Dyeing With Weeds

Learn to naturally dye with weeds from your own backyard! This recipe booklet includes an overview of the natural dye process for dyeing wool, and recipes for five different weeds commonly found in the Amiskwaciwâskahikan/Edmonton area and similar ecosystems.

How These Recipes Came to Be:

During the spring and summer of 2020, Kalea embarked on a project she called the Blackmud Creek Dye Experiments. She challenged herself to explore at least one dye plant a month from April to September that could be foraged in her local ecosystem – both invasive weeds, and native plants that could be harvested responsibly. This booklet is the the culmination of the project: a collection of recipes for the most successful foraged dyes.

What to Expect Inside:

• Detailed instructions for scouring, mordanting, and dyeing wool yarn with plants, including an explanation of the chemistry involved.

• Specific recipes for five local weeds: dandelion, horsetail, goldenrod, tansy, and thistle.

• Discussion of ethical urban foraging, including information about relevant City of Edmonton bylaws and noxious weed legislation in Alberta.