How Do Vegetables Dye Fabric?

Vegetables have been used as fabric dyes for centuries.

Vegetables have been used for centuries in the dying of various fabrics. Many varieties have high concentrations of coloration or pigment, making them ideal for the job. Different vegetables have different pigments, and the length of time a fabric or egg shell or raw wool is exposed to these pigments determines the intensity of the color.

Process

Vegetables can be ground or crushed to loosen the pigment from their fleshy containers. For dying fabrics, the vegetables are then placed in boiling water along with the cloth to be dyed. In other cases--for example, when painting the body with a vegetable dye--the vegetable is ground and applied with a brush or other implement. According to SacredEarth.com, the most popular type of vegetable dye for this application is henna, which can be used for painting the skin or tinting hair.

Mordants

After exposure to vegetable dye, a fabric--wool, for example--is then exposed to another mixture that serves to lock the color into place. This second mixture is called a mordant, and can be made from a number of different ingredients. According to SacredEarth.com, "The most commonly used mordant is alum, which is another way of saying 'potassium aluminium sulphate.' Sometimes the wool is subsequently subjected to other mordants such as iron, chrome or tin, or the alum is mixed with cream of tartar (similar but not quite the same as that used for baking)."

Lichens

Not all dyes require a mordant to lock their color into the fabric being dyed. According to UKCraftFairs.com, "Dyes ranging from green to light orange can be obtained from lichens. They do not require a mordant ... after crushing the lichen, simmer it with the wet wool until it reaches the required colour."

Eco-Friendly

Vegetable dyes are an attractive alternative for people concerned about overexposure to man-made chemicals. PlanetGreen.com suggests these dyes are also more eco-friendly, since their source is plant that can be replenished and regrown. Additionally, says the site, the mordants used to fix vegetable dyes are usually made from common non-toxic ingredients.

Downside

One potential downside to vegetable dyes is the environmental impact of the chemicals that may be used in their cultivation. Again, according to PlanetGreen.com, vegetable dyes "tend to require a much larger volume of dyestuffs to do the job, so, depending on how they were farmed, can be very high-impact; if the materials came from a heavily fertilized, pesticide-laden crop, the impact is going to be higher."

References

• UK Craft Fairs: Craft Guide-Making Vegetable Dyes
• Sacred Earth: The Colors of Nature
• Planet Green: Choose Textiles and Upholstery with Eco-Friendly Dyes

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish