Plant Dyes

Susanna Cellucci

Susanna Cellucci

Updated Oct 19, 2026

This page feature all the best organic brands on the market  that organic products made with plant dyes, also called plant-based dyes, medicinal dyes, or herbal dyes! Which are the best, the safest and the most natural dyes available.

Conventional Dyes

Avoid conventional dyes which are  synthetic dyes derived from petroleum, synthetic dyes release toxins, intoxicate the consumer and the workers who to make them, and pollute the environment. Wearing these cumulative chemicals creates impact on the human body and planet!

The textile industry nowadays has a petrochemical dependence. 

 

  • ❌ Azo dyes: Azo dyes are toxic and synthetic. They are the most common synthetic colorants used in the world! Used in 60-70% of textiles. Azo are synthetic dyes contain harmful or toxic compounds and can release harmful aromatic amines, and they are health and environmental hazards! For the consumers, workers, and environment. 
  • ❌ Heavy metal-based dyes: chromium, copper, lead, mercury
  • ❌ Formaldehyde-based resins and treatments: used in fabric treatments are also toxic, releasing formaldehyde
  • ❌ Disperse dyes: frequently used on synthetic fabrics such as polyester, can cause allergic reactions and skin sensitization, making them another concern for wearer safety. The toxicity of these dyes impacts not only consumers through direct skin contact and inhalation but also factory workers and ecosystems due to water pollution from dye wastewater discharge.

Greenwashing Dyes

❌ Avoid Greenwashing brands that pretend to be natural and green when they are not. They will try to convince you to buy their product using their misleading marketing tricks. They will claim to be non-toxic, better and more sustainable without proving or without displaying certifications. 

We can either wait for the institutions to act to protect us, or we can take action to change the system by not feeding the wallets of these toxic and extremely wealthy companies. We can start now to protect our health and the health of the planet 🌎.

GOTS Certified Organic Dyes 

GOTS Certified Organic and ‘eco-friendly’ textiles that offer organic fabrics and GOTS-approved dyes are much better than the conventional ones since they are third-party tested to be lower impact compared to the petrochemical ones.

 

But there is also an even better and MORE natural way to dye textiles, and it is with the amazing medicinal plant dyes. Only a few brands are able to take the extra steps and effort and source their garment with this beautiful almost lost, herbal dye technique. As before was the standard, the petrochemical industry replaced and suppressed to impose their toxic method made with cheap and polluting materials and techniques.

Natural Dyes

These are the best and what dyes used to be before switching to the toxic and synthetic process. Natural dyes are obtained directly from naturally occurring and replenishable plants, minerals, or resins. Anything else is synthetically derived, which means polluting and still petroleum derived.

Also their process in natural: these natural dyes

are bonded to the fabric using completely non-toxic binding processes and it is 100% biodegrade in the the local ecosystem

The color variation and color intensity are achieved by the variation of the immersions the garment  in the dye bath. Which is also safer for the workers! Indigo garments can be dipped up to 12 times in the dye bath.

Any sediment left from the dye is composted and applied around the base of other plants, with remaining water used for the irrigation of coconuts, cashews and bananas.

Natural dye process is performed entirely by hand, using materials and methods that are native to Southern India or other part of the world! 

​Plant Based Dyes

They are all-natural, safer dyes that respects us, our skin, the farmers, workers, and the planet 🌎

  • 🌿Plants dyes known for their healing properties. Indigo, madder root, and pomegranate don’t just give our fabrics rich, vibrant tones—they have natural skin-soothing qualities, too. Plants such as Indigo, Madder, and Nutgalls are known to offer a wide range of health benefits, making them potent allies in the treatment of allergies, pain, and wounds.
  • 🌿History: Plant dyes was the standard before the synthetic world took over the manufactory and products. Samurai warriors wore indigo-dyed blue shirts under their armor. Their indigo-dyed shirts tended to make their wounds tended to heal faster when pierced through their indigo-dyed shirts. In other words, the indigo-dyed fabric helped to keep their wounds from festering. 
  • 🌿Indigo: The ancient Egyptians and Mesopotamians used indigo to dye cloth as early as 4000 BCE, and it was also used by ancient cultures in China, India and Japan, and across the African subcontinent and the Americas. Indigo has a long history of use in traditional medicine (known as Ban Lan Gen in TCM) and has been used to treat a variety of ailments, including wound healing. Some natural indigo dye used comes from the Indigofera Tinctoria shrub, cultivated in Tamil Nadu, India. In this region, indigo requires no additional water sources, as the plant relies solely on rainwater and is naturally drought-resistant. Belonging to the legume family, it requires no fertilizer, provides high yields, and helps reduce soil erosion. Indigo garments can be dipped up to 12 times in the dye bath.

