Tips for Naturally Dyeing Sashiko Thread
I’m currently working on a quilt commission and the client (who is a total color genius : ) requested that I dye the sashiko hand quilting thread. This was an exciting request for me because I usually work with white thread, and I agree that white wouldn’t be a good fit for this particular quilt. I don’t have a ton of experience dyeing sashiko thread but I’ve figured out a few things over the years that might be helpful to share.
The first thing that’s important to mention is that sashiko thread is sometimes treated to resist dye so be sure to purchase a thread that is prepared for dye (PFD) to ensure that it’s able to accept dye. I’ve found that despite the thread being PFD I still have a bit of a difficult time getting it to accept color. To compensate for this I increase the dye WOF percentage ratio by double. For example to dye the olive green fabric color above I use Osage Orange at 30% WOF but to dye the sashiko thread a similar shade I used 60% WOF. You can find my recipe for this olive green color in this post.
Like yarn, sashiko thread requires careful handling or it quickly becomes a tangled nightmare situation. As a first step be sure to loosely tie each skein together with string or a piece of spare yarn to hold the strands together. If you’re dyeing more than one skein I recommend tying each individual skein and also attaching the skeins to a rod or yarn ring to keep them organized. I purchased my yarn rings from Botanical Colors.
Sashiko thread is cotton and therefore must be scoured, soaked in a tannin bath, and mordanted the same way that you pretreat cotton and other cellulose fabrics. I explain how to scour cellulose fabrics in this post and how to mordant in this post. Follow the instructions there and use the same WOF ingredients as specified in those posts but when you get to the step of dyeing increase your usual amount of dyestuff when dyeing sashiko thread. Note that I do not increase the amounts of tannin and mordant but I do steep the thread in each bath for 24 hours. Also note that my olive green recipe calls for iron and I did not increase the amount of iron used. Iron should never be used at more than 4% WOF and when dyeing thread I recommend using only 2% WOF or less. Otherwise the thread will have an unpleasant harsh feeling and may become difficult to pull through the fabric when quilting. After dyeing be sure to rinse the skeins gently (to ensure the stands don’t tangle) but thoroughly until the rinse water runs clear. Otherwise the dyed thread will stain the fabric you’re stitching. I hope you find these tips helpful!
