Make a Solar Dye Jar and easily dye your own embroidery fabrics and threads with natural materials!

Have fun colouring your own materials and threads for your embroidery and textile projects with this easy to do solar dye jar project. Add in some easy to find natural dye stuffs, threads and fabrics and water and let the sun do the rest!
I talk about dyeing with natural dyes, show you some samples and empty the dye jar to see what we've got!
00:00 Introduction
04:00 Emptying my Solar Dye Jar!
15:20 Books on Natural dyeing
16:48 Natural dye stuffs you can use
27:46 Modifiers, acidity and mordants
33:13 How to make your own Solar Dye Jar
My Solar Dye Jar came from Gorgeous Yarns, you can also buy natural dye stuffs from here:
gorgeousyarns.co.uk/product-category/extras/dye-kits/
You can also buy natural dyes here (UK):
www.georgeweil.com/dyes-and-assistants/natural-dyes/
www.winghamwoolwork.co.uk/natural-dyes-mordants.html
www.wildcolours.co.uk/
www.theoutside.org.uk/product/natural-dyestuffs-sustainably-harvested-british-folk-dyes/
For outside the UK, just Google Natural Dye Stuffs and you will find suppliers!
Check out my embroidery channel @SarahHomfrayEmbroidery for things to do with your dyed materials!

[@cathykrueger4899]

My own ginger cat watches your ginger cat while I’m watching your channel. I expect him to begin embroidering any day now. Today the dying process was particularly captivating for him. And of course for me too. Thank you for including all of us in your experiments. I have a dehydrator and I think I’ll start drying some dying candidates.

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I leave my work out overnight hoping Ginger Cat might finish it but he never does!😁

[@nanettedean7560]

I love the experimental nature of natural dyeing. Thanks for sharing.

[@carolbyrne3241]

Absolutely fabulous video, you have shown so many variations of dyes and your explanations and demonstrations were brilliant ❤

[@lorip3999]

A few days ago I began learning about natural dyes. I was happy to hear you say that you're not interested in the scientific part of it, but just like to play around with it and see what happens because that's what I want to do too 😊 Thanks for sharing!

[@sshaw4429]

Onion peel makes a lovely yellow.

[@ruthfrench]

This was wonderful. I need to keep my onion skins and start eating avocados! Thank you!

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Avacados are very good for you Ruth, so win win!

[@partyfiesta1557]

It’s too tempting. I have been dying *pun intended* to give it a go for a while now. You’re the perfect enabler. I have a bunch of linen threads (read a huge mill cone) that happens to be untreated and a fleece ready for spinning so.. am I taking over my mom’s kitchen 😮 most likely! Hugs from Provence

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Have fun experimenting partyfiesta!

[@chrisharrison5974]

Totally enthralled with this video and the techniques you have shown. Apart from using tea and coffee, I thought dying would be complicated but you have shown it doesn’t have to be. Off to get some large jars out of the shed, knew I would find a use for them 🙌👍🫶

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

You were saving them for excactly this moment Chris! :)

[@barbaracabrera207]

This is very cool!! I've never heard of solar dyeing!! I didn't see you put anything in to stop it from molding?? I do a lot of organic dyeing of fabrics & papers. Mostly for using making journals. I haven't tried doing embroidery on them yet. But its on my list. I was house sitting for my son & DIL last Spring and woke up in the morning to about 1,000+ dandelions. So I picked them ALL and did a dye pot that came out a beautiful golden-brown. When I ironed them, they turned beautiful medium yellow color. But my back was in pain for a week with all the bending over to pick all those dandelions!! LOL I'd be worried about using an acidic dye for 3 months in a solar dye pot. I'd be afraid it would "eat" the fabric??! I definitely want to try this. Maybe this summer. I grow Malabar spinach and use their berries(seeds) as a dye. It produces dark raspberry/violet color. I can dilute it quite a bit cuz it's so strong. A KZbinr in Canda did a red cabbage dye-pot, and it dyed the papers green. I had never heard of THAT before! Organic dyes can really surprise you. Thank you for a great video. I love the idea of dyeing different colors in layers in the same pot. That's really interesting!! TFS Austin TX USA

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

You picked 1000 dandelions Barbara?!! No wonder your back protested! :) If you keep the jar topped up with water right to the top it shouldn't go mouldy. Red cabbage is a great dye to play with, very easy to use. Mine came out bluey purple and pink when I added lemon juice. I'm not sure how you get green; must have been something in the paper because green is actually quite a hard colour to get!

[@MaidMirawyn]

⁠@@sarahhomfraycreates A more alkaline dye bath creates greener shades, I believe. Perhaps she altered the ph, or the paper was buffered; that’s the case with some papers intended for art.

