I first dabbled in natural dyeing a couple years ago. I wasn’t really concerned about precision; however, you must follow the safety rules! Some things can be toxic, and you should know what those are and how to deal with them. (Two great books with details about natural dyeing are Harvesting Color by Rebecca Burgess and Wild Color by Jenny Dean.)
All my times, quantities, etc., though, were guess work. If you want to reproduce a certain result with dyeing, it’s crucial to take accurate notes, but my main objective at the time was to see if I can even get any color out of the process!
As a general rule, your dyestuff, when dry, should be equal in weight to the fibers you are dyeing. I used considerably less dyestuff than fiber in the two experiments below. (This was partially intentional to see just how much you would have to have to get any color, and partially because I didn’t have much available to me.)
Usually, you’ll want to use a mordant, which is something that helps the dye to “stick.” Common mordants are alum, copper, and iron. (Again, please be sure to study a reliable source before setting out on your own!) This is really more of a brief account of my own experiences rather than a how-to.
Rose of Sharon Dye
So, I started with some water (enough to soak all my pieces and give them some room to be stirred around), approximately two teaspoons of alum (the same used for pickling), and then roughly a handful (?!?) of dyestuff–in the first experiment, I used rose of sharon blooms. I threw it in all together at once, let it almost simmer outside (good ventilation is always recommended) for about 1 to 1.5 hours, then let it sit for an hour or so….I have rinsed these pieces fabrics, but have not properly laundered them with detergent, so I’m not sure if that will have much effect or not.
This was the result of the rose of sharon:
It was not what I expected, but a lovely color nonetheless! It produced a very soft celadon or mint color.
French Marigold Dye
For the second experiment, I used marigold flowers and essentially the same method as described above; the result was a bright, cheerful yellow.
Some observations? I really do need a lot more dyestuff, I think, if I want more color. Also, the protein fibers like wool and silk seem to take on more color than the cellulose fibers, or the cotton and linen–but again, not a surprise, since alum is recommended as a mordant for protein fibers.
This is a fun process that I enjoy, but I never seem to find enough time to do it. I hope to experiment more next year, and will share my results then.
