Kamala Fruit Natural Dye

Shepherd Textiles Kamala Fruit Natural Dye is made from the fruit of mallotus philippensis, a tropical tree native to Southeast Asia. The tree's fruits are covered by a bright red husk that contains a potent dye called rottlerin. Kamala is renowned for the bright orange and flame colors it gives on wool and silk, although it tends to give pale colors on plant fibers like cotton. Kamala is a potent dye and gives strong colors with just 25% weight-of-fabric. However, the rottlerin in kamala fruits is mostly insoluble at neutral PH; the dyebath will need to be adjusted to PH10 with soda ash (washing soda) to extract the color and apply it to fibers. Our kamala is the finest grade of thoroughly ground red powder, imported direct from the source in India.

Before using, please read our Guide to Dyeing With Kamala for color recipes, background, and important safety information.