.

Thanks. Diane, I had already done it by the time you posted. The pieces my mother tea dyed way back in the 60âÂÂs look greatâ¦so I will not worry unnecessarily about this one. It is also purchased, not one my grandmother made, so not a family heirloom. I did one course with tea, it was not dark enough. The rest of the piece was also a more pinkish beige, whereas the tea dyed portion was a golden beige. So I did it over again using coffee and little beet juice mixed in (I had just happened to make boiled beets the day before!). It is now slightly darker than the rest. Were it to fade a bit now, it would match quite closely. When I guessed it would be dark enough I squeezed out all the water by putting it between two towels and sitting on it. An interesting thing happened though. The side that was bottommost is lighter than the side where I actually applied the tea/coffee. It is almost an exact match. Somehow the color was more squeezed out on the bottom surface. This gives me then a lighter side and a darker side! So with potential future fading, I have options for which side to lay uppermost. Lazygardens, does the vinegar and salt need to be any particular proportion? Because the dyed section is just a portion of the whole piece, I would be painting it on, just like I applied the tea, not soaking it.

Hi and thanks again Oceanna, Jan, and everyone for your thoughts. I think there may be new life for the drapes in my LR. Too busy for photos today but I tried them on one window and I didn't cringe...color looked better than in the MBR; although I'll probably paint the LR for a better match if I use them. At least there isn't one dominant print fabric there that it has to get along with, like in the BR. Oceanna, I almost did a separate post about the labor on the drapes. I asked my alterations place if they would do drapes, and I was surprised to learn the answer was, "oh, yes, we do drapes, pillows, anything that can be sewn." So I took one panel for them to copy as there is a bit of a language barrier there and I didn't want to take a chance on verbal instructions. The workmanship on the drapes is wonderful. They were pinch pleated, lined, and interlined, and the charge was $32 per panel. I had thought about sewing these myself but at those prices I quickly gave up on that idea. I'll be using them again; this time I'll check the fabric out a bit more carefully first...:)

The bedskirt is now white and I want to make it ivory.....I think that will work okay.....altho I am having seconds thoughts about it fitting the new deeper mattress......sigh....why do they always change things on us? I love my old sheets as they are so soft! Guess they want us to buy, buy, buy......I will try it on before dyeing.... Thanks for your replys.....I might make this work! ShirleyAnn