Description

Indian Madder Root Dye

Rubia Cordifolia

Dye Package Weight: 50 grams
Colours: Reds, Pinks, Orange shades of colour.

Madder Root dye has been used for centuries to dye fibres, yarns and fabrics. Madder dye produces shades of red, pink and orange depending on the pH of the dye bath, concentration of the dye and length of time the fibres have been in the dye vat.
Indian Madder comes from the roots of munjeet (R. cordifolia). The roots of the plant contain a range of red, orange and yellow colourants. Changing the pH and temperature of the dyebath can result in varied shades of colour.

To Dye 100 grams of yarn, I generally use 10 grams of dye powder. For stronger colours, you can add more dye powder. After dyeing the yarn, the dye bath can be used again for lighter shades of colour. Re-use the dyebath until the dye is exhausted. Or over dye with other colours(such as yellow or blue) to produce different shades of colour.
Nothing is wasted.
When dyeing with natural plant dyes, a mordant must be used to pre-treat all fibres. The mordant allows the fibre to absorb the dye more readily. For animal fibres such as wool, alpaca, silk use a mordant such as alum. Alum is a natural mineral salt and has been used for thousands of years to dye fibres. I use a 10% ratio of alum to fibre. I find that using more than this can result in a harsh texture to the yarn. I also add 5% Cream of Tartar to the mordant bath, as this also helps to soften the texture of the yarn. I reuse the mordant bath several times, adding more water and another 5% of Alum each time I add more fibre. This results in less waste of both water and mordant.
For plant fibres, pre-mordant with a tannin or Aluminum Acetate

Add pre-mordanted yarn or fibre to the warm water dye bath and let this simmer on low for about an hour. Turn off the dyebath and let the yarn soak for several hours or overnight. Natural dyeing is a slow process, not to be rushed.

For more about Dyeing with Madder Root and other plant dyes, please visit my website at All Fiber Arts.
https://allfiberarts.com/2017/madder-root-dye.htm