[@trishjoyce9882]

Thankyou Sarah for this very helpful lesson. The colours you achieved are really beautiful. I will watch again in the morning and then try it myself. Happy Easter.❤

[@janhulse9518]

yes,very exciting.I am looking forward to hovering over a dye pan,like a witch and her potions.

[@lynnettehall8615]

Thank you so much for your introduction to dyeing your fabrics, lace and wool fibres. My first solar jar is ready and filled with white onion skins. This is another wonderful way to spend the afternoon. Thanks again. X

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Sit back, put your feet up and let nature do the rest Lynnette!

[@laracraft82]

Beautiful job well done as the orange and red so pretty...nearly matches the ginger cat who is very enthralled 😅😊

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I thought that when I was editing the video, he's exactly the same colour as the stuff coming out of the jar! He is hard to impress...:)

[@laracraft82]

@@sarahhomfraycreates ☺️❤️

[@clouda9]

Welcome to your new studio~~lucky us❣Thanks for nudging me to rediscover sun dyeing. PS Give your cat a soft love pat from me. :)

[@nancygreer9675]

I have only dyed paper it's been a while, the avocado skins and seed together on paper using the two together makes a beautiful pink. I freeze what I don't use for future projects. Love this method and the books. Hello Amazon 😂😂

[@PawfectPastimesAmo]

Oh gosh, I have a row of those in a spare room I’ve forgotten about 😮 They’re going to be stinky 🫣

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Cripes, best empty them before they explode!! :)

[@PawfectPastimesAmo]

@@sarahhomfraycreates Good point! Kilner are strong but opening might be a challenge. 😬

[@createandcraftwithchristine]

Thanks Sarah, lovely effects from your first dyeing ventures. Look forward to seeing the next instalment in due course. Cheers, Christine

[@christinepreston8267]

Thought ginger cat was going to end up with a new hair do ha haha loved it x

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I'm not sure it would have shown up, it's nearly exactly the same colour as him!!

[@moirathurgood9206]

Thank you for your tutorial. Very interesting and I will certainly have a go with a large coffee jar. Start gathering my assortment of materials and dying ingredients. Lovely listening to you. Cheers

[@joditraub6827]

Love the colors of your ribbons and threads👏🏻👏🏻

[@joditraub6827]

All of it turned out beautifully. I’ve only tried a little bit but came out too pale.

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Did you leave it in long enough Jodi? Mine was in about 3 months...

[@mafish7962]

An interesting way to dye fabric! Tfs, Laura ❤

[@sshaw4429]

My wildflower garden took on new meaning this next summer!

[@abuvar]

Beautiful colours, my favourite. Yet another project to add to my list of crafts. Thank you! I love the cat. :)

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I know, I have a long list too!

[@audreylittlewood1313]

Great tutorial, thank you for sharing. I'm looking forward to seeing the results from the next one.

[@debbiegallett1125]

I loved this. I have only done tea and coffee dyeing. I have avocado skins and pits in the freezer. Now I have the courage to get them out and get dyeing.

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Yes, pull them out and have a go Debbie! The colour comes out of them very easily and I haven't tried it but you can get a few dye baths out of them apparently...

[@ginnywalton1627]

Sarah I really enjoyed this video, has made me want to do a pot stacked like this.

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

They are so easy to do Ginny and it's a lot of fun emptying it after a few months and seeing what's happened!

[@elizabethdunkley626]

Thank you for this. Such a variety of colours. I think I'll start with some linen threads and onion skins as a first attempt.

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Great place to start Elizabeth you can't go wrong with onion skins....

[@catromero7950]

Really lovely colors! In my experience, silk loves red. With any sort of dye (natural or synthetic), silk takes up the reds much better than cotton. I will definitely be trying a solar jar after watching this.

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

The silk ribbons did seem to come out exceptionally well!

[@kellystallard2371]

Brilliant video thanks - so good I watched it twice - well, okay 3 times!! x

[@joycrucitti6153]

Thank you for a most interesting and inspirational video!!! Love it!!🥰🥰🥰

[@Aquafishy204]

Thank you so much I LOVE this can’t wait to try 🙏🏻💜

[@stormyweather3438]

Thanks, great video, I'm definitely going to try this. Cheers from Australia :)

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

You should have lots of sun where you are stormyweather!

[@marijabu]

Thanks so much for all of the wonderful information and visual delight. You are a woman after my own heart. I see that you have as healthy a case of fiber lust as I do. It is exciting to see someone else with as many bits of random fabric and ribbon and a need to alter them into something naturally beautiful. I am so glad to have found you and I have subscribed and will follow along.

[@sshaw4429]

And I thought I was all alone!

[@claudiaforrest6669]

Great video! Want to experiment more here in CA.

[@loismiller4031]

Amazing! thank you so much!

