Dyes from American Native Plants: A Practical Guide [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

Lynne Richards (Author), Ronald J. Tyrl (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 2005

The dyeing of textiles and other materials is a rewarding and delightful way to bring the colors of nature to daily living. In our technological age, dyes from plants offer subtle and diverse hues unavailable from synthetic dyestuffs. They connect practitioners to the environment as well as to the crafts and history of our ancestors. Dyes from native plants offer a special source of satisfaction and beauty. In this fascinating book, the authors have compiled extensive information to bring the techniques, plants, and lore of natural dyeing within every reader's reach. Chapters include discussions of color theory, dye equipment, dye processes, mordants, and easy-to-follow instructions for processing plants and dyeing fabrics. The core of the book is an exhaustive reference to the hundreds of colors that can be obtained from 158 commonly encountered North American plant species. The authors include detailed records of the various plant parts needed to produce different colors, cross-referencing each color to the Munsell color system, an internationally accepted standard for describing color. Finally, the book offers a practical botanical field guide that allows readers to locate and identify each plant in the book. Beautiful color photographs round out the volume.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Richards and Tyrl discuss the science of color and dyeing, the history of natural dyes, dye equipment and processing, and the colors obtained from 158 native North American plant species that are dissected and their parts processed and tested with five mordants. The result is a collection of more than 4,600 dye samples presented in a wealth of color photographs. The authors meticulously describe each of the 158 species and the exact colors various parts of each plant produce, and they identify the experimental conditions that result in little or no dye color. Each entry includes a description of the plant's morphological characteristics, soil requirements, and distribution. The result is a rather technical manual, hence a bit demanding, but readers interested in the techniques of dyeing will find it indispensable. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

Contains a wealth of information on using plants and herbs native to America for dying cloth and wool. Beautiful color photographs are provided with descriptions to make identification easier for the beginner. This is a welcome book. American Herbal Institute 20050722 Appeals to people who enjoy seeing how garden plants and those in the wild can be used. The authors have compiled extensive information to bring the techniques, plants and lore of natural dyeing to readers. -- Suzanne Hively Cleveland Plain Dealer 20050714 Dyes from Native American Plants appeals to people who enjoy seeing how garden plants and those in the wild can be used. The authors have compiled extensive information to bring the techniques, plants and lore of natural dyeing to readers. -- Suzanne Hively Cleveland Plain Dealer 20050714 An excellent reference book for economic botanists, textile artists, and crafters interested in natural dyes. Sida, Contributions to Botany 20050101

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 340 pages
• Publisher: Timber Press (June 15, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 088192668X
• ISBN-13: 978-0881926682
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #62,810 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #48 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Biological Sciences > Botany

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A definite must-have for the natural dyer!, February 7, 2006

By 

Ruth Schooley - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dyes from American Native Plants: A Practical Guide (Hardcover)

I happened across this book at my local spinning guild in Los Angeles. At first, it looked like the typical how-to book with limited new information, but as I leafed through it, I was immediately hooked by all the plants I DIDN'T know.

This book is definitely going to stay in the "most-used resources" part of my book collection. I'd recommend it for anyone interested in finding out more plants to toss in the dyepot! It's also good for those libraries in the central and eastern parts of the United States.

Which leads me to one of my quibbles with this book: it concentrates on the Eastern and Mid-West portions of the United States, and leaves out many dye plants common to the western states. Artimesia californica (California Sagebrush), all the Quercus species (California oaks) - these are the most notable for my area.

It should also be noted that there are many good dye plants that are NOT native to North America, such as Oxalis pes-caprae (Bermuda buttercup), and Cytisus scoparius (Scotch broom), and these are not listed in this book. It is, of course, the authors' prerogative to focus strictly on natives. However, dyers will need to use other resources to find the non-natives.

I do like that this book includes a description of the fermentation dye process, and the Munsell color notations of the colors given. However, in order to use this as a dye book, I'd like to see the colors and processes listed under each plant instead of in a separate chapter. I'm definitely going to make my own notations in this book -- which should tell you how impressed this librarian is!

Ruth Schooley

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great American Dye Plants, March 7, 2010

By 

J. Jackson (West Jordan, UT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Dyes from American Native Plants: A Practical Guide (Hardcover)

This book included a lot of plants that I had never considered in my dyeing process. Good practical advice.

3 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dyes from American Native Plants: A Practical Guide, October 10, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Dyes from American Native Plants: A Practical Guide (Hardcover)

This book is awesome and all ready looking well used. Can hardly wait to take it with me out for an adventure