How to Dye Macrame Cord Naturally?

To stain or dye macrame cord naturally with products like coffee, tea or turmeric is a cheap, non-toxic way of changing the macrame cord’s look. It’s a simple method to give it a vintage look. Plus, it smells a lot nicer than using commercial dyes!

Some dyes are hazardous to pets, humans, and the environment, but there are some safe ways to dye macrame cord naturally. If you’re not sure that dye will work, start with a little piece and color a section of your cord before trying to dye the entire thing. You can use these products to dye macrame cord naturally, or many other things. For centuries, humans have dyed different materials using natural products, beginning with plant-based dyes like indigo, saffron, and madder.

Things Needed to Dye Macrame Cord Naturally

Something extremely cool about natural dyes is that many of the ingredients could be found right in your own kitchen! Teabags or coffee, vegetables, plants, fruits, or turmeric, etc. are just a few common natural ways to get many colors. All you need is a Metal Pot/Container for boiling water and some other things like Salt or Vinegar, gloves, newspaper, or plastic sheet.

The following are some plants that can be used for natural dyes:

Beetroots, chokecherries, and bedstraw roots are usually used to get the red color dye. An Orange dye can be obtained by onion skins, paprika, and carrots. For the yellow color, turmeric, sunflower petals, and dandelion flowers are the best options. You know that green is a color that helps with anxiety, depression, and nervousness. To get green color dye, you can use Artichokes, peppermint leaves, and spinach. Indeed, a green macrame cord will look amazing!

Blue dye can be produced with saffron, blue iris, and indigo. For other colors like Purple, pink, brown, and black, you can use plants like cabbages, purple grapes, blueberries, cherries, red roses, berries, pink camellia, carob pods, walnut hulls, oak galls, walnut hulls, and coffee.

Ensure that the plants are both fresh and ripe. If you dye the macrame cord with dried plants, it will not have a bright/full color. Instead, it will be dull or colorless. To cover more area, the plants should be cut up into small pieces.

If you’re working on a desk, remember to cover it with plastic to protect any dye from spilling and destroying it. Make sure the macrame cord is clean before dyeing.

Placing the chord in a hot water dish with soap is the most efficient approach to clean it. Immerse it, then rinse it after an hour. Remove it then dry it. During the dyeing process, make sure you wear rubber gloves.

Dye macrame cord with coffee

If you want to colour a macrame rope, a coffee rinse is helpful. Because coffee has dark coloring, it leaves a stain on the macrame cord. This is also a quick fix for hiding the dirty stain on your macrame cord. It’s fun to dye a macrame cord with coffee. To dye a macrame cord with coffee is also an inexpensive way of changing the macrame cord’s look.

This will work best with a white or a light-colored macrame cord.

You’ll need a lot of coffee to thoroughly submerge the macrame cord you’re dyeing in. You can simply create a large pot of instant coffee or cold brew if you only have a two-cup French press or don’t want to do numerous pour-overs. Place your coffee in a big pot while you brew it.

Step 1:

Make a cup of coffee or mix coffee in boiling water. When turning off the stove, mix a half cup of coffee to the kettle of water. While adding coffee to a cup, be aware because it can allow the water to boil over and overflow.

Step 2:

Bring the coffee to a boil in a pot filled with freshly brewed coffee. Turn off the stove when the coffee has finished boiling. You may cover the pot and leave it on the stove to keep the coffee warm, but it shouldn’t boil while you’re dyeing the cloth.

Step 3:

Now put the macrame cord you want to dye in the coffee pot. Stir the cord with a spoon. The coffee should come into direct contact with all parts of the macrame cord that you wish to dye. Let the macrame cord steep.

Step 4:

If you want to dye the macrame cord with coffee more, just reheat the coffee and put it back in.

Once you’re satisfied with the results, rinse the macrame cord in cold water until the water draining from it is clear. This signifies that the macrame cord has been completely washed.

Dye macrame cord with tea

The major reason to dye macrame cord with tea is that it is so simple, enjoyable, and worth it. Because tea includes tannins, it will adhere to natural fabrics without the application of a mordant.

Black tea would be used to colour macrame cord due to the high tannin content. This implies that the tannin works as a mordant, allowing you to color tea without using mordants like alum.

To dye macrame cord with tea, all you need are Black tea bags, macrame cord, cotton napkins, a big stainless steel pot, wooden spoon, neutral PH soap, heat source, and Rubber gloves to cover your hands.

Step 1:

Fill a pot halfway with boiling water. Stir in 1 spoonful of neutral PH soap well. Bring the solution to a boil, then simmer the cloth for 1 hour, or until the water becomes yellow. Rinse well.

Step 2:

Fill the dye pot halfway with water and add the tea bags. Boil liquid then reduce to low heat for at least 15 minutes. Place the macrame cord into the dye pot once you’ve obtained a good brown color. Stir thoroughly for 1 hour.

Bit by little, the macrame cord will absorb the colors. If you think the colour isn’t strong enough, leave it for a little longer. Keep in mind that once the macrame cord is dried, the colors will appear lighter.

If you wish to increase the dye intensity even further, you can add more tea bags to the dye pot.

Step 3:

Take the macrame cord from the dyeing process and rinse it thoroughly if you’re satisfied with the colour intensity you’ve attained. If you are offended by the tea scent of the macrame rope.

