In recent years, I have been experimenting with dyeing fabric for my sewing projects using both plants that I have grown and produce waste from the kitchen. So far, avocado skins and pits have been a favorite dyestuff of mine. A couple years ago, I dyed some really lovely linen with them after I had processed some bulk avocados and the peachy-pink shade they gave the fabric was so beautiful! This past fall, I dyed a pair of shoes dark grey with some foraged acorns and iron. It’s so fun to work with found plant material to dye fiber! I also really like to work with flowers when natural dyeing.
Working with natural dyes can feel a bit intimidating and foreign at first, but I have found that it is actually quite fun and intuitive once you get started. If you prepare your fabric or fiber by scouring and mordanting it and work with the right plants, the colors you get can be long-lasting and they have a nice, natural quality to them.
I also love that many of the plants that yield natural dyes are accessible garden plants that we can grow! These four flowers are some of the easiest-to-grow natural dye plants that you could plant in your garden. Throughout the growing season, you can harvest the flowers and work with them fresh, you could dry them for later use, or you can press them to make printed patterns. As a bonus, the flowers will brighten up your garden and provide a food source for your local pollinators.
Marigolds
Tagetes species marigolds come in a variety of colors. Most of them have vibrant yellow or orange petals, which can yield pretty shades of mustard yellow when used for dye. Using a color modifier like an iron bath after dyeing can shift the yellow color to an earthy shade green. You can see an example of this color shift in Connie’s Instagram post here.
Marigolds are easy to grow from seed and are also widely available in garden centers in early spring. You can experiment with different varieties to determine your favorites. I’m partial to the varieties ‘Queen Sophia,’ ‘Orange Flame,’ and ‘Safari Scarlet.’
Coreopsis
Coreopsis flowers range in color from yellows to burgundy reds. I have seen them growing wild in fields here in the Pacific Northwest, but they are also quite easy to cultivate from seed. Many natural dyers like to use them for eco-printing, which leaves impressions of the pounded or pressed flower and its foliage (if used) on the fabric. Jamie has a great tutorial on doing this over on her blog here. If you follow the link to her post, you can see what the results look like.
Coreopsis flowers tend to yield vibrant yellows and oranges when used to dye fabric and fiber. One of my favorite varieties is the one photographed above - ‘Roulette.’ I grew it last year and really liked it.
Cosmos
Of these four flowering plants, cosmos might be my favorite to grow. There is such a variety in color and shape available on the market today, and I love that the pollinators in my garden really seem to enjoy them. I find tiny native bees basking in their pollen daily and our local wild goldfinches like to sit on their stems and eat the seeds of any spent blooms that don’t get removed.
Cosmos flowers can produce different dye colors (based on the color of the flower and how the fabric is prepared) and I think they work especially well using techniques that showcase the shape of each flower. You can press them and work with them after they’ve dried or use them fresh.
I really love how Liz worked with them to make this top. Isn’t it just delightful? The range of colors from just one type of flower is spectacular!
Some of my favorite cosmos varieties include ‘Rubinato,’ ‘Rubenza,’ ‘Cosmic Orange,’ and ‘Velouette.’
‘Black Knight’ Scabiosa
Scabiosa flowers have always fascinated me. Sometimes called pincushion flowers, they are so unique with all their tiny florets, and their seed heads are unusual and visually appealing.
Though available in different colors and varieties, one that is commonly used in natural dye practices is the ‘Black Knight’ variety. I’ve included a picture from my garden last year so you can see what the flowers look like. They’re a rich, dark, purple-maroon type color.
The types of pigment molecules that exist in ‘Black Knight’ scabiosa flowers (sometimes called pincushion flowers) can yield different colors of dye when the pH of the dye bath is shifted. You can see an example of some of the color variations you can achieve on Anna’s blog post here.
The plants are harder to find in garden centers, at least where I live, but the seeds are readily available.
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About the Author
Hi there, I’m Erin! I am a writer, artist, and the main instructor here at Floranella. As a clinical herbalist, aromatherapist, artisan distiller, and organic gardener, I teach people how to work with plants safely and effectively from the garden to the apothecary. Thanks for being here! I’m glad you stopped by.