How to Dye Fabric With Avocado Pits (5-Steps With Pictures)
It’s no secret that tie-dye has been trending since the start of social distancing/quarantining. I wanted to take it a step above and dye my clothing with natural dye! Natural dye is not only better for you and the environment, but I think the colors add an element of “adult” to them.
Instead of bright, artificial colors, natural dye produces subtle, earthy tones that look like they’re straight out of Free People. While there are dozens of fruits and vegetables you can use, for this guide I’ll take you through how to dye with avocado pits!
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You’ll need:
2-3 pieces of fabric or clothing
10-15 avocado pits
Rubber bands or string (if you want to tie-dye)
1. Prepare the fabric
Your fabric must be a 100% natural fiber like cotton, linen, or hemp. Otherwise, the dye will not work or be permanent.
Add your fabric to your large pot and fill with water, completely covering the clothing. Bring water to a boil and then turn to low. Simmer the fabric for 2 hours.
This may seem odd, but it helps to give them fabric a deep clean so the dye takes well. Most guides suggest using a pH neutral soap, but I just used a squirt of Seventh Generation Laundry Detergent and it was fine! The detergent must be liquid – powder detergent supposedly is not good for this (I have not tried it myself though).
Once done, carefully remove your fabric and rinse well with cold water to ensure all the soap is gone.
2. Create the dye bath
Rinse out the pot and put your avocado pits inside it. Fill about 2/3 of the way with water and simmer them for 2-3 hours with the lid on.
After the pits have been simmering for a few hours, check on the dye and give it a good stir with your spoon. It will look dark with a slight pinkish hue.
To save time: Use 2 large pots and do steps 1 and 2 simultaneously.
3. Tie your fabric
If you do not want to tie-dye, skip to the next step!
If you do want to tie-dye, use your rubber bands/string to tie up your fabric in the desired design. You can do this while the avocado pits are simmering.
Keep in mind that the entire piece of fabric/clothing will be submerged in the dye, therefore you will not be able to do multiple colors.
3. Add your fabric to the dye
When your avocado pit dye bath is looking good, add your fabric – make sure it is completely submerged by pushing it down with your large spoon/spatula.
Keep the heat on low and simmer for 2-3 hours OR turn heat off and leave in the pot, covered, for 1-3 days. The longer you leave it, the darker and more intense the color will be!
4. Lay out to dry
When you’re ready, carefully remove the fabric from the dye bath, cut off the string/rubber bands if you used any, and lay out to dry in the shade.
If you lay in the sun, it could get sun-bleached and lose that color you worked so hard for!
You can rinse the fabric before you lay it out, but I do not find that step necessary.
5. Give it a wash
Let your dyed fabric dry completely before washing. To preserve the dye, wash with mild detergent (again, I use Seventh Generation) on the gentle cycle.
I washed mine on the normal cycle in warm-hot water and it did not have any noticeable fading, but just so you don’t ruin yours and blame me… I recommend you stick to a cold wash on the gentle cycle!
