We made Nature Pigment Fabric Prints during our study of flower pigments and chlorophyll, but I think it is a fun project for anytime. My kids enjoyed watching the different colors appear as they pounded the flowers and leaves. Some of them surprised us, revealing colors we didn’t see in the plants before.
Isaiah 40:8 “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.”
What you will need to make Nature Pigment Fabric Prints:
- A piece of unbleached muslin, this is an off-white cotton fabric you can get at your local fabric store. I used a 12” by 12” piece, but you can choose the size you want.
- Various items from nature that contain pigment, like leaves, flowers, and stems. Flowers with deep colors work best. We did ours in the fall and chose Black-Eyed Susan, Mums, and other smaller flowers with stems from our wildflower patch. We grabbed some dark colored leaves to add some green.
- Waxed Paper
- A piece of wood, you don’t mind getting ruined
- A hammer- a Club Hammer is probably safest, but you can use a Ball Peen Hammer or a Claw Hammer, if that’s what you have.
How to make Nature Pigment Fabric Prints:
Place a piece of wood on a hard surface (we did this outside on our old deck). Lay your fabric on top of the wood. Place an item to be pounded on the fabric, face down. Lay a piece of waxed paper over to item. Now, carefully pound away. Pound all the pigment you can out of the item onto the fabric. Be sure to move the hammer around to hit every area of the plant. It should make an imprint on the fabric. Please be careful not to pound any fingers.
*I let my son do his own pounding, but use your own discretion for your kids.
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What has your family done to study pigments in nature? Comment below.
About Nelle
This is a very cool idea! Any way to make it color/lightfast so it can be washed?
When I was an environmental Educator I would have kids draw pictures using different things in Nature for their colors.
Peace,
Alan
Alan~
That sounds fun! I haven’t tried to make them colorfast. I did find this site “Dave’s Garden”: http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/167/#b that tells how to prepare the fabric and make them colorfast by ironing them.
~Nelle