How to Create a Dye for Cotton Using Plant Materials

Dye 100-percent cotton fabric with boiled plant material.

The art of dying fabric with plant material came to fruition in Ancient Egypt during the 18th Dynasty (1550-1292 B.C.), according to Kibbutz Reshafim. The trend of dying animal skins, hair, fabrics and even human bodies continued for centuries until the introduction of synthetic dye by William Henry Perkin in 1856. You can experiment with the ancient dying process by purchasing white cotton fabric and soaking it in your own homemade plant dyes made from plant material that you have picked yourself.

Things You'll Need

• Mature berries, blossoms, roots and nuts
• Bowls
• Cutting board
• Sharp knife
• Measuring cup
• Large pots
• Strainer
• Salt or vinegar
• 100-percent cotton fabric

Instructions

1. Gather your plant materials. The best natural dyes come from ripe berries, blossoms, roots and mature nuts.

2. Divide the plant material by color and type, placing each group into separate bowls. For instance, there should be a bowl for red berries and one for green leaves; red berries are not mixed with red leaves. Pick a color group, and place the plant material on a cutting board. Cut everything up into very small pieces with a sharp knife.

3. Place the plant material in a measuring cup and determine how much you have. Double the result, and pour that amount of water into a large pot.

4. Drop the plant material into the pot, and bring it to a boil on the stove top. Simmer afterwards for one hour.

5. Allow the pot of water to cool. Strain the plant material from the boiled water by placing a strainer over a second large pot and pouring the contents of the first pot through the strainer. The colored liquid in the bottom of the second pot is your cotton dye.

6. Prepare the cotton fabric for dying by soaking it in a dye fixative. Pour 8 cups of cold water and ½ cup of salt in a large pot to make a berry dye fixative or 4 parts cold water and 1 part vinegar in the pot for a plant dye fixative.

7. Place the pot on a stove top, add the cotton fabric to the fixative and simmer for one hour. Allow the pot of fixative to cool, remove the fabric and rinse the fabric until the water runs clear.

8. Ring out the fabric, removing as much liquid as possible and place it in the pot of dye. Simmer the dye and cotton fabric together until the fabric reaches the desired shade. Remove the pot from the flame to cool.

9. Lift the cotton fabric from the dye and ring it out well over the pot. Launder the dyed cotton fabric in cold water on a gentle setting. Hang to dry.

Tips & Warnings

• You can create a deeper color dye by allowing the plant material to soak in the boiled water overnight and straining it in the morning.

• Keep in mind that the dyed fabric will look lighter when dry.

• Do not pour the dye into the second pot until it has completely cooled or you risk burning yourself.

• Do not forget to put on a pair of rubber gloves before you begin the dying process. If you do not, your hands will match the dyed fabric afterward.

• The fabric that you choose to dye must be 100-percent cotton. Synthetic cotton blends are difficult and sometimes impossible to dye.

References

• Kibbutz Reshafim: Colouring Fabrics and Other Materials
• Pioneer Thinking: Making Natural Dyes From Plants
• Kids Gardening: Extracting Nature's Colors

Resources

• Chymist: Natural Plant Dyes