When I first started eco-printing, I boiled my bundles for 3 hours. I got good results, so I kept doing this. But one day I noticed that after a short amount of boiling the leaves had already produced a lot of beautiful colour. So I decided to take a more systematic approach to working out the […]
How long to boil eco-print bundles Read More »
Following on from my recent post about combining shibori dyeing and eco-printing on wool, here are some similar effects achieved on cotton. I really enjoy combining organic eco-prints with geometric grids or lines from shibori dyeing methods. This pattern was created by folding the tshirt up into a small bundle, adding liquidambar and Japanese maple leaves
Shibori eco-printing on cotton Read More »
I’ve had plenty of luck lately finding lovely second-hand woollens to dye. Although cotton is my favourite for eco-printing, it is always a nice treat to use wool for a change. It gives such different results, especially when using eucalyptus leaves. My favourite method for eco-printing on wool is to fold up the garment into
Shibori eco-printing on wool Read More »
Dyeing with avocado is a safe and simple process, perfect for beginners to natural dyeing. Both the seeds (also called stones or pits) and the skins contain colour. They produce a quite colourfast dye of the most unexpected and delightful pink. The exact colour you get will be affected by which variety of avocado you
Natural dyeing with avocado seeds: step by step instructions Read More »
When doing natural dyeing or eco-printing on plant-based fibres such as cotton, you need to prepare the fabric with something to help the plant dyes adhere. This could be mordants such as metals and/or tannins. Or you could use a protein-rich binder such as soy milk, cow’s milk, eggs or even blood. These emulate the results that you
Preparing fabric with cow’s milk Read More »
Drawing over the top of eco-printed paper is a lovely project to do with all the samples that accumulate. It can be a meditative process, and can also inspire new ways of drawing. Even if you don’t consider yourself an artist, the natural shapes and colours already present make it easy to be inspired. The
Meditative drawing on eco-printed paper Read More »
I have been continuing to experiment with shibori and eco-print combinations. This coat was made with some precious eucalyptus leaves I gathered in Broken Hill. The gum blossoms of these eucalypts make the most incredible prints. The dark shibori-style patches were made with eucalyptus bark plus iron placed in the dye pot, which only the
Shibori eco-print woollen coat Read More »
I get asked often if the method I shared in my first eco-printing ebook, Gum Leaf Alchemy, will also work with other types of leaves beyond eucalyptus. I have spent many months experimenting with every leaf I could get my hands on, and now I can say for sure that yes it will! Most of the
The Leaf Guide ebook: sample pages Read More »
Combining shibori and eco-printing methods can create dynamic designs that have both structured and organic elements. To create this design, I used woollen thermal garments, eucalyptus leaves, wooden boards and string. Here’s the bundle fresh from the dye bath: The eucalyptus leaves were placed onto wool, which was then folded up using a simple shibori
Eco-prints and shibori on wool Read More »
I’ve been doing tests of leaves that eco-print well on cotton. This tshirt was eco-printed with a range of deciduous leaves, using the method described in Gum Leaf Alchemy. The leaves have produced a range of greens and blues. The leaves used include: maple, rose, blackberry, tulip tree and liquidambar. Discover more about eco-printing with
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