HILARY L HAHN
  • Home
  • Shop
  • Workshops
  • About
  • Blog
  • On Demand
  • Updates
  • Link Page
  • Passion to Profits
Join our community!

How to DYE with Avocado on Silk

2/13/2018

4 Comments

 

Avocado Dye on Silk Tutorial 

If I told you that avocados could be used as a natural dye, I bet you would be surprised that they would create the most beautiful pink hues on fabric! This also makes a great last-minute Valentine's gift, if you happen to have a piece of silk laying around at home. Later, you can sew it into a pillow or gift a scarf to someone. If you have time, you could raid your local thrift shop for vintage silk camis or dress, that could be up-cycled too! This process also works well on a white kid's t-shirts that have become gray. Although today, I will share the results on silk you can certainly try this on cotton or wool too! 

Today, I will share with you 2 silk scarves left in the dye pot for varying amounts of time. The white silk to the left shows how the silk looked prior to dyeing. At right, you can see the pale ballet pink that can be achieved with avocado pits and skins. Read more to learn about the process, plus see all of the wonderful results! 
Picture
When dyeing with avocados, I use a stainless steel pot. I boil the water with the pits and skins inside for about 30 minutes, until the water itself becomes a murky reddish pink color. In this instance, I used about 2 pits and the skins of 2-3 avocados. It has been fun to save the leftovers from the avocado toast that we make for lunch and on weekends. We also have an avocado that does not fruit the best tasting avocados. On occasion, I go outside to gather the leftover pits from the ground. 
Picture
To achieve these results, I dipped into into the dye bath for about 7 minutes to obtain a soft ballet pink. I knew that I wanted the silk fairly light to be used as a background color for bundle dyeing. 
Picture
Later, I scattered some rose petals, silver dollar eucalyptus, and marigolds onto the scarf in preparation for my upcoming Bundle Dye and Aromatherapy Workshop.
Picture

Join our Bundle Dye and Aromatherapy Retreat!

Picture
To my surprise after bundle dyeing the steam and the alum mordant combined lightened the color of the avocado dye considerably to a beige-pink, as you can see in the bottom image. The silver dollar eucalyptus left behind a vague green. The top scarf below, is a second piece that I dyed for about 25 minutes using the same avocado dye bath. 
As you can see below with scarf #2, it turned a deeper peachy pink when left for a longer period of 25 minutes in the dye bath! 
Picture
Just for fun, I am sharing the bundle dye results of the marigold petals on silk. Aren't they brilliant?! Although, I have done this process many times in the past, I am always amazed by the vibrant patterns that are achieved by plants on fiber. 
Picture
I hope you have enjoyed seeing the results of avocado dye on silk today! 

If you loved this post, then you might enjoy: 
  • Natural Dyeing with Avocado Pits
  • Natural Bundle Dyeing Tutorial ​
To find out how I got started my workshop series for creative individuals, please see my article aboutLos Angeles Workshops for Creativity 

If you are in the Southern California area and would like to learn more about botanical dyeing and aromatherapy, along with spend the day with creative people relaxing in nature, then please consider joining our upcoming Bundle Dye and Aromatherapy Retreat.  I would love to meet you in person! As always, I would love to hear your experiences, notes, and suggestios on natural dyeing in the comments.

To join in this creative community and receive updates about upcoming workshops and retreats, you can sign up below! 
Join In
4 Comments
Aj
2/13/2018 03:47:44 pm

Did you use any kind of mordant?

Reply
Hilary L Hahn link
2/13/2018 05:37:15 pm

Hi Aj,
Just as I was thinking about updating this post to include a discussion of mordants. I read that when using avocado pits a mordant is not necessary b/c a tannin in the pit acts as a mordant. For the bundle dyeing, I used alum as a mordant (after the avocado dyeing) and in the past I have used soy milk as a mordant. I wondered if the alum as a mordant may have caused the pale pink of the avocado dye to become a bit beige-y or the steaming. Any thoughts on this?

Reply
aj
2/14/2018 06:43:48 am

I have a batch ready to go with avacado, just need a few more skins! I am going to try using the soy milk and see how it works, I will let you know.

Reply
Hilary Hahn link
2/14/2018 09:06:33 am

I would love to see the results using soy milk as a mordant. I would also love to know if you used the skins only or the pits and skins together.




Leave a Reply.

    Picture
    HI, I'M HILARY.
    This is where I share inspiration for a hand-crafted lifestyle from natural dye methods, textile surface techniques, and the best of contemporary California design. I love dreaming up products for an artful sustainable home. I offer  workshops to inspire you to live your best life by connecting you to your creativity and others. I hope to meet you in person at one of my current craft workshops for creatives like you! Join my tribe to receive your first free video on Shibori folding with me.
    Shibori Workshops in Los Angeles
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Shibori Textile Design Basics
    Picture
    Marbling Paper DIY
    Picture
    Picture
    Boys Nature Room Reveal
    Picture
    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Botanical Dye
    Creativity
    DIY
    Eco Fashion
    Entrepreneur
    Fiber Art
    Food Waste
    Furniture
    Gift Guides
    Handmade Home
    Indigo
    Inspiration
    Interior Design
    Kid's Space
    Lifestyle
    Natural Dye
    Product Design
    Shibori
    Studio
    Textile Design
    Travel
    Wellness
    Workshops

    FAVORITES

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    April 2021
    January 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016

    Picture
    BLOG COURTESY:
    All layouts on this blog are created solely for, A Day in the Life. I enjoy sharing information and love when others enjoy my ideas enough to post the links on their own sites. I simply ask that you credit photos and link back to all original posts.
    Any comments that are inappropriate or spam will be deleted. All other rights reserved.
Contact
  • Home
  • Shop
  • Workshops
  • About
  • Blog
  • On Demand
  • Updates
  • Link Page
  • Passion to Profits