BLACKBERRY DYED BEAD NECKLACE
It is exciting to consider how many kinds of material beyond textiles can be dyed with botanical color. I dyed wooden beads with blackberry dye and strung them on a length of fabric cord that I dyed steel-gray. Other beads that work for naturally dyeing are those made of bone or other natural fibers like wool felt or silk. Using your fabric dye scraps for a bead cord can be a great way to accent naturally dyed beads.
Porous wood works well for dyeing beads. You can create a deep rich dye bath without heat, since wood readily absorbs blackberry dye. To crush the ripe blackberries, grind them with a mortar and pestle. Blackberries make a dye that is shades of deep purple and maroon on light-colored wood.
Excerpted from The Handbook of Natural Plant Dyes: Personalize Your Craft with Organic Colors from Acors, Blackberries, Coffee, and Other Everyday Ingredients by Sasha Duerr, published by Timber Press. Photographs by Sasha Duerr.
Materials and Tools:
-1 oz (28 g) blackberries -4 fluid oz (118 mL) water -Mortar and pestle -Large bowl -Wooden beads -pH-neutral soap -Ribbon
Source ,Amazon.com: The Handbook of Natural Plant Dyes: Personaliz...Step 1
Crush the blackberries with a mortar and pestle. Put the crushed blackberries in a bowl, add the water, and stir. The dye bath will be thick.
Step 2
Add the wood beads to the dye bath, submerge them, and soak until they reach the desired color.
Step 3
Wash the beads with pH-neutral soap, rinse thoroughly, and set out to dry.
Step 4
Once dry, string the beads with string or thick ribbon and knot to secure.
