Dyes from Lichens and Plants

Today many craftspeople have rediscovered the beautiful colors of nature stored in the lichens and plants around us. How to capture the warmth of these fugitive, one-of-a-kind colors is the dyer's challenge. Working in Spence Bay, in Canada's Northwest Territories, Judy McGrath had to look to her own environment for dye materials and to herself for the answer to the question of how to release and preserve them. The author of this book has pulled together the fundamental principles which underly the art of natural dyeing. She has systematized this knowledge into seventeen basic methods which can be applied to all natural dye materials. Thirteen striking and useful color plates illustrate the incredible colors Judy McGrath has obtained from flowers, shrubs, lichens, mosses, and even seaweed. Step-by-step instructions for obtaining similar colors are provided. The dye samples are keyed to the lichens and plants used. For each plant and lichen significant botanical information is given, including the names and identification detail of closely related varieties throughout North America.