Eco Dye & Stitch

These fabric scraps were dyed using the same process as my eco friendly egg dye project (previous post). I made the dyes from onion skins, red cabbage, orange peel and green tea in various combinations. Vinegar was added set the color. I also used a tiny bit of bleach on the purple to bring out some green tones.

I was inspired by one of my favorite movies,  Great Expectations, the original (romanic decay at its finest) and the Boro textiles of Japan.The fabrics were all neutral cottons & silks cut from old clothes. I like the idea that these colors aren't permanent and I look forward to this piece changing over time.

Eco Friendly Egg Dye

I used these instructions to test out some natural egg dyes made from kitchen ingredients. Why did I photograph scraps of fabric instead of eggs? Because I only got two colors to work to my satisfaction, the golden yellow from the onion skins and the purple from the red cabbage. Good thing I practiced before Easter! Maybe I should have known better when I saw that this was posted on Better Homes & Gardens. Aren't they notorious for their test kitchens? Oh, and the part about leaving them in the fridge overnight ... don't do it. Keep an eye on the eggs as the color develops of they'll get too dark and blotchy.

So the effort wouldn't be a total loss I tossed some scraps of cotton and silk into my dye cups to give them some more personality for an upcoming project.

So if you want to go the all natural Easter egg route, I definitely recommend a practice run. Hope you have better luck than I did! Now I've got to do a google search for a recipe to use up all those onions and cabbage.