The Wild Dyer

Fabrics colored with natural dyes have a beauty and subtlety all of their own. Onion and avocado skins, chamomile and birch bark, and nettles and acorns can produce lovely, ethereal colors and effects. The Wild Dyer demystifies this eco-conscious art, focusing on foraging and growing dying materials; repurposing kitchen trimmings; making and using long-lasting dyes; and creating stitched projects. Workspace setup, equipment, and fabric choices and care are all discussed. Beautiful photographs and easy-to-follow instructions illustrate how to make eight exquisite household items, from a drawstring bag to a gardener's smock and a reversible patchwork blanket. The Wild Dyer is a complete guide for both beginners and experienced artists seeking to expand their knowledge of this increasingly popular craft.

PRAISE FOR THE WILD DYER...

"In this book, [Abigail Booth] clearly outlines natural dye techniques and simple stitches. Coffee grounds, avocado stones, onion skins and nettles all harbour the potential to produce vividly coloured dyes. Follow her instructions to make a gardener's smock dyed with rudbeckia flowers or a pretty pink blanket from willow leaves and birch bark. Reading Abigail's book is like taking a pleasing step back in time."

– House & Garden

"Take a journey with Abigail Booth as she teaches you the foundations of natural dyeing and guides you through simple steps to create unique projects. Unlock the key to colour with the section on dyes, finding sources in unusual places."

– LandLove

"[Abigail Booth] hopes to share her excitement about the freedom of natural dyeing processes in her new book, The Wild Dyer, which follows the same course as Abigail's own journey - starting in the kitchen, before taking you outside to show you what you can forage and what you can grow yourself. Woven throughout are beautiful sewing projects; a foraging bag, a gardener's smock, a dyer's apron."

– The Sunday Telegraph (UK)

"Booth expounds on the benefits of using naturally dyed fabric in this easy-to-follow and richly illustrated how-to. Using natural dyes, she writes, encourages 'a wonderful relationship with the outdoors.' Booth's scrupulousness takes the mystery out of the cloth-dyeing process and leaves crafters with a well-appointed resource to an appealing new pursuit."

– Publishers Weekly

"Fine artist Booth often uses natural dyes in her textile pieces, and here takes the reader through the entire process of dyeing with plants and food scraps. Eight sewing projects showcase ways to utilize hand-dyed fabric in household items such as coasters, bags, and cushions. As hand dyeing can create unique effects and as plant dyeing can result in sometimes unexpected shades (avocado skins and stones result in a surprisingly vibrant shade of pink), samples of the range of colors any dye ingredient can create are beautifully photographed alongside the plant ingredients."

– Booklist

"[The Wild Dyer] is beautifully photographed, chock full of helpful information, and includes instructions not only for dye processes but also beautiful and utilitarian sewing projects, like aprons, bags and placemats, that utilize your newly dyed fabric."

– The Maine Organic Farmer and Gardener

Abigail Booth is the London-based cofounder of the studio collective Forest + Found. Working across textiles, drawing, and painting, she exhibits her art throughout the world.