Page 8 – Botanical Colors

Sunday Visit: Kara Gilbert on Vibrant Valley Blue

Every Sunday, Botanical Colors sits down for an interview with a luminary in the natural dye, textile and art world. Grab a cup of tea and settle in to learning about someone you never knew! Catch up on all our Sunday Visits here. This week we sit down with force of nature Kara Gilbert of Vibrant Valley Farm. Vibrant Valley Farm works diligently to care for this earth in everything they do. They farm vegetables, flowers and dye plants and in each step of the process, honor sustainable practices to create healthier communities locally and globally in their outreach, education and daily … Read more

Mordant Monday: Spotlight on Quebracho Moreno

Today in our tannin series we move on to Quebracho Moreno. Quebracho (Schinopsis balansae and Schinopsis lorentzii) is an evergreen tree that grows wild in South America. It grows mainly in Argentina and Paraguay in dense sub-tropical forests which also include a variety of other trees and vegetation. The name is due to its hardness, and comes from two Spanish words, quebrar and hacha, meaning “axe breaker”. In fact, quebracho has been used locally for posts, telegraph poles, bridge timbers, railway ties, paving blocks and for any construction where great durability is desired. Quebracho Moreno (we used to carry a Quebracho Rojo, so we called this one … Read more

Mordant Monday: Tannins and Teal, Osage Edition

We have a new type of Mordant Monday for you today where we dive into the world of Tannins! We want to show you how to use our tannins to mordant, either in combination with aluminum sulfate, to get rich long lasting and substantive color, or to use as a base for color mixing. We will explore our tannins over the next few weeks. In the photo pictured above we dyed our hemp towel irregulars first in an Indigo Henna Vat. We then used a 15% WOF bath of our osage saw dust to get this beautiful hue. Osage orange … Read more

Sunday Visit: Some Kind Of Blue with Kenya Miles of Blue Light Junction

Every Sunday, Botanical Colors sits down for an interview with a luminary in the natural dye, textile and art world. Grab a cup of tea and settle in to learning about someone you never knew! Catch up on all our Sunday Visits here. This week’s Sunday Visit we catch up with Kenya Miles, to have a deep and meaningful conversation around what the color blue means. How Blue Light Junction came to be and how through community and craft we can hold space for each other to learn to learn. We had a wonderful phone interview that honestly left me … Read more

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

MORDANT MONDAY: A Plant-Based Option For Mordanting?

We get mordant questions all the time at Botanical Colors so why not create Mordant Monday??? Got mordanting questions? Email [email protected] YOU ASKED: I’m trying to make my natural dye practice completely plant-based, which also includes my mordant. I’ve used sumac and different nuts in the fall, tea and avocado pits, but do you sell a plant-based mordant? I still want to get great color and not all plant-based “mordants” are getting me to where I want to be. KATHY ANSWERED: We do! Symplocos is an exciting alternative that will give you the mordanting power as your base. We are … Read more

Annatto & Hibiscus Dyed Easter Eggs

Everyone from kids to adults love to get their hands messy when they dye Easter eggs with natural dyes. This is a fun tutorial for adults and kiddos (parents help, please) to make a little Easter magic. First things first, let’s talk about health & safety: We always recommend working in a very well ventilated area. Although natural dyes are non-toxic, when using fine powders it’s best to wear a mask, and keep the windows open. Be mindful around little ones and pets as you don’t want anything going in mouths that shouldn’t be there. Also, when beginning to set … 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 🙂

MORDANT MONDAY: Do I Need To Mordant When Using Liquid Tannin?

We get mordant questions all the time at Botanical Colors so why not create Mordant Monday??? Got mordanting questions? Email [email protected] YOU ASKED: I am using your liquid tannin on cotton. Beyond scouring, I was wondering if it is sufficient to use liquid tannin (on cotton t-shirts) as a mordant before using the other liquid dyes? Or, do I need to mordant cottons at all when using these liquids? Do I need to alum them as well? I have aluminum triformate currently so was thinking to use this. KATHY ANSWERED: I hope I’m answering your question here. If you want to use Liquid … Read more

Sunday Visit: Maibe Maroccolo on Native Brazilian Flora and Fostering Creativity

This week’s Sunday Visit we catch up with the inimitable Maibe Maroccolo she is the founder and creative director of Mattricaria based in Brazil. She has a master in sustainable development from the University of Arts London. After a period of studies and specialization in the United Kingdom, Maibe delved into her Brazilian roots and dedicated herself to researching and mapping dye plants, with a focus on textile and artistic applications. Since 2013, her research has revolved around the potential of natural dyes from Brazilian flora and Matricaria was born. The studio also records traditional methods aimed at artisanal practices. You have … Read more