Spotted: How to Dye Fabric with Tea
What a fun project to try over the weekend! Check out how to dye fabric with tea instead of store-bought dye.
Conventional fabric dyes are not super great for the planet. They often contain harmful chemicals that pollute the water and harm marine life when the excess dye washes down the drain. Boo! Luckily, there are lots of fun ways that you can dye fabric without using store-bought dye.
You already know that tea can stain fabric, and you can put that staining power to good use by making tea-based fabric dye. Over at Makezine, Andrew Salomone discovered a cool tutorial for making your own fabric dye from black tea. All that you need to make your own black tea fabric dye are:
- black tea
- non-toxic white glue and paintbrushes (optional)
- undyed or light-colored fabric
- pot with boiling water
- tongs
- sponge and dish soap (optional)
You only need the optional materials if you want to make patterns on your fabric using the resist method they describe. Ready to dye some fabric with tea? Click here for the tutorial from the Textile Arts Center!