Learn to dye fabrics and screen print unique designs, all using natural dyes! We will fuse ancient dye traditions with new ideas to explore a wide range of possibilities in natural colors. You'll learn how dyes from plants and bugs combine with mordants and fabric to make a range of beautiful yellow, red, and brown tones. We’ll work through all the steps in this process together: preparing fabrics, making dye pastes, assembling small screens for printing, designing and cutting stencils, and executing prints. We'll also use simple resists and immersion dyeing for a range of background colors and effects. You will leave this course with all the skills needed to prepare, dye, and screen print on any natural fiber fabric, using any natural dyes you can find.

Working with natural dyes is a great way to reclaim a sense of place and individuality in our clothing and textiles, as well as a more sustainable craft practice. This course will allow for great creativity and freedom using tools and processes that work easily in a home or small studio. Dive in to designing and printing with natural dyes, and come away with a whole new world of ideas. 

You will need the following tools for this class:

• Comfortable clothes and shoes which you don't mind getting dye on, and/or an apron
• Rubber gloves
• An old plain terry cloth bath towel
• An old sheet or a few yards of expendable smooth fabric (for a printing/steaming surface)
• Three or four light-colored, small- to medium-sized fabric items to dye and print on as time permits, such as: scarves or bandanas, pillowcases, dishtowels, T-shirts, or smaller cuts of fabric for later projects. These can be made of either cellulose fiber (cotton/linen/hemp etc.) or protein fiber (silk/wool/alpaca etc.), but must be all natural fiber, and should not include any synthetic fiber content. New and used/thrifted items both work well, things you feel free to play and experiment with are the best.

Feel free to bring your favorite tools and whatever materials you might feel appropriate for this course. Any natural dyes you may have and want to experiment with.