Making Plant Paints Workshop

On Sunday, I taught a class on making plant paints at Thistle & Bess in Ann Arbor. In this class, I demonstrated how to make your own paints using plant extracts or whole, foraged materials. I prepared homemade plant paints made from madder root, marigold flowers, and indigo for us to use in the class. I also made some fresh paint using dried zinnias from last year's garden.

I shared with the class how you can shift the pH of plant paints to create a wide range of colors from each plant. We used soda ash, baking soda, citric acid, and ferrous sulfate to create a wider range of colors with the paints. Participants painted on watercolor paper and on silk bandanas and went home with their creations and an instructional guide I made on how to recreate this process at home. 

I just made this instructional guide available in the shop if you'd like to follow along with my video tutorial and my written instructions for making your own paints using flowers, leaves, and wood!

We used soda ash, baking soda, citric acid, and ferrous sulfate to create a wider range of colors with the paints. Participants painted on watercolor paper and on silk bandanas and went home with their creations and an instructional guide I made on how to recreate this process at home.