[@ein1985]

Really lovely outcome for your solar dye jar! I was surprised at the rosey-brown color the avocado skins produced-I somehow envisioned a muddy green lol! That set of red cabbage wools was especially pretty. Thanks so much for this informative and entertaining video Sarah. Happy Easter to you all!

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Things often don't come out the colour you think they will! I've just spent ages trying to get nettle dye to go green but they insist on staying more of a grey colour :)

[@smoothride7841]

​​@@sarahhomfraycreatesreminds me of my ceramic class -- wanted to hv the strong blue but what I got was almost grey😢😂.

[@artistgrly]

INCREDIBLY INTERESTING. LOVE THIS VIDEO! HUGS❤

[@suefilby1511]

Lovely interesting video. Looks like another hobby on the way for me , thank you

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Once you have filled the jar you can leave it to work it's magic so it won't take up much time Sue!!

[@ljeanwoe]

My mordant molded it was rhubarb leaves.

[@elainet5870]

So much information! Thank-you! 😃

[@judymarkel8029]

This is so interesting

[@tessag5699]

Thank you for this information. This is a wonderful video.

[@rhondazamora8136]

This was so very interesting. The colors are so beautiful!

[@MaidMirawyn]

I’m not sure about English curry, but Indian curry is orange from turmeric and chili! Turmeric is a fun dye, but not very colorfast. Since watching your slow stitching videos, however, I’m planning to play with turmeric again. I don’t need to wash embroidery pieces, unlike my knitting and crochet!

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

They also use cochineal in currys to get the red colour!

[@joancollier4488]

What I really like is the ‘leave it to do it’s own thing’ aspect. Can’t wait to try it out. I have been saving my avocado stones for ages but throwing away the skins which is annoying but from now on I will save them. Thank you a really interesting and informative video…

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

The skin's do slightly different colour than the stones but you can just chuck them all in together!

[@dawsie]

Thank you Sarah, I have done some yarn dying last winter, quite a messy task for sure lol. I love the idea of the jars but will try experimenting with the water used as well, I use distilled water in my iron so I thought of doing 3 jars with the same ingredients. One with distilled water, one with Rain water and the third one straight from the tap. Umm okay one from the old water and the other from the hot water so that’s 4 jars in total it would be fun to see the different contrasts. As I’m in Australia and in the Outback I can leave them all on the front porch as it can get as hot as 64°c out here in the full sun which means I don’t need to start with hot water it will heat up fast during the hight of summer and during winter it takes longer but will still get hot enough. Our town water is a mixture of river and bore water so it will be high in minerals so that will make for a really interesting out come. I just remembered I have 4 small boxes of brown onion skins that I had been saving for a project that got cancelled so will use them up now 😹😹but first I will have to get the jars as I actually don’t have any with a screw lid on them plus I will need to find a spot to put them where they won’t get in the way. I just ordered the book about kitchen dying as I did not have that one the other books I have are on using commercial dye powders, and my other book is plant based dyes from the garden and woodlands. Can never have too many books 😹😹

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Have fun with those Dawsie! Try and get Mason jars if you can as these seal really well 👍

[@lisastevens2607]

Very pretty. I’ve wanted to give this a try. 😊

[@donnajohnson9834]

Gorgeous sunrise colors!! Have you heard of English natural dyer/author-publisher Rebecca Desnos. Beautiful publications.

[@carolwilkinson9473]

I'm so pleased I found you, Sarah! The solar dye jar is a great idea and you got amazing results the first time. I love the effect you got with red cabbage on the silk too. I dye wool with acid dyes and I've long been interested in dyeing fabric with natural dyes and embroidering the fabric. I've not embroidered for years but I've been looking at your embroidery videos and you've inspired me to start embroidering again and have a go at natural dyeing - thank you! Towards the end of this video you said you'd put photos of your results on the Community Page. I've looked on the You Tube Community Page, but I can't find them. I wonder if they're on a Community Page for Patreon? I would love to see the fabrics and ribbons once they're dry... please point me in the right direction. x

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

There are a couple of pics on their about 9 months ago Carol so you will need to scroll back! I will see if I can find a few more though because they were all different

[@katherineozbirn6426]

You might put the dye materials in mesh bags mingled in the pot so the pieces don't mix in with the material.

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Good idea Katherine!

[@ReallyJillRogoff]

Fascinating, exciting, inspiring. Will set up a jar in the spring.

[@user-tw6gy7kn3r]

Just made up my solar dye jar. Rusty nails wrapped in fabric. Loose black tea and water. Looking forward to results

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

That's going to be awesome!

[@rikkispin]

I absolutely loved your solar dye video and your tea dyed. You are very thorough in your teachings. Do you know where I can find those silk strips in the states?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I don't, but search for sari silk bundle and you might find a supplier👍

[@dshe8637]

I love the uncertainty and serendipity of this. Lovely colours. Is there a risk of it fermenting and exploding?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Yeah, release the lid every now and again just in case! Also make sure it's topped up with water to stop it going mouldy...

