The Handbook of Natural Plant Dyes: Personalize Your Craft with Organic Colors from Acorns, Blackberries, Coffee, and Other Everyday Ingredients
Natural dyes’ unique qualities can make magical color vibrate and glow with hints of comingled, naturally occurring tints, and the richness of these living colors from plants—renewable, nontoxic, and biodegradable sources—is an ecologically friendly alternative to synthetic dyes. As Duerr provides background information on both natural and chemically produced dyes, she also discusses the growing Slow Movement in reaction to the speed and thoughtlessness of modern life. There are slow approaches not only to food but also to fashion and textiles, and Duerr emphasizes the similarities between cooking and the dye-extraction process. She covers the basics of equipment and safety measures, shares recipes using everything from sour grass to olive leaves, offers instructions for keeping a recipe and swatch book, and lists lots of projects, including tablecloths, scarves, and beads. With eye-catching line drawings, 190 color photos, and a plant palette of sample plants and dye colors, this attractive, user-friendly guide will delight many a do-it-yourselfer. --Whitney Scott