For both: 1 cup STRONG coffee or tea

1 tablespoon of salt per each 1 tablespoon of white vinegar per each.

Use 100% cotton or 90% cotton 10% nylon Place each piece in the mixture. Check frequently as the color will "grab" quickly if the mixture is warm.

Remove, using a white plastic spoon. (this allows you to see the color change at a glance and of course, you can not use metal...bowls or spoons!)

When it has reached the color you wish, rinse well in cool water until the vinegar smell is gone. Coffee will result in "ecru" shades.

Tea will result in yellow to peach shades. Be sure you use a true tea. Herbal "teas" do not contain much, if any, tea.

Tea-dyed fabric be used to make sachet covers, aprons, or anything that needs an antique look. Cover your walls with tea-dyed cloth rather than paint to make the room quieter, warmer and more relaxing.

Dyeing fabrics with tea is a way to extend the life of worn sheets, or white or beige scrap material. It can also give new life to old placemats, dollies and handkerchiefs.

You can give your fabric a varied, textured look by crumpling the fabric into a ball after dyeing it, or tying a knot across an area, and squeezing out as much liquid as possible.

For a streaked look, you can hang the wet fabric over the tub to dry, letting the dye run down the length. When the fabric is dry, iron flat. If you prefer more of a crimpled look, do not iron. Crinkled fabrics make beautiful wrappings for gifts and pillow covers.

Tea leaves/ground coffee Brown

Dry onion skins Orange

Grape juice Purple

Copper pennies Blue-green

Beets Pink

Always prewash the fabric to remove any factory sizing.

To the pennies add ammonia and allow the metal to soak for several days, until the color is a deep blue-green.

Soak a piece of wet fabric in the copper mixture until the color is a shade darker than desired. Rinse the fabric in cold water and hang to dry. Place any of the plant or vegetable materials in enough water to cover. Soak overnight.

Crush or pulverize dye material in the liquid. Bring to a boil and simmer until a deep color is obtained or about an hour. Let water cool. Strain. Pour dye concentrate into a large pan. Add enough water to cover the fabric to be dyed.

Add a mordant (salt, alum, or vinegar) to set the color--about 1 oz. for every gallon of water.

Add wet fabric. Simmer at least one hour, until fabric is a shade darker than desired. Stir occasionally.

Rinse fabric in cold water until the water rinses clear. Hang to dry away from direct heat or sun.

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