[@dshe8637]

@@sarahhomfraycreates ah, yes, good point. Thanks

[@alisonmary1443]

Super video, I have tried some of these, didn't keep notes I was looking to just get dyes without the tech. Having said that I am curious about the soya bean premodifier that sounds problem is, do I wait on you trying this method or do I go ahead and make a good old mess first? 😂Enjoyed this, love the first batch, rusts and orange gorgeous, all the colours are gorgeous. Thank you so much, Happy Easter 🌸

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I'm having trouble finding soya beans so I just went for it! Wash your fabrics first Alison to get all the dressing out and that will help, and if you can use things with tanins in then they act like a mordant, so onions, avacados, tea...

[@CharlotteCarley-bn5vj]

Such fun. How do you choose the color of the original fabric and ribbon color that you add to the dye pot?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I tend to stick to unbleached or white so the colours show up well

[@kayrichardson6040]

I love this! My husband will think I'm crazy when I start saving our compost! But that's OK, I am keen to try this now you've simplified it in my mind. I have done a small bit of tea dyeing, but didn't know about solar! Do you need to rotate the jar regularly? Can it get too hot or cold?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Jonathan didn't bat an eye lid the other day Kay when I asked him to save his banana skin!!! (You can process it and weave with it. Honestly.) I did rotate mine but I'm not sure it matters too much. I don't think it can get too hot as you can also boil dye stuffs to release the colour. Just release the lid every now and again and see what's going on in there! Top it up with water if you need to to stop it going moudly...

[@adriennebrown7341]

I know you said not to dry it in the sun but have you ever tried sprinkling coarse salt on the wet dyed fabric? I've done it on fabric that has been dyed with dye that is meant to dry in the sun and the salt makes spots on the fabric.

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I've used salt when painting and on silk Adrienne, so another thing to experiment with thank you!

[@bobbiechristensen5716]

Really fascinating. Were all the fabrics, ribbon, etc. plain white to start?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

They were either white or unbleached Boobie to make the most of the beautiful colours!

[@atamaria43]

Hola, hablo poco inglés y me da pena no poder entender todas tu explicaciones, pero un poco lo he entendido, solamente una pregunta, cuánto tiempo dejas en reposo la mezcla última que hiciste.? Agradecería pudieras aclarar mi duda. Gracias desde España

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

I left it for a few weeks! Look at it regularly to make sure it doesn't go mouldy 👍

[@marijkeschellenbach2680]

Just a suggestion, could you "rinse" each piece in the strained dye and get the crusties off?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Yes that would work! 👍

[@NannyOggins]

I love natural dyeing and have used tea, cabbage and onion. However, I haven’t managed to prevent them proving fugitive after a few months. Have you considered trying Oak leaves, Lily stamens or potassium permanganate though the last may not be considered a natural dye?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Acorns apparently work white well but I have yet to try them. Do you mordant your fabric? This should help the dye to adhere for longer

[@elainet5870]

PS a question: what keep it from getting moldy? Thanks. 😃

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Keep filling it up to the top so there is no air in it👍

[@nblmqst1167]

Thank you, thank you, thank you \(^-^)/

[@sandramyer7081]

Cochinelle, rose madder, kale, and … Ty with 3 months in a glass jar for in hot sun for quite - no touch or movement- I love natural dyes/ yellow at up and dark red at bottom- cotton, linen and silk. . ? Dyeing mordant?

[@sandramyer7081]

Camomile were used

[@sandramyer7081]

And rhubarb leaves- and tea bags , too- also Avocado skins dry in sun-seeds? Onion skins - white and red- red cabbage- dandelions- red beetroot-some-

[@sandramyer7081]

Acidic? Chg color- red onion and lemon juice -

[@sandramyer7081]

Try different fabrics including felt and wool

[@sandramyer7081]

Sometimes iron a copper -mordants- alum - bicarbonate-

[@KimberlyMiller-cq9xi]

Hello: Wouldn't fabric start to rot from being in water that long? Especially thinner or loose weave fabric?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

Probably eventually but I think it takes alot longer than it takes to dye and depends on other factors too

[@sshaw4429]

My cat does this too…😂😂

[@michelesmith2913]

Hi Sarah, can I ask please, what was the original colour of the yarns used?

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

White Michelle!

[@michelesmith2913]

@@sarahhomfraycreates I saw that when you put them in, watch the entire video Michele before asking questions!

[@sarahhomfraycreates]

😁👍

[@OHlookSHINYthing]

This, in my opinion, is the ONLY good use for rhubarb. Now, if okra could be disposed of this way, I'd be very happy.