Modalé Wares

Botanical Dyes ~ Harvesting Natural Colour⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Harvesting plants to use as natural dyes is one of many ways that we can reduce waste and encourage , circular living. When you're gardening and dead-heading your flowers to encourage new growth, or preparing onions or beets in the kitchen, you can use all that material - not just in the compost, but first of all in the dye pot. Used leaves and barks (that have been processed with water only) can be used as mulch in the garden.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
In 2010 I travelled to and witnessed traditional tanning and dying, which has centuries of living history.

Numerous plants can be used as fabric dyes, such as Buddleja spp. (Butterfly Bush) leaves & flowers, Tagetes spp. (Marigold) flowers, & Curcuma longa (Turmeric) rhizomes. You can experiment with any plants, native or not, as long as you know that they're not toxic. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Many native Australian plants can be used to produce natural dyes, including various Eucalyptus and Corymbia spp. leaves & bark, and Banksia spp. cones. Peppermint leaves, for example, give a warm yellow or a burnt orange hue. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Sally Blake created a dye database of Eucalyptus species in 2016, in partnership with the ANBG. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
When using natural dyes, the colour is influenced by the base colour of the garment you are dying, as well as the preparation and dying processes. Colour also varies depending on the fabric. Protein fibres - like & - will bond more easily with the dyes than plant-based fibres - like & .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Some beautiful books that I recommend:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• The Wild Dyer: A guide to natural dyes, Abigail Booth⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• Botanical Inks: Plant-to-Print Dyes, Techniques and Projects, Babs Behan⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• Wild Colour: How to Make and Use Natural Dyes, Jenny Dean⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• The Modern Natural Dyer, Kristine Vejar⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• Harvesting Color, Rebecca Burgess

Botanical Dyes ~ Harvesting Natural Colour⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Harvesting plants to use as natural dyes is one of many ways that we can reduce waste and encourage , circular living. When you're gardening and dead-heading your flowers to encourage new growth, or preparing onions or beets in the kitchen, you can use all that material - not just in the compost, but first of all in the dye pot. Used leaves and barks (that have been processed with water only) can be used as mulch in the garden.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
In 2010 I travelled to and witnessed traditional tanning and dying, which has centuries of living history. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Numerous plants can be used as fabric dyes, such as Buddleja spp. (Butterfly Bush) leaves & flowers, Tagetes spp. (Marigold) flowers, & Curcuma longa (Turmeric) rhizomes. You can experiment with any plants, native or not, as long as you know that they're not toxic. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Many native Australian plants can be used to produce natural dyes, including various Eucalyptus and Corymbia spp. leaves & bark, and Banksia spp. cones. Peppermint leaves, for example, give a warm yellow or a burnt orange hue. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Sally Blake created a dye database of Eucalyptus species in 2016, in partnership with the ANBG. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
When using natural dyes, the colour is influenced by the base colour of the garment you are dying, as well as the preparation and dying processes. Colour also varies depending on the fabric. Protein fibres - like & - will bond more easily with the dyes than plant-based fibres - like & .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Some beautiful books that I recommend:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• The Wild Dyer: A guide to natural dyes, Abigail Booth⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• Botanical Inks: Plant-to-Print Dyes, Techniques and Projects, Babs Behan⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• Wild Colour: How to Make and Use Natural Dyes, Jenny Dean⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• The Modern Natural Dyer, Kristine Vejar⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
• Harvesting Color, Rebecca Burgess

A simple life is a life of both less and more. It’s a life of less distraction, less consumption, and less of the inessential, to make room for more mindfulness, more intention, and more of what matters.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
When we live with less and cherish the things we most need, nothing goes unnoticed and everything serves a purpose. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
“The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.” —Hans Hofmann⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Quiet space has been my conscious priority for the past few months. It is not always easy to cultivate, but it is essential for me to feel resourced and supported. My home has slowly been decluttered and simplified in reflection of that intention ~ a mirror of my inner world, as our personal spaces almost always are. A slow unravelling and softening into what already is. A balancing of yin (soft, still, cooler, sweet) and yang (dynamic, expansive, heated, vigorous). ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
image - the beautiful in Bali (an island that is a divine example of the blending of yin and yang)