Before chemical fabric dyes came into existence, natural substances such as fruits and vegetables were used to dye fabric. I have been meaning to try out a natural dye technique for a while and finally did it this week. I am happy to report that it was a success and SO simple!
Pretty much any dark colored fruit or vegetable can be used for this how-to. Some options are: red cabbage {pink}, blueberries {purple}, blackberries {darker pink/purple}, tea or coffee {beige}, turmeric or saffron {yellow}, grape juice, and many more.
What you will need:
- Fabric items to dye – These items must be made from a natural source, such as 100% cotton. I used a tote bag, a few old napkins, and a few small cotton drawstring bags {all of which I already had laying around my house}.
- ¾ cup salt – I used plain kosher salt.
- Fruit and/or veggies – I chose blackberries {dark pink/purple}, tea {beige}, and turmeric {golden yellow}.
- A large pot
- A colander
- Lots of water
Step One:
Mix ¾ cup salt with 12 cups of water. Submerge your fabric in the water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let the fabric simmer for about an hour.
Remove the fabric from the salt water and rinse with cold water. Ring out the items and set aside.
Note: if you are planning to dye a lot of items, you might need to do this step a few extra times. Or use a really, really big pot and double the amount of salt and water.
Step Two:
If you are using berries, put a cup in a pot with four cups of water and boil for about 15 minutes. Strain the fruit from the water and discard. Set the water aside to cool.
I also used turmeric and black tea. For the turmeric, I mixed two tablespoons with four cups of boiling water. For the tea, I let several bags of black tea sit in four cups of boiling water for about 5 minutes.
Step Three:
Dye your fabric. I wanted a dip-dyed look for my cotton bags so I carefully set the end in the dye and draped the top {un-dyed part} over the side of the bowl. I let my items sit in the dye for about 10 minutes.
For my napkins, I decided to completely submerge them in the tea dye and let them sit for about 10 minutes.
Step Four:
Rinse your fabric with hot tap water, ring out, and hang to dry.
That’s it! This process can be done with any cotton or other natural fiber fabrics. Just be careful when/if you need to wash your items as they might bleed the first time.
Regina Morrison is the owner of a small handmade accessories business, 
love this tutorial! i’m going to pin it to our “ombre craze” on pinterest. (http://pinterest.com/petitepomme/) i’m thinking of using beets since it easily stains my fingers when i’m peeling them and i love that color. thanks for sharing.
I absolutely love this post! I’m going to give this a whirl soon. I’ve got heaps of natural fabric that I was planning to make napkins out of….now I think I’ll dye them. Thanks.
With Easter coming up we can use these natural dyes, to color our eggs too.
Here is an informative article I found online that explains natural dye sources and processing. Granted we won’t have all of the natural elements that are included in the comprehensive list below, but in the summer during growing season we may look at our herbs, plants, and roots with renewed interest.
http://www.pioneerthinking.com/crafts/crafts-basics/naturaldyes.html
Good article, thank you.
Shelley Novotny
http://xeeme.com/ShelleyNovotny
So excited to try this! I have been trying to find inexpensive ways to dye some muslin for baby necessities, and this just may do the trick.
Interesting! Does your method produce wash-fast colors without heat setting the dye? You’re using salt as a mordant?
I have tea dyed lots of items, my method is to simmer the fabric (after I have boiled the tea bags for about 15 minutes and then removed them) then let it all cool before rinsing the fabric. I love it for toning down the color of thrift store finds that are a little bright for my taste, the results are always interesting!
You’re inspiring me to try some more natural colors!
Love this. So simple and such gorgeous natural colours. I’ll be trying this soon. Thanks.
This is delightful. Love the idea of using raspberries.
wow! these are great! although i kind of think it’s a bit waste to use the fruits for dyeing.
I will definitely try turmeric!
great post!
Thank you for your generosity in sharing. Wonderful post!
This is fantastic- thanks for the share! We have a bunch of lace tablecloths that I’ve been thinking need a bit of a colour-wash and now have an affordable and earth friendly plan to work with!
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thank you so much!
this is very exciting
and very inspiring in a user friendly way!
would you be super kind to advice me on getting a colour i desire?
i got this linen top and do not like the aquamarine blue it has at the moment, it seems a little plain & lack depth to me..
if i would love a teal or dark blue green or even peacock green instead, how will you suggest i achieve that?
any suggestions would be deeply appreciated
xxxx
Maybe try blueberries? Best of luck!
Does anyone know what to use to make the color a blush pink, dusty purple, or peach??? I want to dye some lace for my wedding, but I do not know what would leave them a more neutral/light color. Thanks!
Hi Amber-
You could try the berries {like in the post above} but just leave the lace in for a minute. Or, you could try red cabbage or beets. If you want a light color, maybe just dip the fabric in and rinse well. I would definitely test it on a small piece before doing the entire thing!