Plant dyed yarn

Bestiarium yarn is the name for Lotta H Löthgren's plant dyed yarn line, where she carefully hand picks a small selection of yarn bases and adds colour to them using various plants, roots, leaves, and other organic materials. 

Plant dyeing is a slow, age old and serendipitous process. Each skein is handled many times over, from the first preparation of the mordanting to the rinsing, drying, dyeing, skeining and labelling. Each colour is unique and non-repeatable, and the result depends on the chemical properties of the water used, the soil in which the plant grew and the climate that affected it, the concentration of pigments in the dye bath, and other factors that are beyond human control.

All colours can fade over time, even those achieved with synthetic dyes, and to make sure your yarn keeps it colour as long as possible, make sure to keep it out of direct sunlight and don't wash it more often than needed. Wool has self-cleaning properties and garments can be hung out in the shade for a light clean. Spots can be removed with a mild detergent suitable for delicate fabrics.

Do not use bleach or detergents with a low or high pH. Do not machine wash or tumble dry. All of Bestiarium yarn bases are untreated, meaning they have not been altered to allow for machine washing. 

Indigo dyed shades can make your hands turn lightly blue as you work with them. This is a natural process called crocking and won't affect the colour of the yarn. The stains on your hands wash off easily with soap and water. All shades may bleed even though each skein has been thoroughly rinsed. If you're making a high-contrast project, consider steam blocking or block carefully with cold water.

As with all hand dyed yarns, alternating skeins is a good idea to avoid stripes when changing from one skein to the next. 

Love the strange. Happy making.