How to use Rhubarb leaves as a mordant for natural dyeing

[@stitchlightly5995]

Rhubarb is very popular in my family. Everyone has at least one plant in their yard. My grandmother makes amazing rhubarb cake and has passed her secrets down to my oldest daughter. Lovely video as always!

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Stitch lightly, I love rhubarb cake 😋

[@shoelessmonk1941]

Cool! Thanks! 🐞. Btw, my yarn purchase was absolutely satisfying. Colour, feel, and fabric knit up so wonderful. I made mittens with the worsted. Tested out the fingering. Made swatch out of DK. (Generous you are) and i have got a one skein project going with that. Thank you so very much. Its wonderful. Stacy😊. Keep well.

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Stacy, I am so happy you enjoyed the yarn.

[@deborahkillenbeck8523]

Thank you! So rather than using an alum mordant, I can mordant with rhubarb leaves!?! Is the end result after the dye bath similar? I've sold rhubarb at a road side stand for over 30 years, I have an endless supply of the leaves. This is a wonderful use.

[@GlasPthalocyanine]

I think rhubarb mordant is used for animal fibers (wool and silk). Alum can be used for animal fibers and plant fibers.

[@toomiepal]

Always fascinating! Best wishes for a bit more May and then June!

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Michael, thank you and your Lars Lopi sweater looks great.

[@matildas3177]

How do you determine how much water to boil the leaves in? Sorry if it's an obvious question, I've never dyed anything before.

[@PatlLawson]

Now I know what to do with my rhubarb leaves! Oh yeah, and dye with them too! 😉

[@michaelcross4112]

As a member of dignitas I am curious as to what it is like to dye with rhubarb leaves

[@juliegogo2941]

Well my first response is to laugh at your wrap. Is it warm. I love the beautiful leaves of the rhubarb plant very ornamental in the right places! Thanks

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Thanks Julie. 🤗

[@marie-francegaumont-lecler3839]

Very interesting! Two questions: what's the volume of water for a pound of fresn leaves? Have you ever tried dry leaves?

[@meadowsweetfarmfiberartsdesign]

This was very helpful Thank you

[@cabinboyknits1816]

MFFADS, you are welcome

[@judithtaylor6916]

Question please. Ratio of water to rhubarb? How much water to the 1lb leaves. You say 2 inches of water. But not everyone will have the same sized pot. How much water did you measure out?

[@Padraigp]

Doesn't matter. Just cover the leaves. Whatever sized pot you have change the after to cover you leaves.

[@kimtaylor4611]

Is this just for dyeing things that will be green? Or can it be used for other colours?

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Kim, you can use it as a mordant for any colour.

[@theonlypinky]

Is this mordant not going to dye the material green? Thanks for the vid!

[@theonlypinky]

oops I asked too soon! ty

[@dollbellieknits]

Thanks for another great video! Looks like if you just used rhubarb as a mordant you could easily overdye it with something else.

[@emiliebouffard]

Can you dry the leaves to use for future simmer? How much water do u put in the pot in proportion to the rhubarb leaves?

[@emmagoff]

Thank you for clarifying the ratios. And thank goodness for someone who has common sense and is rational about rhubarb, if it was that dangerous we wouldn't grow/eat rhubarb at home, I grow tonnes of rhubarb and handle it regularly!

[@AnimeShinigami13]

Sally pointer had a video about rhubarb cordage. She used the bast fibers pealed off the rhubarb stems and plied them into a reddish colored cord. I'm doing something similar with stems that got to be too tough to cook after the plant went to seed. Do you know if its purely the texture/flavor that keeps someone from eating rhubarb after it goes to seed or is there oxalic acid buildup in the stems that makes them inedible? the juice from these felt pretty sandy.

[@dianeky617]

Great video! What’s the ratio of mordant to fiber? Will have to try this soon. Thanks

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Diane, the ratio 2:1 fibre : mordant. For more details, check out the show notes. Cheers

[@dianeky617]

@@cabinboyknits1816 duh on me! lol next time on your videos I’ll check the notes/description. Thanks for answering.

[@Lady_of_Ishpeming]

Rhubarb leaves can also be used as weed deterant ground cover and turned into a natural pesticide.

[@majar.8231]

Hello Christopher, can I ask you something? Is it important to put the wool into the mordant before dyeing or can I put everything together? Does it change the dyeing result? Thank you so much for all these awesome videos !

[@muneeburrehman8445]

It's doesn't important u can put wool mordent and dye simultaneously

[@cabinboyknits1816]

You can do either or.

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Muneeb ur rehman, thank you 😊

[@majar.8231]

Thanks a lot 👍🏼

[@conniemackay3096]

Excellent.

[@AnaN-ei7qp]

So what iz the use for? Thankd for video

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Ana, I use the leaves to help bind colour to the wool.

[@majar.8231]

Hello Christopher, does this mordant have an impact on the colour of the wool when you dye it? Like iron makes yarn darker, this kind of thing. Could you show us some dyed yarn where you used this mordant on? I just love your KZbin videos. Thank you do much 🐏🐑😍

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Maja, the rhubarb has almost no impact on the colour. You might see a greenish hue, however it is very faint. At 8 min 22 seconds into the episode you will see a picture of what the yarn looks like. Thanks

[@majar.8231]

Hi Christopher, thank you so much for the answer. Somehow I missed that bit of the video, Actually I don't know how this could happen. Sorry for the stupid question then. 😅

[@user-inharmony]

Thank you

[@cabinboyknits1816]

You're welcome

[@sandraclarkfineart6903]

Can I dry my extra leaves rather than freeze them?

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Sandra, you can dry your leaves.

[@ginalevesque6596]

Hope you know that these leaves are poisonous for dogs faster than for us .... please be careful with your lovely poodle 🐩 💕💕💕 Thanks for sharing your “ potions magiques “ ! La tarte 🥧 à la rhubarbe est délicieuse !

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Gina, thanks for mentioning our furry friends. I definitely keep Xan away from the leaves.

[@carolbulmer8253]

I hope that there’s a rhubarb dessert involved too🙃

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Carol, so do I.

[@susandorrington7623]

Does the rhubarb water pose an environmental threat when you dispose of it?

[@cabinboyknits1816]

Susan, no. I dispose of my rhubarb waste back where it came from, on my rhubarb patch.

[@Padraigp]

It's the anthraquinone that is toxic in rhubarb. The oxalic acid is lower than spinach and chard.

[@Padraigp]

Why are you not wearing any clothes. This is weird.