My latest eco-print plant crush is tansy. This sweet herbaceous plant is in the Aster family, and is native to Eurasia. Tansy has deeply lobed, almost fern like leaves and dense round flowers with flat tops. Tansy has a lot of medicinal uses in traditional western herbalism, especially for internal parasites. It can also be […]
Recent experiments eco-printing with tansy Read More »
I decided to go with scrunch dyeing for the upcycled tank top from my last post. Here’s a simple video tutorial of the method – scroll down for step by step instructions. Step one: Scrunching Choose a white item of clothing to dye. Begin scrunching the top from one corner inwards. You can do a
How to scrunch dye with onion skins Read More »
I’ve been working on some simple sewing tutorials. Ways to upcycle clothing you already have, into more interesting items. First up is a tank top, which I have shortened and shaped and turned into an asymmetrical top with exposed seams. Start with a tank top that is one size too big – it will become
Tank top upcycling tutorial Read More »
From time to time I get questions from my ebook customers, wondering why they have gotten pale or disappointing results when eco-printing on cotton using an iron mordant. There is no simple answer, because there are a lot of different variables that can affect results. In this post I will discuss some of the major
Pale eco-print results: Troubleshooting the cause Read More »
I’ve been enjoying a stint of moon making over the past few months. Using relief shapes and eucalyptus bark dye to create ethereal moons on a dark background. I use Australian 20 cent coins for mini moons, and metal coasters for larger moons. But you can use any flat circle that will survive a dye
Naturally dyed shibori moons Read More »
Searching through my blog archive tells me that I was working on this dress a year ago. I am finally ready for it to go out into the world – I’ve taken some proper photos of it, worn by my gorgeous friend, and have listed it in my Etsy shop. I want to share some
Wasteland dress update Read More »
The live round of the Iso Dye Club has come to an end, although new students are still welcome to join and will be able to work through the ecourse at their own pace. It has been the most wonderful, inspiring whirlwind of an adventure. I feel so grateful to all the people who threw
The Iso Dye Club ecourse reflection Read More »
In this time of isolation and quarantine, I wanted to offer some moments of peace and joy. The healing power of nature and creativity. And so I have created the Iso Dye Club. This ecourse is a gentle introduction to natural dyeing and eco-printing techniques, for cotton and paper. The focus is on making do
Introducing the Iso Dye Club Read More »
Here’s a simple video tutorial for eco-printing on paper using St John’s wort. I’ve used three different variables to get quite different results from a single plant: plain watercolour paper paper soaked in iron mordant paper soaked in logwood dye Although I love the bright results St John’s wort gives on plain paper, the discharge
Eco-printing on paper video tutorial: St John’s wort Read More »
If you are interested in eco-printing on cotton, and want alternatives to or additional options besides metal mordants, then soy milk binder is the way to go. One of its advantages is that the proteins in soy milk make cotton behave like wool and other protein fibres. This means that any leaves that produce red
Eco-printing on Cotton with Soy Milk Binder Read More »
