Not an Exact Science

If you want to try some natural dyes yourself
 follow India Flint's instructions. Try Amazon

Getting back to those beautiful natural dyes, early settlers in the Tidewater had 3 dye sources readily on hand – animal, vegetable and mineral.  Mineral of course goes back to 3000BC perhaps when some early artist found that ochres stained his (or her) animal skin cape or twig brushes. 

Over the years, others noted that there were  dyes which left a lasting colour without help (substantive; like beetroot juice on my white shirt!) and others, adjective dyes, which required some pre-treatment of the base fabric with a mordant to help the dyes bite.  The oldest known mordant is urine but alum, tin or iron is more common.  After the dye has taken, it needs to be “set”, commonly with a salt and vinegar mix. 

Aniline dyes were developed in the 1850’s; a chemical process which produced vivid colours.  Procion dye is one I’ve recently played with but along with technical advance, comes inherent dangers and the need to wear a face mask, rubber gloves and big aprons. And be especially careful when discarding unwanted mixtures. I also used a washing machine (heaps of water) and a dryer (heaps of electricity) to arrive at a finished product. 

Sample Board : Black Walnut, Brazilwood & Cochineal

So heritage or natural dyes seem a much gentler alternative.  Samples at the Yorktown 1780’s farm included dyes made from locally available materials –  black walnut, brazilwood, cochineal (from Central America), indigo (a major crop for South Carolina) or woad, logwood, madder, onion skins and of course, tobacco leaves made up a modest but beautifully soft palette. 

Sample Board: Logwood, Madder, Onion Skins & Tobacco

Preparing a dye pot is also time consuming and requires, even today, lots of chopping, grinding and crushing. Many recipes are closely guarded secrets.  Luckily, India Flint, a talented Aussie, has shared many of her secrets in her book, Eco Colour. Otherwise, there are a few easy recipes out there if you scour the internet.  

Me, I’m off to find a bit of fabric.  I’ve just cut a pomegranate and it has the most beautiful ruby red juice I’ve ever seen!