Coffee Dying Fabric

A couple weeks ago I started assesing the fabrics I'll be using in the quilt I'm making my mom for Christmas. This quilt will be made up of different cream colored fabrics and for contrast I chose to use pure white fabric. Some of the the fabrics I had in the cream pile were actually white on white and they didn't contrast at all. So I dyed them with coffee.



My recipe:

Ingredients:
Lots of water
half cup coffee grounds
tablespoon of citric acid (vinegar could also be used)

Directions:
Baste raw edges of cotton fabric
Bring mixture to a boil
Add fabric
Let boil about 10 minutes
Let cool a bit
Dump into a strainer
Rinse
Wring out
Iron to heat set the stain
Wash and dry fabric



The amount of coffee and the darkness of the roast are probably the factors that would affect the intensity of the stain.

I got a slight antiqued effect. It's not dramatic, but it has a natural look to it I like very much and, most importantly, it's no longer white.

Now it's time to cut!