Kathryn Davey

Although green is found abundantly in nature, especially here on the “Emerald Isle”, there is no one plant that gives you a rich deep green directly from the dye pot. …

When working with natural dyes there are four different types of dye. Adjective dyes, these need the help of a mordant to fix the dye to the fibre. Substantive dyes, …

When we speak about natural dyeing, it is in reference to dyeing natural fibres of which there are two categories: Plant & Animal. Plant fibres are cellulose-based and cover anything …

My first forays into natural dyeing began with the vibrant blue dye of indigo. Indigo is the name given to the dye that comes from plants (of which there are …

In ancient Ireland, the Oak held special meaning with the Celts. Considered the King of the forest, it was associated with strength, nobility, longevity, inspiration and knowledge. The Oak itself …

As the word “sustainability” becomes more mainstream, it is important to understand what it means and how to recognise true sustainability. We need to look after our planet, our resources …

Recently, I forced myself to take some time during one of my busiest times of the year, to purposefully go into nature and forage for sources of colour. I particularly …

There are so many dye plants in bloom during these warmer Summer months. I was recently surprised to find “Lady’s Bedstraw” growing in my neighbourhood. I am looking forward to …

A few weeks ago, I wrote a tutorial on how to make a natural indigo vat, this was followed by a tutorial on how to create patterns using Indigo dye …

Following on from Part One last weekend, here is Part Two of our Shibori techniques tutorial. Remember to check the Organic Indigo Vat Tutorial to use in combination with these …

Following on from our recent Organic Indigo Vat Tutorial, today we have a Shibori tutorial for you in two parts. Shibori is the Japanese word for the ancient art of …

Natural dyes have been with us since the dawn of civilisation & before the creation of synthetic dyes they were the sole source of colour for the fabrics, fibres and …

  One of the most exciting aspects of natural dyeing is foraging for colour around you. There are so many incredible dyes available to us in the natural world & …

In the last article, I spoke about expanding your colour palette by using modifiers to change the colours of natural dyes. One modifier that I am particularly fond of is …

Once you start to build your practice and confidence with natural dyeing, it can be incredibly exciting to expand the palette of colours available to you. When I first discovered …

There are so many similarities between natural dyeing and cooking. Just like every chef has their way of cooking, whether it’s by exact measurements or eyeballing, natural dyers have their …