Dyeing with Turmeric, by Kira

Turmeric is a substantive dye.

This means you do not need to use a mordant to hold the colour.

Other substantive dyes include lichen, safflower and indigo.

Now that I have done this using turmeric, I want to use lichen.

We have many types of lichen here that create some beautiful shades of green, yellow, brown and purple.

I used about a cup of turmeric and four litres of water.

A white shirt.

I boiled the turmeric for about 45 minutes, then put the shirt in and lightly boiled for another 45 minutes.

This is the brilliant orange that the shirt was when I pulled it out.

I rinsed the shirt until the water was running nearly clear.

Then I washed it in the washing machine and hung it on the line to dry in the sun.

It ended up with a beautiful goldenrod colour.

Now into the forest to collect lichen!