You Asked, Kathy Answered: Pros & Cons of Rainwater

YOU ASKED: Is it reliable to use rainwater? What are the consequences (pros and cons) of doing that for a dyebath? What should I be aware of (more acidity perhaps?)? KATHY ANSWERED: Rainwater is usually softer and more acidic than groundwater, so you could see a difference between colors dyed with well or groundwater and those dyed in rainwater. Some dyes such as cochineal and lac benefit from softer or demineralized water and rain water could be useful in that situation. I used to struggle to achieve bright cochineal pink shades when I lived in an area where our water … Read more

You Asked, Kathy Answered: How To Make Green

YOU ASKED: I’m having a wonderful time with your dye kit that I purchased and will always be back for more supplies, My question is what can I use to get a green color, on wool, silk or cotton? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! KATHY ANSWERED: Have you tried our Chlorophyllin yet? You can also use this logwood + weld recipe! We also have this video on how to make it! Just search for “green” on our site and you’ll find lots of info 🙂

You Asked, Kathy Answered: Chlorophyllin Dye Blanket

YOU ASKED: I followed your natural dyeing instructions, on 3 different cotton fabrics, with two different mordant methods. The fabric soaked for over 48 hours in a 10% WOF. This photo is after the first wash and dry. I am very happy with the results. Any ideas the strength of WOF to use as a dye blanket? KATHY ANSWERED: That’s a very impressive array of color that you were able to achieve!  Thank you for sending them!  For the weight of fiber, on the dye blanket, I’d start with 10% as that’s what you were using to get these great … Read more

You Asked, Judi Pettite From BioHue Answered: Painting Fabric With Dye Inks

We get lots of emails from customers about challenges with dyeing and needing Botanical Colors’ President Kathy Hattori’s help. Why not share the learning so we can all benefit? From our inboxes to you, it’s simple: You Asked, Kathy Answered. Email [email protected] with your plea for help! YOU ASKED: I would like to purchase your ink dyes to paint on fabric. Will these last and stay on natural fabrics? How do they work on recycled fabrics or synthetics? Judi Pettite from BioHue (who makes our inks! ANSWERED: The inks work well on fabric. They can be painted on, or use the … Read more

Sunday Visit: Babs Behan & Connecting Deeper With Dye Plants

Today’s Sunday Visit is with natural dyer and specialist of non-toxic natural dyeing techniques and bio-regional, regenerative textile systems, Babs Behan. Babs is the author of one of the newest books in our book store, Botanical Dyes: Plant To Print Dyes, Techniques & Projects. She is also the author of Botanical Inks Plant-To-Print Dyes, Techniques and Projects Founder of Botanical Inks non-toxic natural dye studio and the Bristol Cloth Project. Babs tells us she is committed to the transformation of our textile industry and the possibility of global environmental and cultural regeneration, inspired by her own connection with nature. “I … Read more

You Asked, Kathy Answered: A Strange Result With Logwood

We get lots of emails from customers about challenges with dyeing and needing Botanical Colors’ President Kathy Hattori’s help. Why not share the learning so we can all benefit? From our inboxes to you, it’s simple: You Asked, Kathy Answered. Email questions@botanicalcolors with your plea for help! Thanks to Amy Tucker Studio for this week’s questions! YOU ASKED: I was instructing an eco printing workshop this weekend, and I was using logwood for the carrier blankets and I had a strange occurrence. I attached some photos to show what it looked like and what happened. I extracted the color from … Read more

Pretty In Pink : Cochineal Instructions

The world has been taken yet again by the effervescent hue of pink. Gretta Gerwig’s new feminist take on Barbie has taken the media by storm. The paint used for the movie set even put a run on the world’s supply!  We wanted to bring you some recipes for creating the color in a natural and harmonious way.  Kassia St. Clair, in The Secret Lives of Color takes us on a journey through how the color came to be named in modern times. “The first reference in the Oxford English Dictionary being used to describe pale reds is the late … Read more

The Beginner Dye Kit: Fustic Greens

Fun Facts about the Fustic in our Botanical Colors’ Beginner Dye Kit: Fustic (Chlorophora tinctoria or Maclura tinctoria) is a tall tropical hardwood that grows from Mexico to Argentina. Fustic is high in tannic acid, which makes it an ideal cotton dye. In fact, it was used in the military to dye the color khaki during World War I. On cotton, it will dye a clear gold and on silk and wool it will dye gold to brown-gold. Fustic also provides a good base for other colors: indigo overdyed with fustic creates a khaki green; combined with madder and cochineal to make oranges; and mixed with … Read more

A hand holding damp fabric that has been dyed black

The Beginner Dye Kit: Black

Use your gallo tannin + iron to get some deep & dark shades of black! You can substitute the gallo tannin with other tannins in the future and dark extracts to make a variety of dark hues. Want to know how to make your very own signature black natural dye? Here’s a really good black recipe from Kathy to send you into tannin and iron experiments all day…or maybe, for the rest of your life. Black with gallo tannin, iron and logwood is a historical recipe from Europe and creates a warm black. Prior to the introduction of logwood to Europe, black was achieved through multiple baths of tannin … Read more

The Beginner Dye Kit: Setting up your studio & safety

SAFETY We offer common sense safety advice for the new natural dyer.  The materials are derived from natural sources and are considered non-toxic but powders can be irritating so a few simple rules are part of a good dye practice.  NOTE: The one ingredient we want you to pay special attention to is Iron powder (ferrous sulfate). Keep away from young children and pets. It is the same ingredient that is found in iron pills for anemia and it is not safe for small bodies. Please read the safety and use information about ferrous sulfate below prior to use.  When … Read more