This was an apricot-coloured raw silk suit upcycled with eco-dye from purple carrots to become what is now called Urchin Wear.

Eco-dye is an easy and affordable way to refresh dull garments. Animal fibres such as silk and wool absorb colour more readily than plant fibres such as cotton and linen.

Purple carrots date back thousands of years according to the World Carrot Museum and are loaded with beneficial antioxidants and nutrients when consumed as food. 

I bought a bunch of purple carrots, sliced three up and placed on the garment before bundling it all up with string. I lit the barbeque in our backyard, put the other four carrots from the bunch in a pot of water (to which I added teaspoons of bicarb soda and Cream of Tartar) and boiled for 30 minutes before dropping in the bundle and leaving to soak in the dye water overnight. I rinsed the eco-dyed garments in fresh water with rock salt then again in clear water.