Dye macrame cord naturally with vegetables

Vegetable dyes can create lovely one-of-a-kind shades for a macrame cord. Natural fibers take an extra step of preparation to keep natural dye, but it’s worth experimenting with them.

To dye macrame cord naturally with vegetables, you will need  ¼ cup salt, a saucepan, pegs to hang the macrame cord to dry, macrame cord, gloves, and any kind of vegetables. The vegetables you need depend on the parts of the macrame cord you’re dyeing.

Step 1:

For every 2 cups of water, 1 cup of chopped vegetables can be used. Bring the water and material to a boil. Turn the heat off. If the water doesn’t cover the macrame cord, keep adding salt and water until it is covered.

Step 2:

Allow for one hour of simmering time. This provides a fixative that aids in the colour retention of the macrame cord as well as the setting of the dye in the fabric.

Step 3:

Remove the pan from the fire and keep aside to cool, leaving the macrame string and dyed water within.

Step 4:

You can either remove the macrame cord or leave it to soak up extra colour once the liquid has cooled. The longer the rope is submerged in water, the more colour it will acquire. If you choose, you can leave your macrame cord in the cooled water overnight. Keep in mind that the finished macrame cord will be lighter than the dye bath version.

Put on gloves, remove the macrame rope from the water, and hang it to dry outside after you’re satisfied with the colour.

Dye macrame cord with turmeric

Turmeric powder can be found in the spice corner of the supermarket or in a health food store. 2 heaping teaspoons of turmeric, a large pot, glass jars with lids, rubber bands, pegs, twine, and approximately 4L of water.

Step 1:

Add the turmeric powder to a half-filled saucepan with water. The powder will depend on the parts of the macrame cord you’re dyeing and how bright you want the colour to be.

Step 2:

Boil the water. Use the tongs to submerge the macrame cord and stir. Allow several hours or up to a day for this to cool. To extract additional color from the dyebath, reheat it many times.

Step 3:

Put on the gloves and pour the dye-bath and macrame cord through a strainer or cheesecloth into a separate saucepan or dish, saving the liquid for another project. Under running water, rinse the macrame cord until the water is clear.

Dye macrame plant hanger

Cotton macrame plants hangers, stir stick,  table salt, a clean bucket, rubber gloves, anything that will hang the macrame hangers from it while coloring them, and a container to transfer the dyed hanger to a sink for rinsing are all needed to dye macrame plants hangers.

Step 1:

Put on your gloves. In a clear bucket, pour roughly half a bottle of any colour, followed by a substantial amount of table salt. Stir with a stirring stick until thoroughly combined. Rinse the macrame plant hangers in clean water before dipping the bottom ‘tails’ into the color and salt solutions. Dip and press them into the dye.

Step 2:

Fill your bucket with boiling water up to 6 inches from the bottom with the dye/salt mixture. In a diluted solution, this will also bring your coloring up another 6 inches. Because the lower ‘tails’ of your macrame plant hanger are already pretty dark, this will dye the next section of the macrame plant hanger a lighter shade. Allow at least 10 minutes to pass, making sure the tail ends are still submerged.

Step 3:

Rinse the length of your macrame plant hanger with warm water while holding it straight up and down from the top. This will wash away any extra dye, and the heat will assist to set the color.

Dye Cotton Rope for Macrame

Make sure your natural dye has a mordant to keep the color from fading. Any dye that can be used to color 100 percent cotton T-shirts may also be used to dye cotton rope for macrame because they are composed of the same material!

To prepare the cotton rope for washing, wind it into a loose hank. Wind the cotton rope into a circular form around a stable item, then knot the circle in numerous points with short pieces of rope to keep it in place.

Step 1:

Wash the cotton rope. This will remove any waxy residue from the yarn and guarantee that it is clean and ready to dye. To clean, place the rope in a big saucepan with mild soap and warm water until the hank is barely covered.

Step 2:

Combine the water and the cotton rope. It’s fine if it’s still a little moist after the wash. Fill a big pot halfway with water so that the hank can swish around in it while keeping immersed, but don’t submerge it yet.

Step 3:

Add the dye to the water once it has been heated to a simmer. To avoid dye getting on your hands, try to wear rubber gloves. Mix one cup of salt to the boiling hot water and dye mix to protect the colour from fading.

Step 4:

Rinse the rope till the water runs clean and dry it after an hour. Move the cotton rope in the saucepan with a spoon to ensure that it is completely saturated with the color. Depending on how dark or light you want the colour to be, you can adjust the amount of time the cotton rope spends in the dye mixture.

Cotton rope dyes well because of its ability to absorb dye and maintain its color. To achieve precise colors and designs, many individuals choose to hand-dye cotton rope for macrame.

Unbleached macrame cord produces brighter colors than pre-dyed macrame cord, however, you can experiment with overdyeing pre-dyed macrame cord to see what you can come up with. Keep in mind that soaking the macrame cord in the dye water for a longer time will result in a brighter, richer color.

When selecting a piece of fabric or even an article of clothing to dye, use light, undyed fabric. If you’re buying new fabric or clothes, you might want to wash them first to get rid of any starch or other residue.

If you have any leftover dye, put it in a glass jar and use it for another project. 1-2 weeks is the recommended shelf life.

If you want to wash it later after you’ve used it, do so with colors or on its own. The color may fade with time, as does any color, but if the technique is followed, it will last very well. Don’t forget to remove the coffee from the pot as soon as possible and wash it. The coffee will not stain your pot if you do this just after the dying is finished.