Vinegar stings your nose as you slip into the textiles studio. Your tapestries are pre-soaking to prepare them to accept dye. You pull on nitrile gloves and a protective apron, then carefully transfer a tapestry to a washing machine to let its spin cycle pull out excess water. While you wait for the washing machine to finish, you prepare a large squeeze bottle of dye.
As you mix the dye, you exchange nods with a student working on a tessellated quilt. He isn't surprised to see a professor messing about with textiles. The pattern magic department has long partnered with the crafts design program so professors and students can create new artifacts and other patterned objects. While you didn't do any work with the crafts design program during your undergrad days, you're familiar enough with what to do from helping Dr. Smith create protection tapestries during your fellowship.
The washing machine spins down. You wrestle the tapestry out and spread it flat on a garbage-bag-wrapped worktable.
Let's Get Ready to Dye