Introduction to Herbal Dye making
No chemical dye can achieve quite the depth and luster of many plant dyes. Flowers, leaves and roots give subtle variations of tone and color that mellow and soften with time but never lose their natural harmony. This is an ancient skill steeped in tradition. As early as 3000 BC in China there is evidence of this art. By 2500 BC Madder and Indigo were well known in India and plant dyeing was a popular new art. Egyptians discovered and perfected mordants and were dyeing red and yellow from Safflowers and using Indigo and Woad to achieve variations of blue. In the first century A.D. Greek physicians and herbalists were using Woad, Weld and Madder as their principal dyeing plants.
