Madder is one of the historical dyes of antiquity and has been used throughout Europe, Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent for centuries. It is possible to see antique textiles from the 16th and 17th century that have been dyed with madder and the colors remain rich and vivid. The famous Turkey Red recipe was based on madder and incorporated many steps and immersions in different baths of soap, alum, dung, ox bile and oil to achieve the famous bright red color prized throughout Europe. Botanical Colors madder extract is easy to use and produces a deep, beautiful red without the hassle of searching for ox bile and and castor oil and deciphering the ancient manuscripts for the secret recipe that they used for Turkey Red. Used in combination with weld, madder yields a tangerine orange, and when combined with a touch of cochineal, madder produces a true flag red. Madder overdyed with indigo yields a mysterious and intriguing purple.
The dyed skeins include a wool and Tencel blend (the lighter skeins), grey wool overdyed with madder (the darkest skeins) and organic wool.