DIY Natural Dyes

What are your favorite colors? Are they pink, green, blue, purple, etc? This is a lesson to teach you an amazing natural dyes project with your favorite colors that we know you will love! This project is great for anyone including children! Experimenting with natural dyes on a gloomy day is a perfect way to add some color to your day! This is such a fun, environmentally friendly project that anyone can participate in! This project takes patience, but is also very affordable!

There are a number of plants and veggies that make natural dyes. 
*It is important when working with natural dyes that experimentation is the key! So let your designer side come out!

Let's start!

What you need: 
Vinegar
Water
Fabric
Fruit 
Veggies
Salt
2 Large Pots
Strainer

---

Spinach for shades of green

Beets for shades of pink and red

Blueberries for shades of blue and purple

Onions (peel off the skin) for shades of cream

First Step: Chop up fruit or Veggie

1. Chop up your choice of fruits or veggies, depending on the color dye you want to use. 
2. Put them in a pot with twice as much water as ingredients. 

Second Step: Prepare Fabric

3. You need to create a fixative, which will help your fabric hold the dye. 

• When working with fruit or berries, use a salt fixative. Put 1/2 cup of salt in 8 cups of water, put the fabric in the pot and simmer for one hour. 
• When working with veggies, use a vinegar fixature. Mix one part vinegar and four parts water. For instance, 2 cups of vinegar for 8 cups of water. Add your fabric and let simmer for one hour. 

4. After one hour rinse the fabric in cold water. The fabric is now ready to dye!

Dyeing the Fabric

5. Drain the fruit/veggies in the drainer saving the liquid dye. 
6. Place the fabric in the prepared dye and let it sit for a while. Make sure your dye is still simmering or warm. The longer you let it sit, the deeper the shade will be. 

Hang to dry!