Rhubarb : It's a Good Day to Dye!

I decided to brave the mosquitoes the other day and went out to the garden to pick another arm load of rhubarb. I made more tea with  the stems and decided to try the leaves for dying. I tore
up enough leaves to fill my dye pot (that is 12 inches in diameter) about three inches full. I added enough water to cover and brought it to a boil. I reduced the heat and simmered the mix for an hour. I let that mixture cool and steep for about 24 hours.

The next day was dying day. I decides to dye three skeins of white wool I had spun with some of my roving. I had already washed the yarn. the skeins were about 110 yards each and weighed just over 3 oz. together. I placed the skeins in hot tap water to get them completely wet. I didn't mordant this yarn because rhubarb leaves have a lot of Oxalic Acid in them. This acts as a mordant for dying, and can be used as such with different dyestuffs. It also means that the rhubarb leaves are poisonous for humans so care must be taken. Any pots, utensils, and other equipment used for dying must not be used for cooking. If you don't have any old pots and things around, try looking at a second hand store. If you are using enamel coated pots, like an old water bath canner, be sure it has no chips or the metal could leach into your dye bath. This will affect the colors you end up with.  Also, it is necessary to wear rubber gloves to avoid contact with the dye bath.

I heated the dye bath to a temperature equal to the water the yarn was soaking in. I added the yarn to the dye bath.  In this photo you can see a tiny bit of blue yarn. I use that to identify the yardage. It is necessary to tie the yarn with a small piece of yarn in at least three places (I use four) to avoid tangles during the dying process. I mark my skeins with different color yarn pieces to keep track of the yardage when the skeins are wet.


I simmered the yarn in the dye bath for about an hour and a half. I removed the whole pot from the stove and let the yarn steep for about 24-30 hours. I removed the yarn. Squeezed out the remaining liquid and washed it in hot water with Eucalan wool wash. I dried it in the sun on the clothes line

I decided to make myself a scarf with my yarn. I found this pattern by Elizabeth Morrison. It is not difficult and works up fast. I think it is a good choice for this yarn.  The link below will take you to the pattern PDF.

Mead Scarf Pattern