#stained bones

[sunny-possum-pal]

Opalite studs and black deer atlas necklace are up on my etsy!

Shop here!

[snakeybones]

Blackberry stained racco.on skeleton Photo credit: @celestialhatter

[scarletblood160]

Adventures in staining~ Tried out and ebony wood stain on my bobcat skull. Its not really as dry as I'd like it to be. Letting it soak in a bit more and I'll see how it looks tomorrow. Planning on painting the teeth gold.

[vulture-cat-child]

These are the first bones I've stained! I used beet juice and got a nice magenta brown color. The bones in the upper right are undyed and nature cleaned for comparison. I think I'll do blackberry next! Sorry about the crappy photo quality. Lol.

[bobbingoblin]

Fox and raccoon bones dyed/stained with cochineal.

History of cochineal from Wikipedia:

Cochineal dye was used by the Aztec and Maya peoples of Central and North America. Eleven cities conquered by Montezuma in the 15th century paid a yearly tribute of 2000 decorated cotton blankets and 40 bags of cochineal dye each.[4]Production of cochineal is depicted in Codex Osuna. During the colonial period, the production of cochineal (grana fina) grew rapidly. Produced almost exclusively in Oaxaca by indigenous producers, cochineal became Mexico's second-most valued export after silver.[5] Soon after the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, it began to be exported to Spain, and by the 17th century was a commodity traded as far away as India.[6] The dyestuff was consumed throughout Europe and was so highly prized, its price was regularly quoted on the London and Amsterdam Commodity Exchanges. In 1777, French botanist Nicolas-Joseph Thiéry de Menonville, presenting himself as a botanizing physician, smuggled the insects and pads of the Opuntia cactus to Saint Domingue. This particular collection failed to thrive and ultimately died out, leaving the Mexican monopoly intact.[7] After the Mexican War of Independence in 1810–1821, the Mexican monopoly on cochineal came to an end. Large-scale production of cochineal emerged, especially in Guatemala and the Canary Islands; it was also cultivated in Spain and North Africa.[6]

The demand for cochineal fell sharply with the appearance on the market of alizarin crimson and many other artificial dyes discovered in Europe in the middle of the 19th century, causing a significant financial shock in Spain as a major industry almost ceased to exist.[5] The delicate manual labour required for the breeding of the insect could not compete with the modern methods of the new industry, and even less so with the lowering of production costs. The "tuna blood" dye (from the Mexican name for the Opuntia fruit) stopped being used and trade in cochineal almost totally disappeared in the course of the 20th century. The breeding of the cochineal insect has been done mainly for the purposes of maintaining the tradition rather than to satisfy any sort of demand.[8]

It has become commercially valuable again.[9] One reason for its popularity is that many commercial synthetic red dyes were found to be carcinogenic.[10]

[snakeybones]

Hey, vulture culture! Do any of you know what could have caused this color? I found this guy with my latest batch of bones from my parents' house and it has withstood scrubbing, soapy water, and 2 days in peroxide. I hope it doesn't fade because I really like it. I've just never seen anything quite like it before

[roadkill-saint]

Coyote skull, stained purple- $55 shipping included. US only. I’m selling this skull for bit less than one in better condition. This skull was found in the woods and has soil staining on the bone that’s visible through the purple stain. Other than the dicoloration there is no damage to the bone. The color of these bones can, and most likely will, fade over time. That’s why I included a picture next to the lighter colored coyote skull. She was stained using the same method, and that’s how her color has settled. I did let these bones sit and dry for about a week so that the color could set, but I can’t guarantee that the color won’t change. My ask box is open. Please don’t claim this piece by commenting on this post. If you’re interested or have questions, PLEASE message me! 💚

[roadkill-saint]

A while ago I did an experimental stain on this coyote skull. Its been fun to watch it just sort of absorb the color over time. Gives it a nice look. Almost like tie dye. Not sure if I’ll ever do this again (or sell similar things in the future?) But here’s the result of the first run :)