How to Dye Wool Yarn with Carrot Tops

Materials & tools you'll need

Step 1 — Gather materials and prepare the wool yarn

Harvest carrot tops from rainbow carrots, and select a light, bleached white wool yarn such as Briggs and Little Regal Weight Wool as your base. If you'd like a decorative touch, tie a strip of lightweight natural fabric around the skein before dyeing. Set up your workspace with a large pot, water, dish soap, and a heat source. Place the wool yarn into the pot with water and dish soap, and heat on medium until it's hot but not simmering — this pre-wash keeps the wool from overheating before it goes into the dyebath. Wear gloves, a mask, and protective eyewear throughout, and work in a well-ventilated area since alum can irritate skin and carrot tops may carry traces of soil.

Step 2 — Pre-mordant the wool yarn

Mix the alum (Gillette's Cream of Tartar) and Hoosier Farm Alum Powder with water to create your mordant solution, using about 1 tablespoon of cream of tartar and 2 teaspoons of alum powder per pound of yarn. Soak the pre-heated wool yarn in this mordant solution for 30 minutes, making sure every strand is fully saturated. Pre-mordanting is what allows the wool fibers to take up color evenly once they hit the carrot top dyebath, rather than dyeing unevenly or fading quickly after washing.

Step 3 — Prepare the carrot top dyebath

Add your harvested carrot tops to a pot filled with water, then place it on medium heat and bring it up to a simmer. For a fully eco-friendly, all-natural version of this project, use rainwater in place of tap water for the entire dyeing process, from the pre-wash through the dyebath itself. Let the carrot tops simmer long enough to release their color into the water before adding the yarn.

Step 4 — Dye the wool yarn

Add the pre-mordanted wool yarn directly into the pot with the simmering carrot tops and water. Let the yarn soak in the dyebath for an hour or more, giving the color enough time to fully leach out of the carrot tops and into the fibers. Check on it periodically — the longer the soak, the deeper the color the yarn will take on.

Step 5 — Rinse and dry the yarn

Drain the dyebath and rinse the yarn thoroughly under cold water until the water runs mostly clear. Gently squeeze out the excess water — avoid wringing, which can felt or damage wool — and hang the yarn up to dry fully before working with it. Once dry, untie any fabric you used around the skein. From here, you can weave in ends, bind off, block, or wash the finished yarn as needed for whatever project you have planned.

Frequently asked questions

What are some all-natural methods for dyeing wool yarn at home?
Carrot tops are one all-natural dye source for wool yarn. Other common options include beets, turmeric, and indigo, each producing a different natural color range.

What is Hoosier Farm Alum Powder used for in natural yarn dyeing?
Hoosier Farm Alum Powder is a mordant used during pre-mordanting to help wool fibers absorb dye color evenly and hold onto it once the yarn is dry.

How long should wool yarn soak in a carrot top dyebath?
Let the pre-mordanted wool yarn soak in the carrot top dyebath for an hour or more, giving enough time for the color to fully leach out of the carrot tops and into the fibers.

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