Natural Dyeing with Plants: Glorious Colors from Roots, Leaves and Flowers

Purple is my favorite dye to use. I like Logwood, and also black tea with an iron after bath, and also avocado with an iron after bath. They all give various purple tones. 

" There are legends of both gods and heroes relating to the discovery of several dyes, such as, for example, the story of purple. Purple is one of the most important and valuable dyes of antiquity, and according to legend, it was the Phoenician god Melqart who discovered the effect produced by the purple snail while walking by the sea. Supposedly his dog bit one of these snails in two, whereupon the animal's jaw turned purple. The god wiped the dog's mouth, believing that it was hurt, and found to his surprise that the cloth he had used was dyed the most glorious red tone he had never seen. According to this legend, dyeing with purple snails thus comes from the Phoenicians, and it has actually also been proven that the Phoenicians were using purple dye by 1400 BCE. This dye remained very popular among the Romans. There is a text from 301 CE that contains, among other information, the exact prices for purple. To convert prices into today's currency is difficult, but it can be assumed from the literature that at least $9,200 in today's dollars was spent for slightly more than two pounds of purple dyed silk." - pg.10, Natural Dyeing with Plants

on dyeing:

"However, just as things already were during the long history of dyeworks, it is still so today: Dyeing with plants is an art, a secret, and an activity that requires a holistic approach to the dyestuffs and the material. " -pg. 12, Natural Dyeing with Plants 

-Both quotes taken from Natural Dyeing with Plants: Glorious Colors from Roots, Leaves, and Flowers by Franziska Ebner and Romana Hasenohrl https://www.schifferbooks.com/natural-dyeing-with-plants-glorious-colors-from-roots-leaves-flowers-6423.html  This book is excellent. I also checked at this book from the library, and liked it equally well https://www.workman.com/products/harvesting-color Harvesting Color by Rebecca Burgess. She divides natural dyes into different times of year, based on when they are best to harvest and use. She also includes maps of the United States, and where the foraged dye plants are located, and how to dye and harvest sustainably.