Natural Dye - Cutch

Cutch Extract (Catechu) Natural Dye is a rich, plant-based dye derived from the heartwood of the Acacia catechu tree. Valued for its warm, earthy palette, cutch produces beautiful shades of browns, fawns and olive tones that bring a natural depth and softness to textiles.

With its naturally high tannin content, cutch offers excellent colourfastness and dependable results, making it a popular choice for both professional dyers and studio experimentation. The extract dissolves easily in water, allowing for smooth, even dyeing on wool, silk and other natural fibres.

Cutch can be used on its own to create classic earthy browns, or combined with other natural dyes to develop deeper, more complex shades. Its warm tones add a timeless, organic character to yarn, fibre and fabric.

Benefits

• Reliable natural browns – produces a beautiful range of warm browns, fawns and olive tones
• Excellent colourfastness – colours remain stable after washing and exposure to light
• High natural tannin content – helps improve dye uptake, particularly on plant fibres
• Easy to use extract – dissolves readily for smooth, even dye baths
• Versatile colour base – pairs well with other natural dyes such as madder, indigo or myrobalan
• Sustainable plant-based dye – a traditional botanical colourant valued by fibre artists and textile dyers

Technical

• High-purity natural dye extract from Acacia catechu.
• Produces yellow-brown to deep walnut shades.
• Recommended usage: 20–50% WOF depending on depth required.
• Pre-mordant with Alum at 15% WOF; no extra tannin needed. – Can be combined with iron for deeper browns or olives.
• Excellent fastness on both protein and cellulose fibres.