Anthemis tinctoria
Dyer’s Chamomile (also known as Golden Marguerite) is one of the most adorable little button flowers. It’s so cheerful in both the farm field and in the dye pot where it dyes a warm buttery yellow that can’t help but bring a smile. Dyer’s Chamomile often sends up a few new flowers in the fall, adding a splash of yellow to the muted browns of the November garden and continuing to look cheerfully skyward under the first dusting of snow. Adding a touch of iron to your dye pot can turn its warm golden dye to a handsome yellow ochre and range of olive greens.
Key Dye Colours: Warm yellow, ochre, olive
Dye Process: Colour is extracted by bringing to a gentle simmer until the water turns a rich yellow.
Weight of Fibre (WOF): Use at 30% for a rich medium shade. For a darker colour, use more; for a lighter colour, use less. A small bag will dye ~100g of fibre and a large bag will dye ~330kg of fibre. A typical wool skein is 100g.
Key Modifiers: Iron produces a yellow ochre or olive. Overdyeing with madder can produce a lovely tangerine orange.
Washfastness: Very Good.
Lightfastness: Very Good.
Overall Colourfastness: Very Good.
Dyer’s Chamomile natural dye colour swatches 
Dyer’s Chamomile natural plant dye in a bowl 
Dyer’s Chamomile natural plant dye material and packaged dye
Natural colour grown with care
This natural plant dye was grown with care on our small farm in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley. All of our dye plant material is dried on site immediately after harvest to preserve quality and maximum vibrancy of colour.
Natural dyes can only be used on natural fibres (cotton, linen, wool, bamboo, hemp, silk). For best results, natural fibres should be pre-prepared using a mordant or tannin before dyeing. Natural dyes and mordants are available in our online store.
Natural dyes create unique living colours that will evolve and wear over time as they are washed, worn, and loved creating colours and garments that are alive, telling the story of their use. While they are not as consistently repeatable or as durable as many synthetic dyes, they are far more environmentally friendly and, in our opinion, absolutely unmatched in magic and beauty. If you are new to natural dyes, we have a free guide to getting started with natural dyes.
Dyer’s Chamomile growing in the farm field 
Dyer’s Chamomile flower under the first snow 
Dyer’s Chamomile plants under the first snow
