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Handmade textiles reflecting nature
through the art of natural dyeing.


 
 
 
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Libby London, Northern Dyer

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I was first influenced as an artist and gardener by my mom and granny's sewing, darning, and embroidery projects as well as their vast and magical gardens. Watching them transplant bulbs, deadhead Pansies or squeal with joy when the first Bleeding Heart flowers bloomed in the spring, inspired my love for plants and slow craft.

I learned of natural dyeing when I had the opportunity to apprentice with an artist specializing in handmade paper. It was a unique experience, and my time spent turning raw flax fibers directly from the bail into gorgeous sheets of handmade paper dipped in Indigo and Black Walnut was forever stamped into my mind.

I went on to study papermaking, fine art, and art history, and environmental sustainability in undergrad.  Combining my love for nature and art, I went on to teach at the Minnesota Center for Book Arts, work as Co-Director of the Permaculture Research Institute - Cold Climate (where I currently serve as a board member), and Co-Found an organic "young farmer incubator farm" in rural Minnesota.  Through these experiences I advocated for ecological sustainability, climate change solutions, water access, environmental and social justice, and environmental pollutant research.

At the young farmers incubator, I supported emerging farmers in launching their first businesses, and it was there that I started my own practice of growing and cultivating plants for fiber and natural dyes.  I started with a small portion of a field, and grew cold climate indigo varieties, native and hardy annuals used for dye, and I even experimented with growing my own flax for dye (inspired by my early papermaking experiences with flax bales!

I currently focus on creating zero-waste, ethically sourced, locally grown organic, and drought tolerant natural dye products.  I also teach natural dye workshops and run a custom natural dye lab.  While synthetic and petroleum based dyes are common and appear everywhere in mainstream fashion and textiles, I focus on creating a product that is beautiful, but also it's of equal value to me that it's ecologically friendly that my dye bath is compostable, and that there is no toxicity in the product at any part of the process.  

-Libby

Plant printing with Pansy’s this late in the season is pretty surprising to me since usually they are more of a Spring plant, but somehow despite the extreme drought in Minnesota this year, my Pansy’s are still blooming along with the sma
Japanese indigo season is here in Minnesota. 💙Japanese indigo - persicaria tinctoria - is a deep shade of blue harvested from the leaves of the plant throughout the growing season. Pictured here is the technique called hapazome which is the effect o
Grow your own natural dye garden 💙🌿🪴👉link in profile to try one of my kits.
I’m started to get v excited about summer adventures, and I’m especially looking forward to finally teaching a natural dye workshop again after over a year and a half. 🪴 Join me for a weekend-long retreat @wildriceretreat in Bayfield, W
Yes, I do have natural dye seeds this spring - at last. Tho I’m out of Japanese indigo seeds until my current plants go to seed! Woad seeds are lovely this time of year especially because you don’t have to transplant them - you can just d
My silk scarf bundle dye kits are finally back on Etsy after five months — these are fun if you want to try natural dye bundle dyeing (basically just sprinkling dried dye plants on a scarf and simmering them)! 🌿🌿🌿
After four months of transition - buying a new house and selling the duplex my partner and I have lived in for seven years, I’m feeling more grounded, and finished this natural dye palette embroidery project I started this autumn highlighting s
Today is the Art Storm to call on @potus and @kamalaharris to #StopLine3 in Northern Minnesota. 💧 The proposed pipeline will cross the Mississippi and 200 bodies of water and it violates treaties. Biden revoked federal permits for the Keystone XL p