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Thanks for sharing your experience with maple leaves, Hilda. I consider myself quite a novice in the world of botanical printing, so I'm always thrilled when I get a beautiful surprise like the maple prints from this video. Sorry to hear iron is off the list for you as I definitely love the effect. Which leaves are the stars in your practice?

@@MargaretByrdColorQuest I am a novice too! I used to live in Canada and I loved trying ecoprint on paper, I think one of the reasons I did not get a good print was because I didn't steem/boiled enough time. Now I live in México and I haven't done ecoprinting. I am identifiying the plants before I try anything. Let you know when I try it!

I'm sorry to report that I haven't grown my own sunflowers in decades so I don't have a strategy to protect them from squirrels 🌻 In this video, I harvested sunflowers from a local farm, so I'm not sure if they were having issues with critters munching on the seeds. If you decide you want to try this dye source, you could buy seeds simply for the dye pot. The soft color might help put a smile on your face to help forget about your furry friends 💜

Yum! I also loved the maple leaf results and absolutely adore using iron in my practice to add so much depth. Wish you could have joined us in BC, but will cross fingers our road trip north through this country will happen one of these days 😊

@@MargaretByrdColorQuest The Alcan Highway is still high on my wishlist 🇨🇦🇺🇸!

Yes, you can use hibiscus for flower pounding which will make a lovely purple print. You can watch a recent video (posted May 11th) where I pounded hibiscus petals on watercolor postcards to see what it can look like on fiber. Have fun!

So happy to hear you liked the video - welcome to Color Quest 🤎

So happy to hear you enjoyed the video, Vicki! It is a great plant-based option for making a homemade binder for natural dyeing. You can certainly shorten the process by only soaking it one time for longer. Just make sure to move it around so you are getting full coverage on the fiber. A three time soak is just adding extra potential binding layers, but not a requirement.

So beautifully stated and so very true! Just love this 🌞

You can make iron water using ferrous sulfate powder, or you can make your own rusty 'iron' water like what I use in this video. I have a video on how to make homemade 'iron' water from the fall of 2020. It is a simple process using rusty metal, water and vinegar. Have a watch!

Couldn't agree more 🤎

Thanks to you, Jana! So happy to have you here 🤎

Such a deep & warm neutral shade. Wish I knitted because I especially loved the rich color on wool 🤎

You might be able to find a ground hibiscus leaf or try grinding the tea flowers yourself as one option for a pigment powder. Alternatively, you can turn liquid dye into a pigment powder through a lake pigment process. I have not done this on Color Quest, but you should be able to find tutorials that walk you through this process. It is labor intensive, but a great skill to learn if you work with pigment powders in general.

@@MargaretByrdColorQuest I have have hibiscus plant in my house . And it flower lot of hibiscus in a day. I'm interested in turning hibiscus flower into dye powder.

These are some of real stars in the natural dyer's world for sure 😊

How lovely to hear the video was helpful! Welcome to the Color Quest family 🤎 I have a few videos where I use paper as the substrate, but you can always simply treat it just like any other cellulose fiber (plant-based) you will see on this channel. Treating paper with a mordant like alum is a great option to help natural dyes bind to paper better, but you should get some great results with tannin-rich dye sources like black walnut simply on their own. Have fun experimenting!

Thank you for the warm welcome to Greece! Do you live there, and if so, which island or mainland area? It is such a beautiful country 🌼 I wish I had known about fig leaves on this trip, so will have to keep that in mind when I am lucky enough to return. Thank you for the suggestion 🤎

@@MargaretByrdColorQuest I live on the south side of Mount Olympus at an altitude of 860 meters. If you ever use fig leaves, don't put the fabrics with the leaves because they will put the milk at the edge of the pot in the form of chewing gum which can stain the fabrics. Always be well and creative 🥰

@@user-wz9sd1cq4p Sounds like a magical place to live! Best to you as well 🤎 Thank you for the tips on fig leaves - how interesting 😊 I don't have fig trees where I live, but it is always great to know the secrets of future dyes. What color does it make on fiber?

@@MargaretByrdColorQuest The cotton fabric I dyed is the light colour of honey blossom

How lovely to hear from you, Jenny! Such an incredible experience you must be having building a tiny home - wow. Best of luck with everything and let me know when you get your new dye studio up and running in your new home 💚

@@MargaretByrdColorQuest Will do!!!

It was such an incredible experience, Debora - I could have sat in those fields forever! Such an easy and fun way to have a living memory of the vibrant poppy fields of Spain ❤

It was truly breathtaking to experience and I feel so very lucky ❤

Thank you, Malathie - always so much fun to share my natural color adventures with you 🌸

You can absolutely dry and store skins and stones for future dye pots 🥑 Just make sure to wash them very well to remove all of the fruit and keep them in a cool, dry place so they don't mold. Putting them in the freezer just deters any mold from forming, so it is an easy place to store them. I've had bags of dried skins/stones that I keep in my pantry without issue.

I have never personally tried it as a hair dye, but would imagine it wouldn't work very well. You have to soak fibers for a very long time in the cold bean dye to impart color and it is fairly fugitive, so probably not a great option for hair. You can always give it a try 😊

What an interesting investigation! While I've never directly tested this scientifically, it is well known in the dyer's world that most natural dyes are impacted by both heat and light, as well as water in many instances. There are very few natural colors that are truly fast (light/heat/water), and certainly, red cabbage is considered fugitive which means it will not last. I would imagine it will be significantly impacted quickly by sunlight. Sorry to hear you are struggling, but hopefully, you will find the process informative and revealing. Best of luck!

