NATURAL DYES - A Shiny Day

31 May

Natural watercolor paint from…flowers!

Natural watercolor paint from...flowers! Yes, you read right! Today is World Art Day and here at A Shiny Day we celebrate it in a handmade and completely naturalistic way! Would you believe me if I told you that you can make the most beautiful red-orange natural watercolor paint at home only from flowers? It's true, and in this article I will show you how! The backstory Oh how much I love the colors that nature so generously gives us! The more I experiment, the more colors I add to my plant palette. So, the idea for this article didn't require much thought! On...

01 Feb

CRAFTS, DECOR, ECOLOGY, NATURAL DYES

Avocado dyed pink pillows

01/02/2021
Posted by Alexandra Diona
DIY, αβοκάντο, διακόσμηση, οικολογια, οικολογικά χρώματα, φυτά
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I dyed two decorative pillows using an avocado. No, you didn't read that wrong. I actually dyed two decorative pillows using an avocado. In fact, I decorated them with small tassels made of thread that I had also dyed with avocado too. Those of you that have been in the company of A Shiny Day, you may have realized that avocados are a part of my life. I love them very much because they are an important element of my vegetarian diet and after enjoying one, I can give the most beautiful pink dye to any fabric, using only its peels...

15 Jan

CRAFTS, ECOLOGY, NATURAL DYES, REVAMP

How to dye a cotton rope using avocado seeds

The heavenly pink dye that avocado seeds and peels bear, can dye anything cotton, wood or silk. This time, I attempted to paint a cotton rope I wanted to use in one of my constructions. I had tried to paint a white string a few months ago, but it didn't very well. It seems that the rope I had wasn't 100% cotton. This time, I searched and found a Greek craftsmanship that produces 100% cotton and linen ropes and yarns. The difference was noticeable, since the rope absorbed the avocado pink dye in no time. If you're new on A Shiny...

12 Jan

CRAFTS, ECOLOGY, NATURAL DYES, STYLE

Naturally dyed net bags

Net bags are an easy and stylish way to avoid plastic bags while shopping. You can always carry them with you since they don't take up space and fill them with fruits and vegetables. In summer they can turn into the perfect bag since they are light and cool. Net bags are even more special when dyed with natural colors. By utilizing the colors that some plants and foods lavishly offer us, we can give character to any net bag. Did you know that net bags are also called mesh bags? That's what our grandmothers called them. I tried to dye...

11 Jan

ECOLOGY, NATURAL DYES

Natural dye from black beans

Here we are again! I'm back to the pots that produce the most magnificent colors of nature and this timeI'm exploring the natural dye of black beans. The backstory : Some time ago, I paid a visit to the store where I buy legumes and cereals in bulk. There, Mr. Panagiotis showed me his new arrival : black beans, rich in iron, he said. Of course, I bought them to try at home, and put them in water to soak overnight. The next morning, I woke up and saw that the beans have given off a wonderful violet color in...

08 Jan

CRAFTS, DECOR, ECOLOGY, HOLIDAYS, NATURAL DYES

Naturally dyed Christmas pillow

On the day of the annual Christmas cocooning that me and my friends have, while sipping on our melomakarono beverage (a traditional Greek honey flavoured dessert but made into a drink), we also made a pillow using eco colors. All we needed was a white pillowcase, a potato and my trusted non-toxic Fusion colors (I swear by them!) and... we got started on printing! Before that, we taught ourselves the iconic Mean Girls Jingle Bell Rock choreography. Maybe I shouldn’t have said that, but it’s the truth, OKAY?? Sidenote: The day I discovered that potatoes and apples can be used...

29 Nov

ECOLOGY, NATURAL DYES

Natural dye with turmeric

From all the colors and pigments, plants and food so effortlessly create, it would be a shame for yellow to be overlooked. In this article, I share with you how to make our own natural turmeric dye. Yay! What is turmeric? Turmeric, an ingredient tha you may have come across in recipes or seen in powder form, comes from the root of the turmeric plant or yellow root, that belongs to the same family as ginger (ginger). You can read more here. Turmeric is widely used in Eastern recipes, for its color and also for its beneficial properties, usually in powder form....

24 Sep

ECOLOGY, NATURAL DYES

Dyeing wooden beads with avocados (yes, you read right!)

The heavenly pink shades produced by avocado pits can be used to dye not just cotton fabrics, but also wooden beads! This conclusion is a product of my 7am experiments with avocados... The backstory : As you may have noticed in thisarticle, you can dye any natural fabric with just the pits and the peel of an avocado. How cool is that?! One day while I was experimenting with cotton and linen fabrics, I decided to take it to the next level. Since I can dye any natural material like cotton, I can dye unprocessed wood too, right? Duh! I first tried to...

24 Aug

CRAFTS, ECOLOGY, NATURAL DYES, REVAMP, STYLE

Dyeing clothes & fabrics with avocado

12/01/2021
Posted by Alexandra Diona
αβοκάντο, οικολογικά χρώματα, ύφασμα, φυτά
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I don't know how to begin to describe the wonderful pink color of avocado seeds & peels. It is almost majestic that a green fruit can create such a wonderful pink color. Oh the beauty of avocado pink! Maybe later I will ask my friend Natasha to write a poem about avocado pink. For now, let's see how we can utilize it. If you haven't read the article on nature's colors, I suggest you do it ASAP! This will give you an idea of the myriad of things we can do with plants. In this case, avocado is my favorite. To be...

16 Aug

ECOLOGY, NATURAL DYES

Τα χρώματα της φύσης

Δεν ξέρω για εσένα, εγώ κυκλοφορώ σαν τον τρελό επιστήμονα μέσα στο σπίτι. Τον επιστήμονα των χρωμάτων-θα πω. Υπάρχουν παντού κατσαρόλες με χρώματα, ρούχα που στεγνώνουν στο μπαλκόνι & κουτάκια με φυτά σε κάθε σημείο του σπιτιού. Και όλα αυτά γιατί ανακάλυψα τη μαγεία που κρύβεται στον κόσμο των φυτών. Πώς ξεκίνησε η ιστορία : Ένα ηλιόλουστο πρωινό η Μαρία, η μαμά της αγαπημένης μου φίλης Εύας, μου έστειλε το Instagram μιας υπέροχης γυναίκας από την Αγγλία που είναι natural dyer & συγγραφέας. Τη λένε Rebecca Desnos & έχει τελειοποιήσει την τέχνη των φυσικών χρωμάτων. Έχει γράψει ένα βιβλίο & τρία...