Natural dye time
Hi!
There is so much to celebrate at the moment bu this time would like to say
Happy Nature Play week!
I’m celebrating by spending this week get grubby outside!
Every where I look,
there are so many amazing colours in nature!
I guess that’s why we made up our own Rainbow Scavenger Hunt! (click here to find out how to do it!)
I just learnt some facts about colour
that have blown my mind!
Did you you know…
1) That our eyes work with our brain to translate light into colour ~ it's based on the light's wavelengths...the message that each colour sends. It’s like getting a brain text from each colour.
2) The colours we can see are called "visible colours".
3) Out of the visible colours, Red has the longest wavelength, then orange, yellow, green, blue and violet has the shortest wavelength. Each colour has an unique message!
4) Here's another awe-inspiring fact: there are also others colours that are too tricky for the human eye - they are called “Impossible Colors.” I wonder what they would look like!
And 5…
We can make colours
using ingredients from nature!
Here’s how…
NATURAL DYES
Keeps nasty chemicals out of the environment, but it also keeps them off our skin.
STUFF I LOVE TO DYE:
old t-shirts
homemade shopping bags
cushion covers
wool
Scraps from old clothes to tie up my tomatoes
Eggs for Easter
Egg shells - this is a big one at the moment. I've just fallen in love this morning with some beautiful eggshell vases, they're all different colours thanks to natural dyes and look so cute with wild flowers in them! I shared them on my Instagram ...
You have to check them out!!!
Naturally dyed Eggshell Vases!
Home-made playdough
Edible finger paints
Food - I use my natural dyes to make Unicorn Toast, and Grubby toast, birthday cakes... all kinds of stuf! Natural dyes can turn any old food into a rainbow extravaganza!
My Natural Dye Rainbow
Yellow - Carrots, yellow beets, ground tumeric, saffron,
Red - Beetroot juice, beetroot powder, raspberries, pomegranate
Blue - Red cabbage juice, black beans, cornflowers, butterfly pea flowers, any purple ingredients + baking soda
Green - Spinach, kale powder, Super greens, matcha powder,parsely juice
Purple - mix Blue and red ingredients that would taste good together
Orange - Carrot juice, paprika or Mix Yellow and red ingredients that would taste good together
Brown - Espresso, Cocoa Powder or Cinnamon
Black - Black cocoa powder, activated charcoal powder, squid ink...
AMOUNTS
I usually blend or juice my veggies to get as much of the juice out as I can,I can this nature juice, I add a little salt and then I add hot water - this is where the boss of hot water, usually a grown up, comes in handy.
I use about two cups of hot water to 2 cups of whatever nature juice i am using. Spices are a bit different - we all know how far a teeny bit of Tumeric can go on a light covered fabric, haha…. so experiment with pinches of spices to make rich coloured liquid dyes…rather than spoons, cups or buckets full.
Once I’ve got my dye ready, then I either add the fabric to the liquid or I decant ( luscious word for pour) the dye into a refillable bottle. Then I can use the bottle to carefully pop a few drops of dye into my coconut yoghurt or my cream cheese or even my play dough and finger paints!
FIXATIVE
Vinegar is a good natural fixative to help the dye set; for berries, salt is awesome! You add these once you've put your fabric or item into the dye mix.
Did you know you can even use
your compost to make natural dyes?!
COMPOST DYES
Yep, a few of my friends - like Granny Skills and Samorn Sanixay - actually use COMPOST to colour their clothes... it's awesome! You can get beautiful colours from ONION PEELS and BEET SCRAPS - often the prints are a little more random and spontaneous but who doesn't love a discovery thanks to nature! In fact these gentle tones are perfect for Autumn fun creations!
You check these girls out on Insta. They're creating the most beautiful things - like coats and silk scarves - that don't cost the earth! We can all try doing this stuff at home!
Bec even makes her own water colours - naturally! Read how to here!
Well I’m feeling full to the brim with inspiration - but for BUCKET LOADS MORE INSPIRATION you can head here to my Pinterest page of natural dye love.
Have fun making your own colours this weekend!
Tag me in your pics on Instagram or Facebook
or use the #naturaldyesrock -
I'd love to see the rainbows
you make at your place, naturally!
