natural dye workshop

A few weeks back I attended a natural dye class with my friend Christine at the absolutely amazing Grow Kitchen in Sebastopol, California.  The workshop was taught by the equally amazing Rebecca Burgess, founder of the The Fibershed Project, author, educator and artist.  We were greeted with a spread of homemade jams, jellies and chutneys served with breads and scones from the well loved Wild Flour Bread Bakery and an array of imported teas.  I was already sold.

 We learned about the importance of keeping our clothing and dye local, just like we strive to do with our food.  We were blown away by the range of colors and tones that could be produced on natural fibers using solely plants sourced from our immediate surroundings.

baby indigo plants

 Next was the very gratifying act of mixing dyes from flowers, leaves and roots and testing our hands at creating beautiful colors ourselves.

Oh, and I forget to mention the farm fresh lunch we were served midday.  I highly recommend taking a class at Grow Kitchen if you can.  Christine and I did some antique hunting around Sebastopol afterwards to round out our really great day.