Cyanotype Toning Instructions
Essentially, the toning process is bleaching cyanotypes and then soaking them in something that will change the color. The bleaching is done using borax, which is used for laundry soap and cleaning products. To change the color, you can use different types of tea, coffee, and red wine. The outcome can vary on the intensity of the cyanotype and what it is soaked in. Lots of room for experimentation.
Bleaching
Gather your supplies: cyanotypes, borax, water, towels, 3 containers, soaking agent (tea/coffee/wine). You will need several containers for this process. I get little plastic tubs from the dollar store. One will be needed for clean water that’s used at two points. Another to hold the water that you’ve dissolved the borax in. And another to hold the toning solution. It is possible to use only two containers here and be efficient with each as you go. But you could also have three if that makes it easier.
Dissolve 2 teaspoons of borax in 4 1/4 cups of water. I like to heat a cup of the water to boiling in a kettle and dissolve the borax in a pyrex measuring cup. Put the remaining water in the container you are using for bleaching. Once the borax is dissolved and I am ready to bleach, I will add the hot water to the rest of the water.
Soak cyanotype for 5 minutes in clean water.
Pour borax water into a remaining water and place cyanotype in bleach bath. I find the water still being hot helps with getting the best result. The bleaching will turn the blue of the cyanotype to yellow. Once it turns yellow remove it from borax bath. Do not walk away from it at this stage. It happens pretty quickly. So be ready to dip it in and get it out soon after. It is possible to bleach away the entire cyanotype if it is left too long.
Rinse in clean water. The cyanotype will continue bleaching until it is rinsed in clean water. So it is important to rinse quickly after it has reached your desired level of bleaching.
Toning (tea)
Brew 5 - 10 tea bags in 1 cup of boiling water for 10 minutes. The number of bags is up to you. I like maximum results so I use 10. Experiment though and see what you get.
Add to 6 1/4 cups cold water in one of your containers.
Place into tea bath for 2 hours.
Rinse in cold water after toning.
Lay your finished print on a towel. Blot the paper with another towel to remove any excess water.
Leave print to dry.
I like toning with tea and the above is my go to method. If you want to try using something other than tea, I will include some links below with great info on other options. As I experiment more, I’ll include my recipes.
Examples of TONED Cyanotypes
toned with green tea
toned with green tea
toned with red wine
toned with rooibos tea