For this natural dye project I chose avocado as my plant because I thought it would create a rich deep green that would maybe turn blue or purple with the mordents. However, the avocado had very little impact on the wool and cotton alone and only one mordent (which was Iron) had a true impact, turning the yellow-green base into a gray dull green color. The cotton did not take the dye in as well as the wool, although I have to say both my wool and cotton looked pretty faint with the avocado dye resulting in a muted yellow-green color. During this process, I used water which interacted with different mordants, spoons, wool with little remaining soap and or oils, cotton with ink on it, and of course air particles. I would be disgusted to think about drinking this water again, but knowing the NYC water cleansing I can be calm knowing that it will be ready to use again in 3 months time. First, it will travel down the drain and through sewage pipes to a wastewater facility, for example, it could go to Newtown Creek wastewater treatment plant where it will undergo a process of being eaten away at by bacteria, turned into a sludge-like consistency, and then eaten away by more bacteria. Wastewater treatment plants are designed to speed up the natural breaking down process in a large and controlled environment.
