You Asked, Kathy Answered: What IS Calcium Carbonate?

YOU ASKED: May I ask what you mean by calcium carbonate? I read in your description of “calcium carbonate” you compare it to chalk. This confuses me because chalk is caso4•(H2O) while calcium carbonate is caco3. KATHY ANSWERED:  What we call “chalk” in the US is Calcium Carbonate – CaC03, a powdery white material.  The formula that you reference is Calcium Sulfate and it may also be called “chalk” but in the US, we commonly refer to it as “gypsum”. Calcium carbonate is used to mark soccer fields, as a dietary calcium supplement, an ingredient in antacids, and building materials! … Read more

Seven swatches of blue fabric from very pale on the left to dark navy blue on the right

A Deep Dive into the 1-2-3 Indigo Vat

Indigo gradation from Aboubakar Fofana’s workshop on indigo.  The vat is a 7gpl fructose vat. Diving into indigo blue We have been working with the 1-2-3 indigo vat for nearly 10 years and over time made some adjustments to the original recipe from Michel Garcia. Here we share a recent experiment where we set up 4 different types of 1-2-3 vats and present the results. New instructions are linked below for each vat type with hints for a successful indigo vat!  You can also search our blog posts for information on indigo vats and answers to your many questions. Our … Read more

Covid-19 update from Botanical Colors

Covid-19 update from Botanical Colors Greetings from Seattle – ’nuff said about that. We are heartbroken that so many of our dear creative friends are feeling the fear and uncertainty of the outbreak. It is a crazy time, and not knowing what’s going to happen is unnerving. We are doing okay, and taking an abundance of health precautions. The weather is sunnier, daffodils are in bloom and the Winter Daphne (Daphnia odora) is delighting us with her amazing fragrance. Those simple things are lifting our spirits during these difficult times. The dog is delighted that we are around a lot … Read more

Easy Eco-Printing Instructions

I’ll admit I am a latecomer to eco-printing, but now find it quite useful to extending  dyestuffs that have had one life making a dyebath, but the bulky residue and stuff that gets strained out is still full of color.  I prefer used dyestuffs for eco-printing as there’s usually so much dye left in the ingredients and to me, they aren’t quite ready for the compost pile. Plus, once you open your eyes to the amount of color that’s around us, this is a simple way to try out colors you’ve been curious about.  Experiment with raw dyestuffs, or tannin-rich … Read more

RECIPE: Living Coral, Pantone Color of the Year 2019

This year’s Pantone Color of the Year is a bright and lively coral shade called Living Coral (Pantone 16-1546).  It’s a mid-tone shade and the natural dye version of it is very popular and easy. We like how madder extract will give you a beautiful shade.

We are teaming up with the Woods Hole Film Festival on Cape Cod to support their Science & Film Initiative and donating $5 for every madder extract order. This summer, the festival will formally launch the Woods Hole Film Festival Film and Science Initiative. The goal of the initiative is to provide opportunities to connect filmmakers and scientists to help them create films and other visual media that improve the public’s understanding of ocean science.

To see a current short film they’ve created on coral, go here and enter password nlp123.

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JaponTex Holiday Event – Free!

Join us Saturday December 4 at JaponTex at the historic La Conner Civic Garden Club in La Conner Washington.  JaponTex is a free event for all things Japanese and features textile artists Patricia Belyea, Mary Pettus and Sylvia Pippen.  The artists will be showing their holiday gift items and Botanical Colors will make an indigo vat for dipping for you to get your Mood Indigo on for the holidays. The event runs Friday through Sunday.  We’ll be there Saturday from 11-4.  

Easy and Fun DIY Indigo Dyed Easter Eggs

Here’s a fun way to do some easy DIY indigo-dyed Easter eggs! About Food says that “Easter falls in the spring, the yearly time of renewal, when the earth renews itself after a long, cold winter. The word Easter comes to us from the Norsemen’s Eostur, Eastar, Ostara and Ostar and the pagan goddess Eostre all of which include the season of the growing sun and rebirth. The ancient Egyptians, Persians, Phoenicians, and Hindus all believed the world began with an enormous egg, thus the egg as a symbol of new life has been around for eons.” I have always … Read more

Power Panties Rule

It’s so easy to brighten up your underthings with lush natural dye colors like cochineal, lac and madder. Materials Any natural fiber underthings – socks, camisoles or panties.  Look for 100% cotton, Modal, Tencel, silk or bamboo fiber content. Fiber blends like wool/cotton or silk/cotton or nylon also work well.  Microfiber, polyester and acrylic will not take the dyes. The dye process includes mordanting, then immersing in a dyebath, rinsing and drying and you are done! Safety A dust mask is recommended when measuring Aluminum Acetate as it is a fine powder that smells like vinegar and may be irritating. … Read more

Twelve Days of Color

  This year, we chose twelve natural dye colors as our countdown to Christmas Day and received a number of requests to list them all in one place.  The original post is linked to the dye name so click in order to see the information. Have as much fun with them as we did! Day 12 – Cochineal  Day 11 – Weld Day 10 – Indigo Day 9 – Madder Day 8 – Chestnut Day 7 – Lac Day 6 – Fustic Day 5 – Quebracho Day 4 – Cutch Day 3 – Pomegranate Day 2 – Woad Day 1 … Read more

Botanical Colors Joins Makers Row’s Roster of U.S. Manufacturers

Do you know about Maker’s Row? Well, Botanical Colors just got listed on it and we are so proud to be part of their online database for U.S. manufacturers. Maker’s Row wants to make it easier for businesses to access and produce their goods from companies in the United States. To help with that, the New York City-based startup launched an online database that seeks to provide “unparalleled access” to industry-specific factories and suppliers across the country. Its first offering, which targets apparel and accessory manufacturers, couldn’t have come at a better time. From automobiles to Apple computers, a “made … Read more