FEEDBACK FRIDAY: This Week in Natural Dye Questions
This week: A detailed answer on non-toxic alternatives to mordanting
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FEEDBACK FRIDAY: This Week in Natural Dye Questions
This week: Making your own color recipes, the difference between tannin and mordant and how we get “good” color
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: What’s the difference between colorfastness in natural dyes vs synthetic? Based on the fact that we have museums filled with tapestries and other textiles from hundreds of years ago, why is there such debate that natural dyes last? This is an interesting question with a complex answer. Color, light and washfastness commonly refers to how well a … Read more
VIDEO From FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Jason Logan of Toronto Ink Company
Last week on FEEDBACK FRIDAY we had Jason Logan, Founder of The Toronto Ink Company. Jason looked at the many layers of meaning that ink can be and how that definition relates to the larger world of natural color and finding color in unlikely places. He also talked about working in, and with, and as a part of nature as an urban color forager. We also got to see some great sneak peeks of a film he is working on. Watch the recording below. Jason says: “Most importantly, this hour aims to embrace the opportunity to get a bunch of … Read more
8 Frequently Asked Questions About Natural Colors and Dyes
We get asked so many questions about natural dyes that we put together 8 of our most frequently asked questions! What are natural dyes? Natural dyes are textile colorants that are derived from plants, insects and other natural materials. They are steeped in history, mystery and lore and each culture has its own set of prized colors, traditions and meanings. Prior to the mid-19th century, all dyes were from the natural world. Blue came from indigo, yellow from a variety of plants, including fustic, mignonette and dyers’ greenwood, red from madder roots and cochineal insects, purple from logwood and brown … Read more
FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Aluminum Acetate Substitute & Using Recyclables For Seed Cups
This week: Substitutes for aluminum acetate and using recyclables for natural dye seed cups
Ask Kathy: I Want Saturated Color!
Dear Kathy, I am a total newbie natural dyer and one thing I keep wondering about is why am I always getting a marbling effect when I dye? I’d love to know how to get saturated color! My husband and I would like to darken our denim and it’s not working the way we’d like. Signed, Atlantic Amy (and Jim) ______________ Hi Amy, Sounds like you are looking for a more even shade when you dye with natural dyes? Nearly all hand dyeing has a characteristic unevenness, and this is actually preferred by many dyers and designers as the hallmark … Read more
Sunday Visit: Hannah Regier’s Vermont Landcestors
For this week on Sunday Visit, we spend some time with Vermont-based fiber artist/land conservationist Hannah Regier. Hannah is a second generation professional craftsperson, a small scale homesteader, and “a third or more generation fiber worker.” She says her work is not about any “virtuosity of technique or adherence to current fashions” but more towards exploring how she can be of service to the natural materials she works with and the environment. Hannah will be sharing her practice and the evolution of her work this week on FEEDBACK FRIDAY focusing on her latest project, Landcestors which was supported by a creation … Read more
Mordant Monday: Gallo Tannin, Fustic and Madder Gradation
This week’s Mordant Monday focuses on Gallo Tannin, also known as Oak Gall tannin, or Oak Galls. We used the extract made from Oak Galls in our gradation, but a similar result comes from oak galls that have been crushed or pulverized. Gallo Tannin is one of the ancient tannins with many uses, including making black ink, leather tanning, and in traditional Asian medicine. It is the most commonly used tannin when mordanting with tannin + alum, as the color it imparts is very light, and it doesn’t show a strong undertone, like sumac or walnut or other tannins with … Read more