oniondye.md



YELLOW ONION SKIN DYE
Dye of yellow onion skins, Loes Bogers, 2020

Description
Dye made of yellow onion skins, gives golden/yellow and orange to brown tones.

Physical form
Pastes, gels & liquids
Color without additives: Golden yellow

Fabrication time
Preparation time: 2 Hours
Processing time: for dying is variable (overnight for intense color on silk)
Need attention: the entire processing time (temperature and stirring)
Final form achieved after: 2 hours

Ingredients


Yellow onion skins - 10 g this is the dye stuff

water - 500 ml/g solvent to extract the pigment from the onion

vinegar - 30 ml to make the bath acidic (alkaline water reduced the reds from the onion skins, adding vinegar makes it warmer, more orange).

salt - 5 g  as a stabilizer

a coffee filter to filter the fine particles from the dye

a clove for preservation
optional: PH modifiers (see this recipe)
optional: a piece of silk, or aquarel paper and a brush for testing.


Tools

Cooker
Pot
A spoon
A cheese cloth or coffee filter
A strainer

A glass jar to store the dye


Yield
Approx. 200 ml

Method


Preparation

Weigh the onion skins.


Extract the pigment

Put the onion skins in a large pot and cover with water, add the vinegar.
Bring it to the boil and let it simmer for 2 hours (make sure not all the water evaporates), the skins should get very mushy.
Strain and filter the liquid and put it back in the pot
Reduce the liquid to 25% of the original volume for a very concentrated dye or ink. Add salt to stabilize.


Testing and storing the ink/dye

To dye silk: let the dye cool until it's no more than 70 degrees and put in a piece or wet (mordanted) silk. Leave overnight for an intense color.
Test the ink on paper using a brush and aquarel paper.
To store: add a clove to the ink, label it, and store in the fridge or freeze. If it starts to grow mold or smells weird/different than cabbage smell, through it away.


Dyeing with onion dye

Optional (not necessary) mordant the fibres with alum for color fastness
Put the wet fibres in the dyebath and simmer for an hour, then leave overnight
Rinse and dry
Optional: modify with PH modifiers


Process
Saving up onion skins in a glass jar, Loes Bogers, 2020
10 g is enough to make a dye, Loes Bogers, 2020
Cover the skins with water, Loes Bogers, 2020
Bring to the boil and let it simmer to extract the color, Loes Bogers, 2020
Strain the liquid, Loes Bogers, 2020
Filter the liquid, Loes Bogers, 2020
Adding some silk for dyeing (and a clove for preservation), Loes Bogers, 2020
Onion skin dye in a jar, Loes Bogers, 2020

Variations on this recipe

Add a binder such as arabic gum to create a nicer flow if you wish to use this ink for painting and arts, not dyeing textiles.
Make dyes for other kinds of food waste, like used coffee grounds (light browns), old coffee (deep browns), PH sensitive beetroot dye (vintage pinks and salmon tones) etc. Or research and consider dyes from dried goods like turmeric powder (bright yellow), PH sensitive hibiscus tea (purple, blues, greens and gray).
Try making this dye with the skin of red onions
Add some onion skins - or onion skin liquor - to another natural dye to give it some more warm yellow undertones.
Make dyes from other food waste: such as the stones of avocados (put 2-3 of them in a bag and crush with a hammer) and boil in water with a teaspoon of soda for 2 hours. It creates fine red/brown inks and pink textile dyes.


Cultural origins of this recipe
Onion dye is commonly used all over the world to dye yarns, fibres, eggs and even hair in golden yellow tones.
Needs further research?   Yes
Where were such dyes first used? Have yellow onions always been around locally or did they travel?

This recipe draws together information from these other recipes
Boiling in water is a common way of extracting pigments from a dye stuff. The resources listed under references informed this recipe.

Known concerns and contestations
Yellow onions can be found in abundance in many countries (including the Netherlands). Their skins are not eaten and as such are a great resource for creating dyestuffs. The collection of onion skins is not straightforward, there is no infrastructure for it yet.

Sustainability tags

Renewable ingredients: yes
Vegan: yes
Made of by-products or waste: yes
Biocompostable final product: yes
Re-use: yes

Needs further research?:  Would be useful to have an overview of how often this can be used as a dye bath and how it fades.

Material properties

Comparative qualities
Onion skin dye is relatively colorfast compared to other natural dyes. It dyes animal-based fibres like silk and wool quite well, less intense on linen and cotton (plant-based fibres).

Technical and sensory properties


Color fastness: medium

Light fastness: medium

Washability: medium

Color modifiers: acidic/alkaline (only moderately)

Odor: moderate (disappears after drying)


About this entry

Maker of this sample

Name: Loes Bogers
Affiliation: Fabricademy student at Waag Textile Lab Amsterdam
Location:  Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Date: 06-03-2020 - 07-03-2020


Environmental conditions

Humidity:  not sure
Outside temp:  5-11 degrees Celcius
Room temp:  18 – 22 degrees Celcius
PH tap water:  7-8


Recipe validation
Has recipe been validated?
Yes, by Cecilia Raspanti, Textile Lab, Waag Amsterdam, 9 March 2020

Estimated cost (consumables) in local currency
0,02 Euros, for a yield of approx. 200 ml

Copyright information
This recipe is in the public domain.
##References


Biochromes by Cecilia Raspanti for Fabricademy, 15 October 2019: link


Yellow onion skins in alum mordant, in: Vegetable Dyeing by Alma Lesch, 1970: pp. 54-55.

Natural dyeing yellows and browns with onion skins by Andie Luijk for Renaissance Dyeing, 27 August 2009: link


Images of final product
Yellow onion skin dye on paper, Loes Bogers, 2020
Dye of yellow onion skins, Loes Bogers, 2020
Dye of yellow onion skins with vinegar (PH 2) modifier, Loes Bogers, 2020
Dye of yellow onion skins with soda (PH 9) modifier, Loes Bogers, 2020
Dye of yellow onion skins with soda (PH 13) modifier, Loes Bogers, 2020