Autumn Leaves
As I rustle through the autumn leaves as I walk through my garden, I am reminded of one way of using these leaves for a dyebath. Don’t expect vivid reds, but fallen leaves will often give attractive, rich brown shades that are useful as a contrast to more brilliant colours. I usually pack a bucket full of fallen leaves, fill the bucket up with water (or wait & let the rain do the job), then leave the bucket in a corner of the garden until I’m ready to make the dyebath. (This soaking will extract some of the colour potential from the leaves.) Then I just transfer the contents of the bucket to a dyepot, simmer the leaves for about 45 minutes, then strain off the liquid to make the dyebath. Use an alum mordant for the strongest colours or, if you prefer not to use a pre-mordant, use an iron after-bath to intensify & fix the colour. (The entry for Dahlias gives more details of using an iron after-bath.)