Great question, but I've never tried it as a hair dye. I suspect it would not work very well, but you can always give it a try. There are many different modifiers I've used in this video to increase the color range which hair might not like. If you do decide to try it, you might work with ground madder root or extract instead of the solid roots. Best of luck if you give it a go!

Unless you are growing them locally or have them in your spring and early summer local wild flowers, I'm not sure how else you would get red poppies to dye with. Depending on where you live, maybe try growing them from seed for a future season? Personally, I've never seen fields of poppies like I did in Spain, so I'd say they are a fairly special find ❤

I have never worked with dried lavender in the dye pot, but typically, you can use dried dye matter for natural color. Since the color from lavender is a neutral tone, I suspect you will continue to see neutral color in a dried state. Since lavender is used in so many other applications in its dried state, I'm sure you can find guidance on how best to store it and for how long. Always worth experimenting 😊

Thank you so much! Happy you enjoyed the tutorial 🤎

Natural color from red dye sources are notoriously 'fragile', so my best guess is that this color from poppy will fade & change with time. However, if you properly prepare your fiber, use a mordant and treat your creation with care, natural color can age beautifully. You can also play with iron to deepen the shade further into the gray realm and the color should stabilize and last.

So happy you enjoyed the red poppy play, Hilda!

So nice to see you here, Betty 🌼 This was actually a van trip we did two summers ago in Colorado, but it was such a fun time! I've seen you bopping around in your RV, so enjoy every beautiful mile exploring 💚

Thank you! It was such a lovely surprise to find myself surrounded by red poppies and play with them in the dye studio. Feeling very lucky ❤

I can always count on you to say the most lovely things - thank you! It was more magical than the video could possibly show, but if you grew up with poppy fields, you know what an incredible site it can be. Will have to make our way to northern Spain one of these days together ❤❤❤

Hi there! No need to store your iron water in the fridge. I just keep it in my garage which is a cooler, darker place and out of the way. When I made this batch, it was ready to use in about 3 weeks, but that can vary depending on many things. Just keep an eye out on it, shake it from time to time, and when it turns that lovely orange color, it is ready to use🤎

Thanks for your question on pink alternatives to avocado pits 💕 Here are some other options to consider that have brought about soft pinks in my studio, but please remember, results can vary due to so many different factors in the process: cochineal, sappanwood, brazilwood, aloe vera, red onion skin, Japanese maple leaves & hibiscus tea. Some of these will require a pH shift and many have their own challenges with fastness, but you can experience different shades of subdued pinks. How you work with them can impact the color and certainly your choice of fibers and mordant can also play a role. You might try madder root again at some point, but why not play around some of the ones above and see what magic you can create 😊 BTW, there is at least one or more videos on my channel on all of the dye sources above, so you can check those out for some examples. Have fun!

Hi Vid - welcome to the Color Quest family! In my experience, the best way to work in a natural dye studio is to experiment and try to keep an open mind to what transpires - often the unexpected surprises are the best part 🤎 The very basic chemical reaction that brings about black in natural color is the interaction between tannin and iron (as you've mentioned above), but there are so many different environmental situations that are at play that can impact the result. It would be rare (and boring) to get a predictable result each time, but you can certainly become more deeply connected to your process to start to learn what works best for you. In some of my other rust printing videos here, I also used a vinegar and salt combination in order to hasten the rusting reaction of the metal, so if you already have rusty metal, you might decide to skip that step and see if it makes a difference. Best advice is to just keep trying, tweaking what you do, and don't forget that 'less is more' sometimes applies 😊

@@MargaretByrdColorQuest Thank you for such detailed advice! But did you learn some chemical parts of natural dyeing ? Experiments and unexpected results it’s that I really like ,but sometimes I receive orders from the client in for a specific design,and should make something similar at least .

@@VID.VYATKA Everything I've learned about natural dyeing has been through research and experimentation. Luckily, everything I do in my dye studio is solely for myself and my artwork, so I can simply enjoy the unexpected surprises which also helps me learn more. I understand you have some pressure if you are taking custom orders for clients, so mastering of these techniques will only come with lots of practice - trial & error. Hopefully, you will enjoy the exploration along the way 😊

@@MargaretByrdColorQuest Thanks ,Margaret ! You answer gives me strong support And during the process with my experiment with rust and tannins I found that if you want to get really dark shades you should put it to tannins bath as soon as possible after withdraw from your rust package . Because when I keep my rusted fabrics 2-3 days ,it’s gave me really poor dark shades and more rusty colour

How wonderful for you to say, Abi - welcome to the Color Quest family! The symposium was incredible and I absolutely love my fiber sample ring. I was just admiring it this past weekend 😊 Have fun with your beard lichen and let us know how it goes 💚

Thanks for your question, Jenny 😊 I have never worked with wet felting, so I can't be sure what effect it will have on rust. However, rust is a form of iron which forms a very strong bond with fiber. Best option is to test it out, and although it might change during the process, I would be surprised if it 'washed out'. It might fade or change, but those types of surprises can often make the most beautiful results in my opinion. Best of luck and let us know if you try it out!

They are truly gorgeous flowers in so many ways ❤ I've never had access to so much abundance, so I can imagine there would be so much more to explore with poppies just like you 😊

Your words speak straight to my heart 🤎 Foraging for natural color has become a very special part of my travels, so you are bound to have loads of smiles when you do the same. Travel well!

Thank you so much for sharing this piece of history. It was a spectacular site and certainly made a statement in my mind that I will always remember ❤

Welcome to Color Quest, Cherie 🌼 Just love this story and how our paths crossed through our shared journey in natural dyeing. Enjoy experimenting and let us know how it goes!

Darlin - they were so magical and dotted the landscape everywhere. It was such a lovely experience ❤