I adore the blush pink color that this form of natural dyeing creates.
The simplest method to create it is dye yarn with avocado pits. I recently dyed yarn for the first time, and I fell in love with the natural and fun process.
In dyeing, usually, you would use alum or cream of tartar to act as a mordant. The magic of dyeing with avocados is that you don’t need any mordant! The avocado pits contain tannin, which acts as a mordant and helps the dye bind to your fiber.
I wanted a soft, blush color, and that’s precisely how it turned out.
How to dye yarn with avocado pits
What You’ll Need
Yarn: Dyeable yarn, natural fibers only, acrylic will wash out!
Avocados: It’s up to you how many you use. I used the dried pit, one avocado, for each 50gr skein.
Water: Approximately 1L of water every 100 gr of yarns.
Stainless steel pot: Be careful, aluminum can change the color of your dye!
Cable ties: So your yarn doesn’t get tangled in the dyeing process.
Process
- Make sure your pits are clean, get rid of as much of the green flesh as possible, as you don’t want that sticking to your yarn.
- Place the pits in a pot of water and bring it to a gentle simmer. I simmered for about an hour. Don’t boil the water as that can degrade the color.
- Unwind your skein and place a cable tie or two loosely around either end of the skein.
- Soak the skeins in some freshwater so that it is thoroughly wet. This allows the dye to adhere more evenly to the yarn.
- Once you have beautiful color in your dye pot, turn off the heat and strain the dye to remove all the pits.
5+. You can check the alkalinity of the dye with a pool tester strip. More alkaline, the nicer the pink color. Remember, low pH = more acidic, higher pH = more alkaline. And you can add some bicarbonate of soda to up the alkalinity, one teaspoon at a time. - Gently squeeze out any excess water from the skeins that have been soaking, and place them in the dye bath, making sure to cover them with dye completely. If your dye is still warm, remember that heat and agitation can felt wool, be gentle!
- Allow the dye to work. The longer you leave your yarn in the dye bath, the deeper the color will be. I left my yarn in for 4 hours.
- Gently rinse the yarn in cold water until the water runs clear.
- Hang your yarn and let it air dry!
For a quick blush pink shade: simmer the pits for 35 minutes, took the pits out, add the yarn into the dye, and let it simmer for about 20 minutes. This was probably the quickest, easiest way to dye a light, peachy pink.
Repeating the exact colorway with natural dyes is difficult. There are so many variables, like how much dye, the pH of your water, and the temperature. If you want to use natural dyes for a specific project, make sure to dye enough skeins of yarn in one batch!
If you end up dyeing your avocado yarn, tag me on Instagram at @ariannafrasca82 so I can see how yours turns out!