Genna Shrosbree is a South African designer working with natural dyes sustainably sourced from seasonally available ‘fallen matter’. Think avocado pips and pecan nut shells (resulting in shades of dusty pink) dried Fynbos flowers (for earthy greens and yellows) and blue gum bark (for subtle grey tones). Under her Cape Town- based brand Beagle + Basset, Genna creates a line of naturally dyed linens, clothing and accessories, including the deliciously soft, wide-brimmed sun hats we have available through Karu.

Below, Genna answers a few questions on her experiments with natural color and craft.

What inspires your use of color? It's not so much about what inspires my color, but more about what is being provided by nature itself. I only extract pigment from fallen matter, so the colors I get are based on the available plants that are being discarded at the time, seasonally.

How do you discover new colors? I initially started experimenting with fynbos as it is indigenous to the Western Cape, and there was very little research available. I first collected blue gum bark which is rich in tannins and resulted in lovely tea browns and dove greys. My use of pecan nut shells and shucks came to me via Bob and Sarah at Roux Pecans in the Eastern Cape, who contacted me one day to find out whether I'd ever used pecan shells to dye with. I was overjoyed to receive my first box of shells, and see the dusty pinks emerge [in the dye bath].