Naturally Dye Silks.

 I have a treat for you tomorrow. Jennifer from the enchanting Syrendellis going to be our guest on Discovering Waldorf and her topic will be The Magic of Play Silks. I can’t wait for you to read all about how play silks fit into Waldorf and the many ways silks can ignite imaginative play. I truly think that if we were to be stranded on a deserted island and could only take ONE plaything with us, I’d choose play silks for my children.

So, I thought I’d precede Jennifer’s post with a tutorial on how you can dye your own silks using everyday, natural, dyes…

I have a few of the white silks available in my shop, Fairyfolk, if you’d like to have a try (click here for the actual listing). If you are going to be using natural dyes, it’s best to use a mordant, which helps the dye to penetrate the silk and will make your silk more colorful. The mordant I use is Alum. The white silks available in my shop have all been pre-soaked in Alum for immediate dying.

The first dye we used is beetroot.

Cut the beetroot up into small cubes.

Put beetroot into a pot of water and bring to the boil.

When the water is boiling, add your silk. As my kids help me with the dyeing (very carefully of course as I do not want them to get burned) I turn off the heat before adding the silks. We then let the silks sit in the red beetroot water. They stir the pot occasionally until our silk has reached the color we want it to be (not too long for light pink, longer for deeper pink/reddish). We carefully take it out of the hot water and rinse it in cold water. Hang on the line to dry and Voila! You have a beautifully naturally dyed play silk.

Next we used New Zealand Flax. It grows in our garden.

All parts of the plant can be used. Cut off a bunch of flowers and leaves.

It’s always such a fun adventure to guess what color a plant is gong to make our silk.

Cut the Flax up in to small bits in your dying pot.

Flowers, stalks, leaves and all.

Cover with water. Put on the stove and bring to a boil.

Once it is boiling, add the silk and stir. You’ll see the silk take on the magically golden color of the flax. Let it sit until it has reached the intensity of color you desire.

Take it out of the pot, rinse in cold water and hang it on the line to dry… Voila! Your beautifully golden playsilk is ready to become your kind knights cape, your golden mountain for your playthings or your pretty gold table cloth for your tea party.

For more natural dying tutorials, please visit Aurora,  Echoes of a Dream and  Fiona Duthie’s Blog (aah, the beauty!)

Please pop back in tomorrow for Jennifer’s post on the magic of play silks.

Blessings and magic,
Donni