Page 12 – Botanical Colors

You Asked, Kathy Answered: Do I Mordant With Saxon Blue?

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 am writing you an email because I have a question about the Saxon blue liquid. I am about to use it to dye wool fiber, and I am asking if I need to mordant my wool fiber. If I don’t need to that would be nice but if I have … Read more

MORDANT MONDAY: Indigo & Discharging Mordants

We get mordant questions all the time at Botanical Colors so why not create Mordant Monday??? Got mordanting questions? Email [email protected] YOU ASKED: My question involves the processes of indigo dyeing when combined with other plant dyes that have been mordanted with aluminum acetate. My understanding is that citric acid discharges the mordant and also neutralizes the alkalinity of indigo as a last step in finishing indigo dyed cloth. How would you go about neutralizing indigo without discharging mordant? For some processes, I am wanting to use indigo on top of other colors rather than underneath. Can vinegar be used … Read more

Looking Back To Look Forward Botanical Colors 2023 Report

I can’t believe it’s the end of 2023. No really, how did we get here?? It seems a blur, a really exciting but challenging-paced year chock full of the ups and downs of a small business. And we are a small business! Many of you think we are a huge company, but did you know our incredible team is 8 employees strong? We pull off big things and work hard but there’s one thing we couldn’t do without. You. For our 2023 look back to look forward, we wanted to tell you how much we grew because of all of … Read more

dried weld flowers and stalks in a white bowl

You Asked, Kathy Answered: Bright Yellow From Weld

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 am dyeing with dried weld and would like to obtain the most bright yellow, so was wondering if I can use soda ash at 1% weight of fiber (wof) instead of calcium carbonate? Or will this give a big difference as both are elevating the pH level of the water? … Read more

Video From (The Last Ever!) FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Kathy & Amy xo

For our very last FEEDBACK FRIDAY, Kathy and I were the presenters and talked about the history of our show. We also pulled out some of our favorite moments from the 134 episodes (3 covers of the FEEDBACK FRIDAY song? Heck ya!) and what the “show” has meant to us since 2020. We have appreciated you being part of these presentations and supporting us so much. Thank you so much for all your emails, messages on Instagram and for showing up to say goodbye. Watch the recording below. FEEDBACK FRIDAY started out as a weekly show featuring Botanical Colors’ President … Read more

You Asked, Kathy Answered: Adding More Iron To A Ferrous Indigo Vat

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 made a 1-2-3 ferrous indigo vat, which I have done before with success. This time, I checked the vat after a few days and a good stir, and it seemed weak – there was some reduction, but it wasn’t very strong for the amount of indigo I had put in. … Read more

Easy Print Paste Thickener Tutorial

Designs and prints come to life with mordant printing using Botanical Colors Print Paste Thickener and this tutorial! If you don’t follow Arielle Toelke, Designer + Creator of Four Rabbit, you’re missing out! With a background in art, Arielle creates a line of goods that are both graphic and fun. We’ve been friends with her for years and also gotten to know her as one of our customers using our dyes and assists to make some pretty exciting, graphically pleasing surface designs. We asked Arielle to write an easy-to-use print paste thickener tutorial, sent her some of our print paste … Read more

MORDANT MONDAY: How Is Gall Nut Extract Different Than Ground?

We get mordant questions all the time at Botanical Colors so why not create Mordant Monday??? Got mordanting questions? Email [email protected] YOU ASKED: If I am using whole oak galls as a mordant, how is the gall nut extract used differently than the ground oak galls? Does the ground have to be heated for a certain amount of time or can it be added directly to hot water? KATHY ANSWERED: Gall nut extract, which we call gallo-tannin, is dissolved in near boiling hot water and then added to the dye pot or the mordant tub (it is a low -temperature mordant, … Read more

Sunday Visit: Stacie Chavez Of Imperial Yarn Looks At The Future Of Fiber

Every Sunday, Botanical Colors sits down for an interview with a luminary in the natural dye and textile world. Grab a cup of tea and settle in to learning about someone you never knew! Catch up on all our Sunday Visits here. In late 2015, fiber farmer Stacie Chavez along with Lynn Edens purchased Imperial Stock Ranch Fiber. Imperial Yarn, which is a company under the Imperial Stock Ranch Fiber umbrella, is 100% American grown and American made yarn. From that yarn they also make beautiful clothing, home goods, patterns and more. With around 6,500 acres of land for her animals … Read more

You Asked, Kathy Answered: Overwintering An Indigo Vat

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’ve moved to a new place and don’t have room to bring my buckets of indigo indoors for the winter (Seattle area). I’m pretty sure that I will need to re-start any ferment in the spring, but will my indigo vat survive otherwise? Somewhat of a beginner here. KATHY ANSWERED: Survivability … Read more