 

  • ✅ Plant Dyes
  • ✅ Botanical Dyes
  • ✅ Herbal Dyes
  • ✅ Medicinal Dyes
  • ✅ Mineral Dyes
  • ✅ Ayurveda Dyes
  • ✅ Chemical-free dyes
  • ✅ Low-impact dyes
  • ✅ Azo-free dyes
  • ✅ Healing Dyes 
  • ✅ 100% Biodegradable
  • ✅ Non-toxic
  • ✅ Beautifully unique

 

While some keep intoxicating us and polluting the world, it is up to us not to feed this unsustainable system. How? Here is what you can do: Take action now with our wallets to change the system and reward responsible and sustainable brands. Choose organic and natural fiber such as cotton, but not just any cotton, GOTS Certified Organic Cotton and made with plant based dyes!

 

  • ✅ 100% GOTS Certified Organic Cotton
  • ✅ Plant Dyes: the safest dye process on earth!
  • ✅ Ayurveda Therapeutic Plant Dyed technique

Ayurvedic Medicinal Plant Dyes

Oko Living guarantees your best detoxing yoga practice while preserving the environment:

🌿Oko Living Yoga is the best and my number one Organic Yoga brand recommendation because of the difference in their herbal dyes compared to other brands. Oko Living Yoga Mats and straps are made with GOTS Certified Organic Cotton and are even better with rare herbal dyes, making them the most eco-friendly and sustainable option on the market! While organic yoga organic products are more common, the combination with more responsible and safer dyes using herbal techniques and practices makes Oko Living the best in the yoga industry in sustainability and natural wellness. Oko Living special Indian dyers use a unique technique that preserves an ancient and disappearing knowledge of Ayurvastra. Ayurvatra is a process of naturally dyeing textiles that preserves the medicinal benefits of plants. They do this by only using pure, natural ingredients in every step (even when bleaching the cotton), a mixture of medicinal plants (vs. just one plant for color). And salt is the main mordant vs heavy metals. 

🌿They use amazing 20 Skin Soothing & Relaxing Herbs (like turmeric, Neem, and Holy Basil). This process is not only better for you, therapeutic, and safest on the market, but it is also safer for the environment!

Aizome technology

AIZOME ULTRA™ technology uses ultrasound to infuse our textiles with the plant’s color pigments and properties. High-frequency waves press the dye into every cavity of the fiber. 

The Best Organic Plant Dye Brands

Here you will find the Best Organic brands with Plant-Dyes, Botanical dyes, Herbal dyes, Mineral-dyes, Ayurveda-dyes, Medicinal-dyes, Chemical-free dyes, no-toxic dyes, and low-impact dyes.

 

​Let’s support brands that choose this path! I am determined to support only companies that care about us and the planet! Here you can find my favorite GOTS Certified Organic Brands that use Plant Dyes:

 

  • 🌿 Aizome    10% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL. Regenerative Organic Cotton with natural Dyes
  • 🌿 Naturepedic 15% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL
  • 🌿 Oko Living   $10 off link
  • 🌿 AYA  10% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL
  • 🌿 Bears for Humanity ​​ 10% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL
  • 🌿 Net Positive  15% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL. Made with GOTS & Biodynamic Cotton & Plant Dyes 
  • 🌿 Harvest & Mill 
  • 🌿 Q for Quinn  

 

Shop with my links to support my research!💖

regenerative sheets underwear men wear baby wear wear
Aizome logo

10% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL

AYA logo

10% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL

Oko Living Certified Organic Cotton Yoga Mat

$10 off link

Q For Quinn Logo
Bears For Humanity GOTS Certified Organic Stuffed Animals

10% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL

Naturepedic organic mattress promo code, sale, promotion

15% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL

Harvest & Mill Organic Cotton Clothing logo
Net Positive Logo

15% off code: PRETTYORGANICGIRL