Humans have learned to use lichens in many useful ways. Drug companies make antibiotics from lichen substances. Lichens can also tell us if the air is clear and clean because many lichens die when the air gets polluted. One of the most creative things people do with lichens is make dyes to color wool. Below are some examples of wools dyed with lichens.
Some colors are very subtle, while others are bright and cheerful.
These pieces of wool were dyed with lichens. This wool was dyed with Evernia prunastri in a boiling water bath with ammonia added, then soaked for 10 days. Lobaria pulmonaria in boiling water bath produced a dye bath that gives this golden color to wool. A long soak in water containing a Parmotrema species made this wool a pretty violet Lichens grow very slowly, sometimes only fractions of an inch in a whole year, and many do not recover well from disturbance or collecting. If you collect for crafts or research, Please be sure the species you collect is not endangered.