Around the World in 80 Dyes

Around the World in 80 Dyes Naturally Dyeing Fabric & Fiber through history, humor and how-to. Instruction and insight without the scientific or academic seriousness.

Just fun in creating color from what nature provides

Am I making fabric from paper or paper from fabric? Hard to tell as the pulp is about half shreds of paper saved from de...
06/16/2026

Am I making fabric from paper or paper from fabric? Hard to tell as the pulp is about half shreds of paper saved from delivery packaging and half shredded yellow/orange-dyed fabric scraps and threads. Plus a big handful of fustic bark sawdust and another of crumbled dried marigold. Fun messy process for a hot day.

Even after seven years here, I’m awed and grateful that all this is right in my backyard, especially when a quick nature...
06/15/2026

Even after seven years here, I’m awed and grateful that all this is right in my backyard, especially when a quick nature break is needed for some psychic balancing.

Working with madder root requires consistent heat, something you don’t get with solar dyeing. But I put a handful in a j...
06/10/2026

Working with madder root requires consistent heat, something you don’t get with solar dyeing. But I put a handful in a jar anyway and four days of sunshine later had decent salmon colors. I like the vein-like appearance from scrunching the fabric and shaking, not stirring the jar contents (James Bond dyeing style?).

Nice range of tan to brown from boiled Ponderosa Pine cones on cotton pieces.
06/10/2026

Nice range of tan to brown from boiled Ponderosa Pine cones on cotton pieces.

The Ponderosa Pine are dropping an abundance of cones, including conveniently right along the trails. These little nugge...
06/08/2026

The Ponderosa Pine are dropping an abundance of cones, including conveniently right along the trails. These little nuggets of natural dye joy are loaded with tannin and can often create a light mauve-ish color on their own with a high pH.

On a trail this morning to check the wild dye growth. The late freeze stunted most plants but some have come back fine. ...
06/05/2026

On a trail this morning to check the wild dye growth. The late freeze stunted most plants but some have come back fine. Photos: The Gamble Oak needs months more growth to develop its tannin. The Colorado Piñon is a long way from producing cones and seeds. The Stemmy Four-Nerve Daisy (weird name) is an early summer favorite of pollinators so I leave it be. There are so few Paintbrush in this area that I never pick them. And non-plant residents also need time to grow.

The full photos of the kitchen waste solar dye experiment with black bean soaking liquid and a handful of onion skins. T...
06/03/2026

The full photos of the kitchen waste solar dye experiment with black bean soaking liquid and a handful of onion skins. The reel images were auto-cropped. Here you can see all three colors from each jar. First photo of wet fabric, second of dry

My patio golden time: late afternoon when the little table is perfect for plants, solar dye jars and a drink. The plants...
06/01/2026

My patio golden time: late afternoon when the little table is perfect for plants, solar dye jars and a drink. The plants are a great-smelling curry leaf and sulfur cosmos seedlings. The jars are onion skins and black bean soaking liquid (hoping for a decent gray). The drink is a G&T.

I walk into the studio early this morning and tell myself I like the weird direction the new WIP idea is going. An hour ...
05/31/2026

I walk into the studio early this morning and tell myself I like the weird direction the new WIP idea is going. An hour later? I’ve reorganized the blocks three times. My approach is literally ‘throw things at the wall and see what sticks.’ The random-look log cabin blocks will simply be the background to additional weirdness so I don’t know why I’m fussing over it so much.

Paint Mines is a protected park on Colorado’s eastern plains. No picking, climbing, digging. But wouldn’t you love to wo...
05/28/2026

Paint Mines is a protected park on Colorado’s eastern plains. No picking, climbing, digging. But wouldn’t you love to work with the pigments in those rocks? Red, gold, purple, pink. I keep looking for other drainages in the area that may have the same eroded formations where I could dig a little, but most of the region is private ranch property. Still, I keep asking and looking.

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