Loading…
16
Turning beet juice into a fabric fiasco changed my mind on natural dyes
I always thought using plants to dye cloth was just for hippies and too much work. Then my aunt gave me a bunch of beets and I decided to try it for fun. I boiled them in a big pot, added some old cotton shirts, and left it overnight. Next morning, my whole kitchen was pink, and the shirts came out patchy, not the deep red I wanted. It looked like a toddler's art project gone wrong. But when I washed them, the colors softened into this unique, mottled pattern that grew on me. Now I see the charm in how each batch turns out different, unlike factory dyes. It's not perfect, but that's the point, and I've been experimenting with onion skins and avocado pits since.
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
margaret_white487mo ago
Your "deep red I wanted" reminds me of my pomegranate dye that turned out a strange mauve color.
7
lucas_fisher767mo ago
I mean, is a mauve dye really that big of a problem? It's just a color mix-up.
3
patjones7mo ago
Color mix-ups can be a bigger deal than they seem, @lucas_fisher76. If you had a specific project in mind, the wrong shade might ruin it. What were you planning to use the dye for?
5