FEEDBACK FRIDAY: This Week in Natural Dye Questions
This week: Why your indigo smells weird and can Aquarelle dyes be used in bath and body products?
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FEEDBACK FRIDAY: This Week in Natural Dye Questions
Each week, we are emailed with questions from our natural dye community asking simple and complex questions that we thought might be worth sharing. Here are a handful from this week answered by natural dyer in chief, Kathy Hattori, Founder of Botanical Colors: I would like to be able to make variegated yarn from a finished skein (as opposed to spinning my yarn from various colored fibers, which is what I do now). I’ve done most of my dyeing on wool that I spin and then weave, but would like to dye cotton and hemp fabric. I am not able … Read more
Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: The Botanical Reclamation Project
Today, June 18th, we had such a special FEEDBACK FRIDAY treat with Guelph, Ontario based artist Anita Cazzola. Anita not only played banjo and sang our FEEDBACK FRIDAY theme song with her partner Sam, we got to hear her talk about her Botanical Reclamation project. Anita just launched her project which celebrates the resiliency of wild plants through naturally dyed textiles. The project also offers the community a chance to learn about local plant life, and the natural dye process through self-guided walks, weekly scavenger hunts, project livestreams, workshops, question and answer sessions, and artist talks with the help of … Read more
FEEDBACK FRIDAY Highlights Video of 2020 (And Happy New Year!)
A FEEDBACK FRIDAY Highlights video? Yes! For 36 weeks, Kathy and I have brought you FEEDBACK FRIDAY where weekly we speak with dyers, artists, scientists and scholars about our favorite topic, natural dyeing and color. Curated and presented by Botanical Colors’ Founder Kathy Hattori and me, Amy DuFault, Botanical Colors’ Sustainability and Social Media Director, what started out as a way to connect with our community during the pandemic has turned into what’s almost like church for the thousands who have shown up. It’s pretty special to Kathy and I too. What inspiration have we garnered this year learning how … Read more
FEEDBACK FRIDAY: This Week in Natural Dye Questions
Each week, we are emailed with questions from our natural dye community asking simple and complex questions that we thought might be worth sharing. Here are a handful from this week answered by natural dyer in chief, Kathy Hattori, Founder of Botanical Colors: Do you have any advice on how to get a consistent grey? I am answering this in two parts. One, how to get a consistent, non-blotchy color and two, how to get the same color in multiple dye baths. Here’s the answer to the first question. Most gray recipes are a combination of a tannin dye with … Read more
Video of Live Q&A For (New Cold Water Mordant) Aluminum Triformate
Check out our video recording and Q&A for our new cold water mordant Aluminum Triformate! Botanical Colors’ President Kathy Hattori took us on a one hour review on and demo using aluminum triformate. She showed show results of tests and experiments using the cold water mordant and answered lots of questions. Watch the recording here. Shop Aluminum Triformate here About: Aluminum triformate is a room temperature mordant for all natural fibers including wool, silk, cotton, hemp and linen. It also works on a gpL (grams per Liter) calculation or a weight of fiber (WOF) percentage and we’ve used it successfully with … Read more
FEEDBACK FRIDAY: This Week in Natural Dye Questions
This week: Interesting questions on pre and post-treatments for color and lightfastness
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
On Pins and Needles
My weakness for beautiful tools was sorely tested these past few days, and I finally succumbed to the charms of these vintage needlework treasures. The objets of my desire were lovely tools for sewing, stitching and lacemaking from a French company called Sajou. Maison Sajou was founded in 1828 and was well known as a provider of threads, needles and finely crafted scissors for what is called Ouvrages de Dames, or “Ladies’ Work” until the early part of the 20th century, when it fell into decline. The woman responsible for restoring the House of Sajou to its former glory is … Read more