How to Dye Wool Yarn with Coffee, Tea, and Turmeric

I recently came into possession of a white ball of wool yarn, and I thought to myself, "Huh, how boring!" So I decided I would try my own attempt at dying yarn. I've never dyed yarn before so I started to do a lot of internet research, and what I found included a lot of crazy toxic dyes, all of which weren't readily available to me. But then I stumbled across this site: http://www.pioneerthinking.com/naturaldyes.html

It lists a bunch of natural ingredients and what colors they make. For the first time I was starting to think that this will be doable.

What you'll need:
Water
Vinegar
Coffee
Tea
Turmeric
Some bowls
A ball of white wool yarn

Step 1

First you are going to want to unwind your ball of yarn then tie one end (or both) with a piece of yarn.

Comments

[sunshiine]

Thanks for sharing! My mom always used this method.
Sunshiine

[joechacon98]

Very nice! It reminds me of the old days when people used plants and such to add colors. I remember in grade school we dyed eggs with blueberries and cranberries. Perhaps that would work on the yarn as well?

Here are some neat links:

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Eggs/EasterEggDye.htm

http://www.pioneerthinking.com/crafts/crafts-basics/naturaldyes.html

Great job!

[canucksgirl]

Very nice instructable. There is plenty to learn from the old ways of doing things. From my recollection, the pioneers also used berries to get shades of red or pink and used flowers and leaves for many additional colors.

Great job!

[jessyratfink]

The yellow from the turmeric is stunning. Very nice!