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This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum.  Completing this BB is part of getting the straw badge in Textiles.

For this BB, you will dye two pounds of natural cloth, yarn, or fiber using a no-mordant dyeing method.

Opalyn Rose collated some dyestuff information here on permies.

To complete this BB, the minimum requirements are:
  - dye two pounds of cotton, wool, silk, or linen - cloth, yarn, or fiber
  - use dye from natural sources including rhubarb leaves, stinging nettles, arbutus bark, or avocado pits
  - prepare the fabric, yarn, or fiber for dyeing - clean and organized
  - test for dye fastness - warm wash with soap and something white after it’s dyed to see if the white is still white and the color is still there
  - write a few words about the choice of dyestuff and why it doesn’t need a mordant

To document your completion of the BB, provide proof of the following as pictures or a video (less than two minutes):
 - describe what dyestuff and what type of cloth, yarn, or fiber you used
 - your material (perhaps on a scale) before dyeing
 - a process picture of dyeing
 - your finished cloth, yarn, or fiber and the white (after washing) cloth to test dye fastness
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Approved submission
I dyed wool knit and cotton fleece without mordants. The cotton is dyed with dried and powdered black walnut. The wool is dyed with sumac and avocado. Both walnut and sumac have enough tannins in them to color clothing without a mordant.

I soaked the fabrics in water before adding them to a dye pot where I had made a thick tea from each ingredient. I cooked them on very low heat, for about an hour, then took them off the heat and let them seep overnight.

I'm not impressed with the black walnut powder. Perhaps I need more of it or more fresh hulls.  The sumac/avocado was an exciting success!! It turned dark purple/grey.
20250408_153705.jpg
Wool knit on a scale. More than 1 pound
Wool knit on a scale. More than 1 pound
20250408_093006.jpg
Cotton fleece. A little less than a pound
Cotton fleece. A little less than a pound
20250306_153939.jpg
About half a pound extra just in case
About half a pound extra just in case
20250306_134251.jpg
Sumac in the dye pot
Sumac in the dye pot
20250408_131350.jpg
Cotton with the black walnut powder
Cotton with the black walnut powder
20250410_121936.jpg
Wool with a strip of undyed fabric, just after washing
Wool with a strip of undyed fabric, just after washing
20250410_210953.jpg
The cotton after washing with an undyed strip on top. Barely colored tan-ish
The cotton after washing with an undyed strip on top. Barely colored tan-ish
20250307_103509.jpg
The half pound ish of additional wool material was also dyed in just sumac. I noticed this sumac bush wasn't as brightly red in its berries. It's color was more a ruddy brown
The half pound ish of additional wool material was also dyed in just sumac. I noticed this sumac bush wasn
Staff note (gir bot) :

Benjamin Dinkel approved this submission.

 
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