September 6, 2022

Dyeing With Walnuts!

Walnut Dyeing!

It’s been a couple years since I boiled walnuts for fun, but the green orbs were calling to me this year.

About three weeks ago, I collected 15 lbs of fallen walnuts. This was easy to do because we have plenty of black walnut trees that drop their ankle twisting nuts on our paths and in our gardens.

It was not easy as my sense memory of their characteristic smell kept triggering memories of my brother chucking walnuts at me in the backyard play fort. I will never forget the sound of propelled walnuts going “splat” against the fort’s walls (my brother was a baseball player and thus had a good arm) while my other brother and I stayed clear of the windows.

Anyway, back to the dyeing.(Shake it off, Anna!) I filled a plastic bucket with 15 lbs of walnuts and covered them with water and a lid and allowed them to sit like that for three weeks. (Easy!)

Then, yesterday, I poured the entire contents into a large pot, which is only used for natural dyeing (do not use your food cooking pots) and boiled it for an hour.

I should have done this outside because the smell was fairly intense – even with fans on, windows and doors open, and on a breezy day, it stunk! Next year, I will definitely take the time to tend a campfire and make this a completely outdoor experience.

After an hour of boiling, I strained out the walnuts and various debris. Then, I gently submerged 13 ounces of pre washed vintage linen fabric (fabric or yarn does not need to be mordented) into the pot and returned everything to a simmer.

The fabric simmered for an hour and a half. At that point, I turned off the heat and placed the stinky cauldron outside to allow it to sit overnight.(more easy!) You do not have to allow it to sit, but doing so will yield a darker brown.

Then, this morning I extracted the fabric, rinsed it, and washed it on hot heat with synthrapol before drying it. It came out a little lighter than I expected, but it’s actually perfect for what I am going to use it for – stuffed mushrooms (tee hee!).

If you are interested in natural dyeing, walnuts are an easy way to achieve satisfying results. They are such potent nuts! Just remember to wear gloves, use pots that are only for dyeing and not for food, and have plenty of ventilation. (Even natural dyes can be toxic).