Make your own natural dye
If you’ve ever wanted to dye your own fabrics or yarn, consider the following recipe for homemade dye (courtesy of Kim Hall):
1 tablespoon Turmeric
4 cups water
2 tablespoons salt
Several small pieces of natural fabric or natural fiber yarn.
Presoak your fabric or yarn in warm water to remove any soil or starch.
Boil the Turmeric with the water and salt for 15 minutes.
Strain vegetable matter out of the dye and return the dye to the pot. Add your presoaked fabric or yarn and bring to a boil and simmer for 45 minutes. Once your material looks a few shades darker than you think it should, remove it, rinse it thoroughly and dry it.
*Instead of Turmeric, you can also use ½ red cabbage (boil for 30 minutes) or the crispy skins from 5 yellow onions (boil until water is reddish).
To see Kim’s step-by-step video on hand dyeing, visit the Storque.
Local crafter Kel Millionie of Dude Yarn makes this “Twisted Tweed” out of natural fiber yarn and organic dyes.
Comments
If you wanted to go the unnatural route, animal fibers (i.e. silk, alpaca, wool) dye really well with Kool-Aid. You just mix a package with a cup or two of warm water and a tablespoon of vinegar and let the yarn sit in the mixture until all of the color has absorbed.
Posted by: Margarita | June 1, 2009 10:43 PM