Natural Dyes: A Workshop with Christine Kozik

Saturday, September 8, 2012 – 10 am-2:30 pm
(Participants will need to return briefly on Sunday, September 9 between 12 noon and 5 pm to remove their pieces from the dye baths.)

Fee: $50/ $45 members (all materials included)

Registration: Space is limited; advance registration required. To register click here.

Coffee, grass, and blueberries—all may leave impossible stains on our favorite clothes, but may also be used to create beautiful dyes for rejuvenating a tired old shirt. Plants have long been used to dye textiles, and though synthetic dyes, developed to keep pace with the demand for mass-produced clothing in the industrial era, are more familiar to us now, fiber artists have continued to use natural dyes in their work.

Christine Kozik is in her second year as aquatic biologist-in-residence at Lynden, and this summer she spent time exploring natural dyes. She will approach dye-making from a uniquely scientific perspective: expect to learn something about botany (we will gather plants at Lynden to make the dyes), the chemistry of dye-making, and the environment (we will be dyeing cotton hankies so that we reduce the amount of paper trash entering landfills). You’ll be able to take home some practical knowledge and eight stylish, beautifully colored handkerchiefs at the end of the workshop.

Dress comfortably for walking, gathering and potentially messy dye-making. Bring a bag lunch.