Class: Botanical Dyeing with Kim, Some Sundays, Summer 2024

Learn about Botanical Dyeing with Kim!

Dyeing with Plants is as much about Chemistry as Alchemy; as much Process as Artistry. It's messy, a little unpredictable, last but not least, it’s quite a lot of fun, especially when our Kim in involved.

Throughout the summer Lakes Makerie will be setting up the Big Tent behind our shop for some fun outdoor classes. Kim will fire up the Dye Pots on four Sundays this summer and guide students through the process of achieving beautifully dyed fabrics using plant material as the source of pigment. Attend all four or choose the ones that suit your interest. 

Each class will include 4 hours of hands-on fabric dyeing to produce a range of colors and access to at least three different natural dye pots and four mordant pots, as well as six fat quarters (18”x22”pieces ) of a variety of undyed textiles chosen from Lakes Makerie. The best part? We'll set up and clean up. All you have to do is get messy, have fun and then take your beautiful naturally dyed fabrics home, admire them, and decide what you will make with them.

$100/class, plus $25 materials fee.   

Sundays 1-5 pm (see dates below). Weather permitting, we will arrange raincheck dates for inclement weather.

Sunday, July 7 - Preparing Textiles for the Dye Bath (Mordants)  Learn about mordants: what they are, how they prepare textiles for dyeing and how they affect the colors plant dyes yield on a range of fabrics.

Sunday, July 14 - Indigo Dye Vat - Discover the world of indigo dyeing and find your perfect shade of indigo blue.

Sunday, August 11 - Yellows and Reds from the Garden - Play with the wonderful results of dyeing with Dyer's chamomile, Madder, Marigold, and onion skin! 

Sunday, August 25 - Dyeing with Resists - Learn this traditional embellishing technique to create gorgeous patterns with paste, rice flour, and steam bundles.

4 student minimum, 8 student maximum. If you have to cancel within one week of the class you will receive store credit!