Leslie here at Crafting A Green World has talked to us about non-toxic dyeing using natural materials. This collection is a larger scale equivalent of Leslie using her landlady’s plums to cook up some pretty fabric. The collection is carried by Z&S Fabrics and Strawberry Patches, and the latter of which has some background information about the collection that is not found on Andover’s website. The gist is that the fabric is initially bleached with sunlight, then block printed by hand with natural dyes. One of the dyes used, indigo, is a member of the legume family and fixes nitrogen in the soil as it grows. It actually leaves the soil richer rather than depleting it. What’s not to love about that? Even beyond the environmental impact, these types of dyes are far better for the folks working with them. There are sixteen different fabrics, including some stripes, florals, and paisleys – all are similar in style to the one pictured here. The fabric is 45″ wide and retails for about $9 per yard, which is awesome.
Other Organic and Environmentally Friendly Fabrics:
Gossypium Organic Cotton (UK) Wildrose Farm Organics Kirin & Co. (Australia) What Do Mainstream Stores Offer?
[Image from Andover Fabrics.]
