Welcome to Litsy!

Some alpaca yarn dyed with kitchen scraps (pomegranate peels, avocado pits, onion skins) — I am getting ready for a new knitting project. #LitsyCrafters

This is like a Pantone colour guide for anyone who wants to experiment with natural dyes. It‘s not a how-to; it‘s an inspiration. Hundreds of examples of results from plants are presented in the same four ways: with & without alum mordant, then each of those modified with iron. Sasha Duerr encourages artists, designers or home dyers to look more closely at the plants growing around us, & also to use waste from food, florists, woodworking etc.

I‘m trying to give you an idea of the chunky size and full colour design of this book about natural dyes.

Compost. An example of one of the many colour palettes in this book. Using avocado pits, onion skins, carrot tops, pomegranate and citrus peels, and water from soaking black beans.

Over the equinox weekend, I attended a two-day online workshop based on the tagged book about natural dyes. So much fun and learning and food for thought! I‘ve owned the book since it came out last summer but didn‘t know how to engage with the content until now, because it‘s conceptual rather than informational. It‘s also absolutely gorgeous inside: photos with little text.