Instructor: Kristine Vejar
Discover the beautiful ways in which plants can be used to dye wool yarn. Using her book, The Modern Natural Dyer, as reference, Kristine will teach you the process of natural dyeing and how to create long-lasting color in a wide spectrum of colors.
Natural dyeing is the act of drawing color from a natural material, and applying that color to cloth. Dye can be found in roots, leaves, bark, and even an insect, cochineal. Until 1857, when color was synthesized, natural dyes were the only type of dye available. The natural dyeing process is similar to cooking. By understanding the ingredients, and learning a few techniques, there are hundreds, even thousands of ways to create color and colors to create. The possibilities make it an endlessly inspiring process to study and practice.
In this class, you will create a series of dyebaths from grown and gathered plants as well as from highly concentrated powders derived from plants called natural dyeing extracts. You will leave this class with a series of dyed samples of wool yarn (enough to make a striped hat or cowl!), and a practical foundation to starting your own natural dyeing practice using The Modern Natural Dyer.
You will learn:
+ the vocabulary associated with natural dyeing
+ helpful tools to have during the natural dyeing process
+ the difference between fiber types
+ how these differences play a role in the natural dyeing process
+ how to create lightfast and colorfast naturally-dyed fabric and yarn
+ to prepare the yarn for dyeing: labeling, scouring, and mordanting
+ which natural dyes create the most long-lasting color
+ the intricacies of the different dyes
+ the spectrum of color created using natural dyeing extracts
+ to use natural dyeing extracts
+ to plan for projects
+ to understand your results
+ washing and caring for your naturally-dyed goods
Materials Required
+ (available at Verb)
+ rubber gloves
+ plastic bag to bring home yarn
Materials Included in Class
+ Scour, mordant, dye
+ 1 skein of U.S. Merino Bread & Butter Bun yarn (100g) divided into mini skeins of various shades
**Depending on the weather, the class may take place outdoors. Please dress accordingly. And wear clothing which can get dirty.
1 class / 2.5 hours
Date: Saturday, February 24. 2024
Time: 11:30-2:00pm
Level: Beginning
Class Size: 12 students
Kristine first saw natural dyeing on a research trip to India in 2001. She fell in love with the process and her life has never been the same. She has devoted her life to learning everything she can about natural dyeing including founding her natural dyeing studio and shop, A Verb for Keeping Warm. She loves introducing people to the practice of natural dyeing practice, and to help support this work, she wrote her first book, The Modern Natural Dyer. When she isn’t dyeing, she can be found knitting and sewing, cuddling her two dogs, drinking wine, eating chocolate. In 2020, she published her second book with Adrienne Rodriguez and Sarah Ollikkala Jones, titled .
