Jar with orange sticker labeled "Annatto: Bixa Orellana"

Arrangement of yarn skeins and fiber swatches dyed orange and red with annatto extract, together with a small wooden container of annatto powder.

Fiber swatch showing bright orange wool yarn.

Fiber swatch showing pale red handloom cotton.

Annatto Extract

from $12.99

Shepherd Textiles Annatto Extract Natural Dye is made from the small red seeds of the annatto tree, bixa orellana. The seeds contain a potent pigment called bixin that has been used as dye for many centuries. Annatto can be applied to textiles to get brilliant shades of orange, although sadly the oranges it produces are fugitive: they fade on exposure to sunlight. Because of this, historically annatto was used to “top off” other dyes by adding an extra pop of color at the end of the dyeing process. When the annatto faded, the underlying color would still remain. Our concentrated Annatto Extract is more lightfast than raw annatto seeds, but we still recommend using Annatto Extract on goods that will be stored in a drawer or closet when not in use. It is also a good choice for items that can easily be re-dyed if the initial dye job fades.

Note that the bixin in Annatto Extract is much more soluble in an alkaline solution than a neutral one - for best results, raise the pH of the dye bath to pH 9 using soda ash. Use at 10-20% weight-of-fabric (WOF) for a bright orange on wool and silk mordanted with alum, or a very pleasant orange-red on cotton that has been properly tanned and mordanted with alum.

Product of India. Certified by the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) for use on textiles that will be labeled “organic.”

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