Dyeing workshop

The dyeing workshop is the creative, almost magical heart of the wool production chain.
Here, the washed wool is immersed in natural dye baths made from leaves, flowers, roots, peels and bark. Each dyeing session is unique: even when precise recipes are followed, the colours vary depending on the condition of the raw materials, the time of harvest and even the weather — each colour is called a “bath”. For this reason, this process requires a great deal of care.

Processes

  1. Mordanting
    The wool is immersed in a bath of hot water and mineral salts (Cream of Tartar and Alum) to prepare it to absorb the colour.
  2. Preparing the dye bath
    Leaves, flowers, peels and bark are boiled to release their pigments.
  3. Dyeing
    The wool is immersed in the dye bath and left for about an hour.
  4. Rinsing
    The wool is rinsed in cold water several times to remove any remaining dye material and achieve a stable colour.
  5. Drying
    The wool dries in the open air, keeping its natural properties intact.

Products

  1. Wool dyed in various colours, ready for carding or spinning

Dyeing materials and colours obtained

Onion skin: yellow

Walnut husk: brown

Alder bark: grey

Goldenrod flowers: light yellow