Thursday, August 19, 2010

fig leaf dye


Somehow I read online that you can get a dye from fig leaves....
There are a few fig trees on UW campus, so I of course had to try it out.
The dyebath had a beautiful red/purple in it...but I got a pale green/brown with alum on 100% cotton. Not much to speak of.
I have plans of how to turn this dye trial into a useful product, but it will take a few more days to get ready...stay tuned.
p.s. The fig leaves produced a strong, sweet, coconut? odor when cooked. It is very persistent; I can still smell it on the wooden spoon I used and on the fabric I dyed.
I don't think I will dye with fig leaves again...but I'm glad I tried it :)

1 comment:

Little Lisa said...

It's too bad it didn't work right. That burgundy/fuschia was GORGEOUS!