Tea for dye

Recently I was making a costume for son using a linen blend fabric from the stash.I wasn't sure if it was a blend but anyway I had a lot of this fabric which I choose to use.A white tunic and pant is a little boring.In the past I did use orange pekoe tea as a dye .I was curious to see if I could get something interesting using other kind of tea.I know tea is not a permanent dye since no mordant and fixative is use but sometimes the fabric did not came back to his original color.I try this little experience which I thought I could share.

What I use
Chamomille ( ordinary type not the dyer kind)
White tea
White tea with blueberry and centaury leaf
Green tea
Kukicha tea (another kind of green)
Matcha ( green tea in powder)
Rooibos ( red )
Black tea with roses
Orange pekoe
Instant coffee
Roast chicory

Pictures of each type of tea and fabric in the bath .It required many bowls and a bit of space.

Here is how I did
I choose 11 teas or herbal tea I wish to try.I put 2 tablespoons of tea for those who are dark and up to 4 tablespoons for pale tea in 11 differents bowls.I use + - 1 cup and half of boiling water for each of them.In each I add a piece of the fabric I wish to use for the costume of my son , the goal being to find two matching colors .The fabric remain 45 min in each bath .After I remove the excess of water and let them dry.

I know some of you will ask why did I try instant coffee and some tea which will probably not work.Curiosity first and next because I didn't know anyone who ever try something like this.By trying something new we learn and I did learn a lot from this.The experience is not 100% perfect but it's find for me.

The result
Chamomille did not change a lot.Just enough to say it's not pure white anymore.Both white tea and green tea did not gave something interesting.The one with blueberry gave something with a touch of purple or pink but really pale.Matcha looks like a dirty green which is not great.Rooibos gave a pale orange and the same thing for black tea with roses.Orange pekoe and instant coffee gave a darker orange.Roast chicory gave a medium brown when it dry.

Picture of the result.

Top :original fabric .First line left to right :chamomille ,white tea ,white tea with blueberry,green tea and kukicha.
Second line left to right:matcha, rooibos , black tea with roses,orange pekoe,instant coffee and roast chicory.

What did I choose to use
For the costume of my son I use a mix of instant coffee and roast chicory for the pant.The first time the color wasn't uniform, it was pale near very seams.I put it under running water .I get something more pale but more uniform this time.

For the tunic , I finally try to use blue dylon dye .I choose a cold dye and use 3 capsules of it.Like I said before , the fabric was blend which I know wasn't the best to make serious test.Anyway , I did get a pale and soft blue as a result.I would prefer a darker tone of blue but I'm ok with this one and both color are ok together.

Picture of the result for the costume .On the top the blue tunic , left the pant and at right the original fabric.

Darker tea gave a more interesting result.It was nice to try this and yes I could do it again.Who ever said dye have to be permanent.Next time i'm going to try with differents fabrics and stains.