Natural Dyes

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From Care2Lifestyle - thought some of you might like this info

 

 

 

 

 

Colors from Nature

 

More Holidays, Crafts, Projects Solutions

 

 

Adapted from Colors from Nature, by Bobbi A. McRae (Storey Books,1993).

Not all dyes have to be gathered from the wild or ordered through the mail. A supply is often as close as your garden, farmers’ market, or neighborhood grocery store. Coffee, tea, cranberries, lettuce, onion skins, purple cabbage, and turmeric and other spices all make fine dyes for natural fibers. Some are not as lightfast as others, but they are inexpensive, serve as a good introduction to natural dyes, are safe to use with children, and are easy to obtain. Here are three formulas for homemade dyes to color fabric and yarn using beautiful colors derived from plants.

 

 

 

 

 

Simple Solution: Purple CabbagePurple cabbage does not make an outstanding color on regular wool yarns, but it is fun to experiment with, and it does make some surprising colors on scraps of unmordanted silk fabrics and exceptionally bright colors on DMC needlepoint wools. Use two heads of purple cabbage to 4 ounces wool.Chop the cabbage and cover with four quarts water. Simmer for 1 ½ hours or until the cabbage leaves look bleached of all color. Strain out the cabbage pieces. Yellow or Purple Onion Skins Onion skins make a good substantive dye. Save your onion skins a little at a time in a mesh or open container (they’ll mold if covered). If your home onion consumption is low, you might try collecting skins from grocery stores or farmer’s markets. It takes surprisingly few of these to dye embroidery threads or needlepoint wools. Cover the skins with water, bring the mixture to a boil, and simmer for approximately one hour or until the skins look bleached of all color. Add well-wetted fabric or yarns and simmer for another hour or until the desired color is achieved. The colors will be darker if the fibers are allowed to cool in the bath overnight. CoffeeBuy a pound of inexpensive coffee, or collect used coffee grounds in a container in your refrigerator or dry and store them in a covered container until needed. Powdered instant coffee or leftover brewed coffee can also be used as a dye. Coffee gives good tans and beiges on cottons or wools, and can be used to create an “antique” effect on natural muslin. They are fairly lightfast if mordants are used. Leave the fibers in the dyepot for several days to darken the shades.