A Chance Encounter - How I Started Experimenting with Natural Fabric Dyeing

Textile Trails — Tales from an Explorer’s Journal

Journal Entry #4 — October 8, 2023

Natural fabric dyes are dyes made from organic sources, such as plants, fruits, vegetables, minerals, and even insects. They have been used for centuries to color textiles and have gained renewed interest in recent years due to their sustainability and environmentally friendly properties.

How a walk in the "Diagon Alley" changed my life

One beautiful summer evening back in 2017, I was walking in Cecil Court - a charming 17th-century alley that's completely lined up with secondhand bookstores and antique shops I stumbled upon a book that forever changed my life - Natural Processes in Textile Art, by Alice Fox.

Also known as Booksellers’ Row, this place later became one of my favorite places in London, a sanctuary for me. I used to go there whenever I needed some time off the hustle and bustle of the busy London streets - just to borrow through the old books and antiques or just to admire its magical and cozy atmosphere, though the street is just a short walk away from a highly trafficked thoroughfare.

I experimented with the dye recipes in the book in Mersham (Mersham, pronounced 'Merzam' by the locals is a small, friendly village in Kent, UK dating back to Saxon times.) - where I spent my weekends. I stayed in a 15th-century farmhouse with a backyard full of flowers and wild trees. During summer It was exactly what I needed. During the week I would work 60 long hours knowing that I get to enjoy my dye experiments during the weekends. I still remember how I flew from London every Friday evening and settled in a window seat on the train from St Pancras train station to Ashford, with my books and dreaming of the beautiful weekend in the village.

During my experiments, I first tried easy recipes. I managed to get some colors right from the kitchen waste and things found at home - turmeric, avocado skin, onion skin, coffee, and tea. Some eco printing with flowers and leaves from the garden too.

Later I started learning and experimenting with leaves, flowers, found objects, metals, minerals, etc. Foraging for natural dyes may take time at first, and feel a bit intimidating, but the more you do it the more confidence you’ll have in identifying plants that are perfect for the dye pot. When I first started foraging for dyes, I felt self-conscious, but soon realized it’s no different from picking elderflowers or blackberries – you just might have to answer a few more questions as to why you’re picking weeds!

It’s important to share some advice about foraging responsibly:

• Don’t take more than you need, and spread your picking out throughout a patch of plants. If there are only one or two plants there, leave it to set seed and it will grow back in larger quantities next year!
• Always get the landowner's permission if you are not on public/common land. Check with your local authorities.
• Make sure you can confidently identify the plant. Certain plants, such as cow parsley, have many siblings within the same plant family which can be harmful. Apps like PlantNet can help you to ID a plant but do not rely on them to be true. If you’re not sure, don’t risk it.
• Be mindful of the local wildlife and insect population, and do not damage habitats.
• After picking the plants, leave them outside for a couple of hours, to let any insect life escape before you add the plants to the dye pot.

Rust Dyeing

Rust dyeing is a fascinating and unconventional natural dyeing technique that produces unique and earthy patterns on fabric or paper using rusted objects. It's a creative way to experiment with textures and create one-of-a-kind designs. In rust dyeing, the iron oxide (rust) from rusted objects acts as a dye to imprint patterns onto the material. I became fond of rust dyeing and kept experimenting further as rust dyeing results in a range of organic and weathered patterns, making each piece of dyed fabric or paper a unique work of art. It's a creative and sustainable way to experiment with natural dyes and repurpose rusted objects while adding a rustic and textured touch to creative projects. I even started social media pages called Rust Diaries to record my progress. ( Face book , Instagram )

Using natural fabric dyes not only provides a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative to synthetic dyes but also allows for unique and variable color results.

Natural dyes are often celebrated for their connection to cultural traditions and their ability to create a more harmonious relationship between textile production and the environment. Additionally, they have gained popularity in the fashion industry as part of the broader movement toward sustainable and ethical fashion practices.