4. BioChromes

Research

I am heading into Biochromes week feeling both excited and a bit unsure, Getting hands-on with living colors will be a fantastic learning opportunity. Embrace the lab coat life, and who knows—you might discover something amazing!

Though my experience with dyeing is limited to some ikat warp dyes with synthetic colors, I’m deeply intrigued by the soft, layered hues that natural dyes can bring to my weaving practice. There’s a beauty in the subtle gradations and imperfections, and I find myself drawn to those mottled, textured surfaces that capture the raw essence of color in its truest form.

yarn natural dyeing

Natural dyeing is a slow and almost magical process. Watching dyes extracted from natural material transform an undyed skein of yarn never seems to lose its fascination for me. Granted, the color is a bit different each time and never completely predictable. But this is exactly what I like about using botanical dyes.

Humans have been using natural dyes for a long time and it is possible to create the whole color spectrum with them. Archaeological finds indicate that natural dyes have been used to dye textiles for at least 6.000 years

text here is the procedures used to make yarn natural dyeing

Colors Of Nature: Connecting Science and Arts

The article, Colors of Nature: Connecting Science and Arts Education to Promote STEM-Related Identity Work in Middle School Girls, explores an educational program that combines science and art to engage middle school girls in STEM. It discusses how integrating artistic methods into science projects—such as dyeing with natural pigments and experimenting with biochromes—can promote curiosity and build confidence in STEM skills. The program aims to inspire future STEM interests by providing hands-on experiences that connect scientific concepts to everyday materials and creativity text

Day 1, Learning and prepping fabric

On our first day, we conducted research on biochromes and natural dyeing, and prepared some fabric for use. text

Materials

1. Yarns(2)
2. Red onion ( 1kg)
3. water ( 2L)
4. Source pan
5. Spoon

6. lemons(3)

7. knife

Procedures

1. Boil water, then add skin onions
2. Boiled the mixture for of skin onion and water about 30min
3. Threw yarns in a pot with water
4. Boil mixture of yarns and onion skin about 1hr
5. Rinsed well and hang dried

preparation of skin onion

The picture shows the onion skins I’ll be using.

Day 2 preparation and conducting an experiment

These onion skins will be boiled for 30 minutes to extract their colors

Onion skins contain various beneficial compounds, including antioxidants. These compounds have been associated with potential health benefits, such as reducing oxidative stress and inflammation and supporting immune function, that's why we boil onion skin before using it.

This picture shows the boiled onion skins, ready to be used for dyeing.

I chose these yarns because the white color, being the lightest and achromatic (without hue), provides a neutral base, while the silver color, with its sleek, metallic shine, adds a solid, visually striking contrast associated with shades of gray.

# Result after Experiment

this picture shows the color of white yarn after experiment

this picture shows the color of silver yarn after experiment

## Advantages and Disadvantages of yarn natural dyeing

Advantages are their friendliness with human skin and health as stimulants in cure of some deceases and protection over microorganisms.

Disadvantages The colour pay-off may also not be right for all projects .

Conclusion

The use of natural dyes in the colouring of textile materials is gaining interest as a result of the stringent environmental regulations in textiles and apparel enforced by nations concerned with nature and health protection. People are being forced to choose natural dyes due to the toxicity and allergic reactions of synthetic dyes. Natural dyes are an environmentally friendly source of colouring agents. In addition to textiles, it is used to colour meals, medicines, and other goods. Although natural dyes are safe for the environment, skin-friendly, and eye-pleasing, they have very poor bonding with textile fibre materials and must be fixed on textile fibres using metallic colourants, some of which are not environmentally friendly. In order to create textiles that are entirely eco-friendly, more research is required on the use of natural dyes on various natural fibres.

As a result of dyeing, lighter colors were obtained in cotton than in wool

# References

1. Chavan RB. Revival of Natural Dyes, A Word of Caution to Environmentalists, Convention proceedings- Eco Friendly Textile Procession (Nov), Department of Textile Technology, IIT, Delhi, 1995, 96-97.
2. Gulrajani ML, Ed. Mordants, Natural Dyes and Their Application to Textiles, Department Of Textile Technology, IIT, Delhi, 1992.
3. Gulrajani ML, Gupta D. Innovation in Natural Dyes. Indian Journal of Fibre & Textile Research. 2001; 80:87.
4. Onal A et al. Extraction of Dye Stuff from Onion Skin and its Application in the Dyeing of Wool, Feathered 4. Mirani CH. Test Methods for Colour Measurements. Asian Journal of Chemistry. 2006; 8(4):19-25.