Dye Assists & Modifiers

Dye assists help you prepare fibers, adjust the dye bath and fine-tune color. Soda ash scours cotton and linen and raises the pH of indigo vats. Cream of tartar is added to alum baths for wool and silk to keep colors bright and fibers soft. Calcium carbonate (chalk) brightens madder reds in soft water. Gum arabic thickens natural dye pastes and inks, and fructose is the reducing sugar for a fruit indigo vat.

Modifiers and color shifts

Changing the pH of a dye bath changes color: alkaline baths push many dyes warmer, acidic baths make them cooler or brighter. Combine assists with alum and iron to widen your palette from a single dye.

Printing, painting and ink making

Mix gum arabic with dye extracts to make pastes for block printing and painting. Gum arabic is also the classic binder for ink making with oak galls.

Frequently asked questions

What is soda ash used for in natural dyeing?

For scouring plant fibers before mordanting and for raising the pH of indigo vats.

Why add cream of tartar to alum?

It helps alum bond evenly to wool and silk, keeps colors brighter and the fiber softer.

What does calcium carbonate do?

Chalk adds calcium to soft water and helps madder give deeper, truer reds.

Explore more: Natural Indigo · All Mordants & Assists