Discover the beauty of natural dyes using plants, leaves and botanical extracts. This is an introduction to the process where you will unearth the potential colour in plants that grow all around you. Using wool, peace silk, hemp, vintage linen and reclaimed cotton, you will learn to prepare these different fibres for dyeing. We will use readily available dyestuff such as onion skins, avocado pits, walnut shells and turmeric. You will also learn to prepare and dye with Madder extract and Logwood chips. During the afternnoon you will broaden the spectrum of colours created by modifying the fabrics with iron, acid and alkaline baths. At the end of the day, you will take home a swatch-book of colours on the various base fabrics, along with comprehensive notes detailing every process and a complete list of resources and suppliers. You will leave fully equipped to continue experimenting at home. This course is suitable for anyone interested in creating beautiful textiles using natural materials. It will hopefully enable you to connect more closely with your surroundings and think about where your textiles come from.
All materials provided. Please bring an apron, rubber gloves, sketch-book/notepad and a pen.