Message: hi. thanks for your site! ... I am wanting to make wall hangings. I want fabric dye/paint that is easy to use (preferably no boiling required)... but i would also like to find the most environmentally sound option! Can you help me with any suggestions?? Ta.

There are just a few environmental questions.

Natural dyes are usually used with heavy metal mordants, which can be a problem environmentally, but it's unlikely you'd be using them to paint with, anyway; natural dyeing typically requires at least an hour of boiling in the dyestuff. Among the mordants used, alum is fairly safe, but tin is toxic, and chromium is extremely toxic and bad for the environment. Even copper and iron can be problems.

Fiber reactive dyes bind tightly to fiber, making a non-irritating bond that is ideal for many people with chemical sensitivities, but they require a considerable amount of rinsing. The amount of water used is an issue at an industrial scale, and might be an issue for you if you live where there are water shortages, though the effluent from home use of fiber reactive dyes is fine for septic tanks. Procion MX dye requires no steaming, but the colors are lighter after rinsing out, which can complicate matters when painting by eye. Cibacron F and Drimarene K are very similar to Procion MX, but may require slightly less rinsing.

There are a number of fabric paints which can be used with no steaming. The higher quality fabric paints leave the fabric feeling much softer than lower quality ones do (though not as soft as dye will), and are thus suitable for use in clothing. For mail-order sources for fabric dyes and paints in Australia, scroll down on the list at my "Sources for Dye Supplies" page. Even ordinary artists' acrylics will work well for a hanging, though, in spite of the fact that they feel much too rough for clothing that will be worn, and they are probably the most economical option. They must be diluted with water if you want them to look more like dye in their effect.

Disperse dyes can be used, for example in the form of fabric crayons (not to be confused with the normal wax crayons they closely resemble), to make iron-ons that can be used half a dozen times on one piece of polyester, making possible interesting repetitive effects. These dyes can wear off against the skin during wear, resulting in allergic reactions for a few susceptible individuals, but that, too, is not an issue for wall hangings. They do not work on natural fibers.

The source of the fabric you use may have a greater environmental effect than any effect of your paints. Normally, cotton is grown with the use of large quantities of pesticides. If you can find an environmentally sound source of organically grown cotton, linen, or hemp, using it for your hangings could make a difference. However, you will get brighter, clearer colors if you paint on a bright white surface, so chemical bleaching may be necessary, depending on the effects for which you are striving.

Depending on just how far you want to take this environmentally sound thing, there's a very interesting option of painting with earth oxides, bound to the fiber with soy milk. You have to make your own soy milk, as store-bought won't do. See the instructions at The DyeWorks, if you want to get an idea of what is involved. I think I'd rather skip the soymilk method, since some dye experts such as Karren Brito point out that it is not very washfast under modern laundry conditions. This would not be such a problem for wall hangings, however.