Ever Usual Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus is another herb I really like to have around the house, especially this time of year. It is so good for colds and stuffy noses. I am prone to sinus infections so I like to keep a bottle of eucalyptus essential oil on hand. When my nose is stuffy due to allergies or a cold I will steam my face with a few drops of the oil placed in the steaming water.
A simple salve can be made to which the oil is added and this can be rubbed on the chest to help with congestion. It is like a homemade Vicks vapor rub.
Another thing I like to do with eucalyptus is to take some dried leaves and simmer them on the stove in some water during periods when everyone is sick. It helps to clear the air as well as make it smell good. You would not want to do this in one of your best pots though as eucalyptus is high in resin as well as it’s essential oil. I like to have a pot that is just for simmering herbs in.
One last thing about eucalyptus, it also makes an excellent dye. A little over a week ago I wanted to experiment and see what color I would get if I used dried leaves purchased from my local health food store to make a dye. The color you get from eucalyptus will depend on the type of tree, growing conditions, etc. You can achieve anything from browns to reds. Unfortunately I do not know what type of eucalyptus makes what color of dye.
It is a very long process extracting the dye from the leaves of eucalyptus. I simmered the leaves in the dye pot for 2 hours and then let them sit over night. The next day I simmered them again for another 2 hours. Then I was ready to add my wool yarn. I used equal amounts of dried eucalyptus leaves and yarn. And I did not mordant the yarn this time as it is not necessary to do so with this dye. I simmered the yarn in the dye for 2 hours as well. Once it was done simmering I let it sit in the dye bath overnight. A very long dye process!
My end result is a shade of brown that I can’t quite explain. It has a reddish tint to it. Sort of like a rusty brown. It is nice. Although it would have been neat to see it turn out a little more red than brown.
Filed under: Dyeing, Dyeing with Herbs, Essential Oils, Herbs, Knitting on November 28th, 2007
try cooking the leaves for only 1 hour, then taking them out, and then heating your yarn in the dyebath for an hour. take off heat, allow to cool in bath (overnight)and my bet is you’ll get a much brighter colour.
oh, and you’ll find that eucalyptus dyes are affected (in terms of colour) by the quality of the water used…anything alkaline or salty will make things muddy and brown. use rainwater or adjust your tapwater with a splash of vinegar if in doubt. good luck.
Thanks for the tips. I’ll have to give it another try with what you suggest. Maybe I wiil try using rainwater as we are getting plenty of that this week!