Craft of the Dyer: Colour from Plants and Lichens

by Karen Leigh Casselman and Karen Diadick Casselman

Book Overview

Craftspeople interested in traditional methods will welcome this complete guide to making and using dyes from plants. Although its emphasis is on plants of Northeastern North America, many of the plants listed are found throughout the world. Helpful introductory chapters on equipment, mordants, dyeing procedures and other essentials, are followed by individual plants: its suitability for dyeing, useful parts, how to process them, colors, dye fastness,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0486276066
• ISBN13: 9780486276069
• Release Date: August 1993
• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.4" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Technical Tome

Loads and loads of information -all in print. The only pictures were on the cover. Information is technical and makes use of the nasties - tin, chrome and copper. It should have been named "Science of the Dyer." If you want to identify anything then you will need more books as this one refers one only to other sources for identification. Good reference book for the technical aspect of dyeing. Dyeing is all about color and this book misses out on that aspect.

Informative and realistic

I had been wanting to dye yarn for a long time and I finally ran into this book. It explains everything clearly and warns you multiple times of this not being a science, but rather to expect variations. The book is intended for dyers in the east coast of Canada / NE U.S., where the plants she mentions can be easily found. Nevertheless, anyone can benefit from the technique and general principles explained by the author.I tried her instructions for the onion dye and it worked like a charm. I got colors very similar to those on the book's cover. Luckily I just pruned my apple trees and plan to use the bark and twigs as dyestuff next.The book was written before the age of Martha-Stewart detailed instructional photography, so the only thing I wish is that it had included more pictures. But this book should be on every dyer's bookshelf.

Wonderful book for the price

The only problem with this book is that it lacks colour photos that would enhance the reading of this book. However, this book is full of information on how to dye wool and other fibers from plants and lichens. The book goes over all the techniques of dying different fibers. It also has a huge section on different plants and what colours you would expect to get when combined with a moderant. The book also contains a section on where to get and how to identify plants and moderants as well as other books that are useful. There are many helpful tables on dyebaths, measurements for moderants and the effects of weak, medium and strong dyebaths. This is a wonderful book for the beginning dyer and an excellent resource, it is easy to read and understand eventhough I think it could have more pictures of the plants, moderants and different colours you may get.