Historical Natural Dyeing on Wool Felt

Three-Day Workshop at HollandFelt, Delft

November 9, 10 & 11, 2026

Join me in Delft for three beautiful days of historical natural dyeing on wool felt, hosted by HollandFelt in their new, wonderfully equipped craft space.

Over the course of this workshop, you will create a rich rainbow of approximately 20 shades on A4-sized wool felt, using classical natural dyes. We are working from the eighteenth-century recipes of the French master dyer Antoine Janot. 

We will work with the traditional dye materials of weld, madder, cochineal, and indigo, building a clear understanding of how historical colors were created and how they can be translated into reliable modern practice. You will learn how to mordant wool felt, calculate recipes, prepare dye baths, control shade strength, adjust color through post-mordanting, create overdyes, and set up an indigo vat.

This is a hands-on workshop for people who want to understand natural dyeing from the inside out. We will not simply “make pretty colors,” (although we absolutely will do that too). We will work directly at the dye pots, testing how colors change in real time. You will see what mordants do, how the strength of a dye bath changes the shade, how over-dyeing opens up a whole new range of colors, and how old recipes can still be used in a modern studio without treating them like museum pieces.

By the end of the three days, you will go home with approximately 20 A4-sized pieces of naturally dyed wool felt, a practical understanding of classical natural dye systems, and usually a set of new friends. 

The Location

The workshop takes place at HollandFelt in Delft, the Netherlands, in their new and beautifully equipped craft space. HollandFelt’s deep knowledge of 100% wool felt makes this collaboration especially exciting: they bring the material expertise, the space and the dye pots, and I bring the historical recipes, experience and myself. 

Wool felt is a wonderful surface for natural dyeing. It is strong, soft, sculptural, and versatile, used for interiors, accessories, design, craft, teaching samples, and art textiles. It also takes color beautifully, showing subtle differences in shade very clearly.

And because HollandFelt has an unusually glorious amount of copper pots available, this will be a very hands-on workshop. There will be plenty of actual dye work to do, and yes, plenty of stirring.

The historical city of Delft itself is a wonderful place to visit: historic canals, old streets, cafés, museums, Delft Blue ceramics, Vermeer history, and that very Dutch combination of beauty, calm, and excellent coffee. If you are traveling in for the workshop, it is well worth giving yourself extra time to enjoy the city before or after class.

What We Will Cover

During the workshop you will learn:

• How to mordant wool felt for natural dyeing

• How to calculate dye and mordant percentages

• How to prepare and manage natural dye baths

• How to create lighter and deeper shades from the same dye

• How post-mordanting changes color

• How to use overdyeing to create more complex shades

• How to set up and use an indigo vat

• How to translate historical dye recipes into practical modern studio work

Practical Details

Dates: November 9, 10 & 11, 2026
Time: 9:30–14:30/15:00 each day
Location: HollandFelt, Delft, the Netherlands
Group size: Limited places available
Price: $845 USD / €725 all inclusive

Want to pay in Euro with a bank transfer? Contact me at suzannedekel@gmail.com and I will send you the details.

The price includes all materials: wool felt, mordants, dyes, indigo vat materials, coffee, tea, and a light lunch each day.

You do not need to bring dye materials. Just bring yourself, a notebook if you like taking notes, and clothes that can survive a splash of dye. Closed shoes please!

What You Will Take Home

You will leave with approximately 20 A4-sized pieces of wool felt dyed in authentic natural colors, based on eighteenth-century dye recipes, plus the knowledge to continue experimenting at home or in your own studio.

This is a workshop for dyers, felters, textile lovers, historical color nerds, and anyone who wants to spend three days surrounded by wool, color, craft, and good company.