Natural Dyes – Bloodroot

By Paivi Suomi on March 12, 2011

Bloodroot natural plant dye has been used by First Nations to dye wool yarns, yielding reds, pink and orange colours.

Difficulty Level:
Average 4 hours

Here’s How:

When handling dyestuffs, use rubber gloves to avoid absorbing the dye into your skin.
Cut the roots of the bloodroot plant into small pieces and soak in water for 2 hours.
Bring the water to boil.
Add clean, premordanted wool into the dyebath.
Simmer for 1/2 hour.
Remove the wool and add Glauber’s salts to the dyebath. Stir well.
Put the wool back in and simmer another 1/2 hour.
Let the dyebath cool and remove the wool.
Rinse and allow to dry.

Tips:

Using Alum as mordant, you will get reds.
Tin mordant will give pinks.
No mordant will yield orange shades.
Glauber’s Salt (Sodium sulphate) is used as a levelling agent, to even out the dye colour. You can use table salt instead.

Toxic – Caution

Bloodroot can be toxic if ingested, causing vomiting, dizziness, nerve damage, and even death. Bloodroot sap is a potent irritant of the moist membranes.
Aren’t Natural Dyes Safer than Synthetic Dyes
Bloodroot is not native to the UK, but I recently found some dried bloodroot for sale from a local dye supplier. I was planning on experimenting with this dyestuff but when I read about the potential toxic effects it can have (even while spinning with the bloodroot dyed fleece, I decided against it. There are safer ways to make natural red dyes.

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