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MORDANT MONDAY: Exhausted Mordant Baths + Sumac 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: After watching your video about aluminum triformate I decided to order it and started using it. I work with large quantities and large pieces, so I prepared a bucket with 50 liters of water and 500 grams of aluminum triformate. I used it to mordant approximately 5 kg of yarn/pieces. The water was white at the beginning, I suppose because I just mixed the powder, but after the first load, it was just like regular water. I … Read more

White powder on a white circular ceramic tray

Mordant Monday: Aluminum triformate – Easy mordanting for wool

Even as the weather cools and the days get shorter, we are still in the dye pots and love the ease of aluminum triformate for mordanting wool. Aluminum triformate is another alum mordant, and we’ve adapted a couple of recipes to create a mordant method that’s a little different than our standard hot water techniques. Very simply, we create a mordant container or bucket and mix the aluminum triformate mordant with cold water. We then use that bucket and add skeins of clean wool yarn to it and let it soak overnight or longer. Then, when we’re ready to use … Read more

MORDANT MONDAY: Can A Cold Water Mordant Deepen Colors?

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 recently purchased some aluminum triformate from you all. I tried the aluminum triformate using it at 10% WOF hoping to get the strongest results possible. So far I have only the aluminum sulfate to compare it to. It seems the aluminum sulfate samples are much darker, especially the reds, although I am not finished with all the colors. I am wondering if this is typically the case? Is there anything you would suggest to coax … Read more

MORDANT MONDAY: Post-Mordanting With Iron + Preferred Method For Protein

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 recently purchased Ceriops Tagal Liquid Dye and have used it once already, I love it!! I am looking at your site and it says post-mordanting with iron to alter the color but I can’t seem to find what color it will produce. Does it result in a darker almost black shade like walnut would? KATHY ANSWERED: Ceriops creates a very dark chocolate shade when immersed in an iron rich mud solution (check out this link from Threads of … Read more

How to Mordant with Symplocos

Our How To guides are intended to make the mordant process easy, from scouring your fibers to dyeing with an assortment of dyes. You can find other How To guides here. What is Mordanting? Mordanting is the most important process of preparing fibers to accept color. Using a mordant helps to ensure the most durable and long-lasting colors. With the exception of indigo (as a vat dye, it does not require a mordant), this is not an optional step. (Check out our Q & A: Round Up of Mordanting + Scouring 101 here.) Most mordants are calculated based off of a percentage of the … Read more

Mordant Monday: Q&A

Mordant Monday this week is all about questions: some are mordanting questions and others are the victims of spellcheck. I changed my mind How do I change a mordant after the fact? I have some wool and cotton fabrics with alum on them but I really want to have them mordanted with iron instead. Can I remove the alum and start with an iron base? Answer: Alum mordants are very durable and long-lasting bonds, and while there are a few substances that can weaken or damage them, using them would probably also damage the fabric and we don’t recommend this … Read more

MORDANT MONDAY: What’s The Best Mordant Duo For A Cotton T-shirt?

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 had a question about your aluminum triformate. I am going to dye 20 cotton t-shirts and thought the aluminum triformate would be a good option for mordanting. I am wondering if I should still use a tannin? Do you think it’s the best option for mordanting cotton items that will be washed often? KATHY ANSWERED: Yes, tannin really helps with wash and lightfastness. You have a wide choice of tannins: gallo-tannin, tara powder, chestnut, myrobalan, pomegranate … Read more

MORDANT MONDAY: Do I Need To Re-Mordant To Eco Print?

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 have scoured the internet trying to find an answer to this question, with no luck other than to ask you 🙂 I am dyeing my fabric (scoured and mordanted with tara tannin, aluminum acetate, chalk bath) and want to eco print flowers onto the fabric afterwards. Do I re-mordant or is the previous mordant still viable after the fabric has been dyed as the water reaches 180 degrees. I use your plant extracts to dye and … Read more

MORDANT MONDAY: Is Aluminum Acetate A Better Mordant Than Aluminum Sulfate?

We get mordant questions all the time at Botanical Colors so why not create Mordant Monday??? Got mordanting questions? Email [email protected] YOU ASKED: For plant fibers I was taught to use aluminum acetate for the mordant and then rinse in calcium carbonate to neutralize the acetate. That extra step is minor, but I’m wondering whether aluminum acetate is a better mordant than aluminum sulfate. It sure is more expensive! KATHY ANSWERED: Yes, that is the mordant process that we use as well. I don’t think that aluminum acetate is necessarily a better mordant, but it does have some strengths over … Read more

MORDANT MONDAY: If It’s Tannin Rich Do You Need Mordant?

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’ve read that natural dye materials with a high tannin level don’t need a mordant to dye wool. I have a rain barrel that collects run-off from the roof. The roof is under a huge maple tree, which over the course of the seasons, drops flower clusters, seeds, leaves and sticks onto the roof. This turns the runoff water in the rain barrel a brownish color. I believe this is due to the tannin in these items? … Read more