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5.0 out of 5 stars
Great easy-to-follow dyeing book, very helful for newbies, April 30 2001
I am new to natural dyeing and found this book to be extremely helpful. I looked at many dyeing books before purchasing this one. Unlike some other books this one gives tons of useful information without getting too technical or overwhelming. Because it is in full-color it also lets you see examples of the colors you can achieve. There are excellent step-by-step instructions accompanied by photos to guide you seamlessly through each process. The book starts out with an introduction to the history of dyeing. It then discusses, choosing equipment and items to dye. Next, testing the water pH, preparing fibers and fixing colors is covered. Making and using mordants is also covered including timesaving tips on how to combine mordanting and dyeing. Conveniently, two charts help you choose the proper mordant and assist. Preparing plants for dyeing follows. The processes for hot, cold and all-in-one dyeing are then demonstrated. A chart including all the dye plants shows you which methods will work best for each one. Special techniques for dyeing with indigo, woad and safflower are covered separately. There is also great advice on experimenting with color and a good explanation of how dyes are absorbed into different fibers. Information on the over 60 dye plants follows. Each one has a picture of the plant, a written description of it and it's color along with information on cultivation, harvesting and the dyeing procedure. A set of color swatches showing color with and without modifiers or mordants is also included. Sometimes even a second set of swatches is shown for different parts of the plant. If you are new to dyeing and want a through, yet easy-to-follow guide to natural dyeing this is definitely the book to get. It hard to imagine with all this information that even a more advance dyer wouldn't find a few helpful tips.
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