Dirty Pot Eco Printing with Eucalyptus

This method is quite easy: My collected Eucalyptus leaves are soaked in some hot water to soften.

The Fabric is a vintage wool blanket. Before printing it is roughly cut for the final Hooded Vest.

To wet out the fabric soak overnight or in a very hot water & vinegar for an hour.

Get the 'Dirty Pot' ready... Adding some rusty things, vinegar and onion skins will make a great brew to Eco print in.

Start the boiling and watch the colours start to come out; such rich oranges...

Lay out the leaves after blotting. Since they print both sides a mirror image design can be planned. Fold the other half over...

Take some time to place your leaves carefully. The seed pods will also print

This bundle was rolled onto itself with no plastic barrier. After the tight rolling and tying it is bent in a circle to fit in the pot

Into the boiling 'Dirty pot' it goes... to boil for about 3 hours. Eucalyptus takes a long 'cook' and high heat to give colourful prints

Look at how beautiful and dark the wool has dyed. The iron from the rusty bits have darkened the brew during the 3 hour boil.

Let the bundle cool down and let drip out. Carfeully untie the bundle and behold the amazing designs. Check out the lovely string marks! ❤️

Can you believe these crisp prints happened in a pot of dark brew?! The colour depend on the specie of Eucalyptus. Not all eucalptus leaves will print red, but when they do it's awesome!

Wash the wool without too much agitation to prevent felting. I like to use shampoo and a bit of conditioner to keep the wool soft. Then the finishing sewing happens...

This design is super fast to finish since the original edges are kept. The hood is part of the front pieces.

Check out the details from the way the bundle is cooked and where the edges are dyed