Onion Skins 1 kg (2.2 lb.)

Onion Skins are a nice introduction to natural dyes for novices, children, and those who delight in colour from kitchen waste. Onion skins give shades of clear maroon-brown to golden yellow on protein fibres and lighter equivalents on cellulose. To obtain satisfying colours from onion skins use at 20% WOF. Simmer for 1 hour, remove the skins and add your mordanted cloth. For a more thorough extraction simmer for an hour then let stand overnight before dyeing. Onions skins have medium fastness.

Mordanting: use alum mordant at 15% WOF for protein fibres. For cellulose mordant with tannin at 8% WOF and then alum at 15%, or alum acetate at 8%.

For in-depth information on natural dyes see our Guide to Natural Dyes available on naturaldyes.ca. Also available as a Printable PDF.

Currently the largest sizes of natural dyes are priced at wholesale rates. Our rates reflect a growing discount as the size increases. See all sizes here.