The dried hibiscus flowers, which are popular with hibiscus tea, allow us to dye the fabric in a spectacular pink. We tell and show how to get involved in the art of natural coloring!
For many, the hobby for dyeing fabric with natural dyes begins with hibiscus, because hibiscus tea is easy to find in stores, and it is very cheap at the same time. The process itself will also not require any complex reagents or financial investments from you. Try it and see for yourself: natural coloring is a whole world in which you act simultaneously as an artist, alchemist and botanist!
You will need:
- Natural fabric (e.g. linen or cotton)
- Hibiscus tea packaging
- White vinegar 5%
- Large pan
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Step 1
One of the main problems of natural coloring is the instability of natural dyes. Therefore, very often dyeing is preceded by preparation of the fabric, which will allow the dyes to gain a foothold and not to change color or wash in the first wash. Sometimes etching is carried out simultaneously with or after staining.
Those who seriously engage in natural dyeing most often use chemical mordants: alum, metal salts, but vinegar is one of the most affordable and ancient options.
The amount of vinegar directly depends on the volume of the fabric and, accordingly, the water, so focus on the proportions: one part of vinegar to four parts of water (for example, 2 cups of vinegar + 8 cups of water). Put the mixture on fire, bring to a boil and immerse the cloth. Simmer for one hour.
Cool the fabric and rinse with cold water before staining. Be careful if you skip etching, when you wash it, the luxurious pink color turns into pale gray!
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Step 2
In a clean pan, fill in the hibiscus petals (one and a half cups are enough) with 10 cups of water. Boil for half an hour, then make the fire smaller and immerse the cloth in a decoction. The duration of soaking directly affects the degree of staining, so you can safely keep the pan on fire for an hour or more, if desired, you can also leave the fabric in the broth, turning off the fire. Keep in mind that when the fabric dries, the color will become lighter than it seems during boiling.
In this case, the fabric was boiling over a fire for about 20 minutes.
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Step 3
Dry the fabric naturally, then rinse in cool water and dry again. Done!
Photo and workshop: aliceandlois.com
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