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4. BioChromes

Overview:

For this week, I delved into dyeing, which is something I had not explored before. Typically, I work with pre-colored textiles, so the concept of natural dyeing was new to me. Although I had seen a video once of someone dyeing with onion peels, I never really explored it further.

After the lecture, I became curious about how dyes can be made without chemicals. Initially, I wanted to try growing bacteria to create bacterial dyes, but I soon realized that my location and time constraints made this option difficult. Instead, I started thinking about experimenting with natural dyes and exploring color-changing biochromes.

I had many ideas and wanted to try different things at the same time, which made it challenging to decide on a specific direction. For now, I’ve decided to focus on natural dyes using common ingredients.

Research, References & Inspiration

Links for Inspiration & Research:

get inspired!


  • Image reference

Process and workflow

Preparation of the dye:

Batch 1 (Color Reaction Test)

  • Cabbage: 2 cups (chopped)
  • Water: 4 cups
  • Boiling time: 7 minutes
  • Simmering time: 1 hour
  • Filtering: After simmering, the mixture was filtered.

For this batch, I conducted a color reaction test using the cabbage dye with different to observe the color change based on pH levels.. Here are the results:

  • 20 ml water: Stayed the same after adding the dye, but when I added 2 drops of 30% hydrochloric acid, it turned red.
  • 33 ml water + 3g salt: The solution stayed purple.
  • 20 ml water + 2g sodium bicarbonate: The solution turned green.
  • 20 ml Sprite: The solution turned a light magenta.
  • 20 ml vinegar: The solution turned pink.

Here are some of the images from my experiment:

Batch 2 (Fabric, Yarn, Ink, and Pigment Creation)

  • Cabbage: 1108g
  • Water: 7 cups
  • Boiling time: 13 minutes
  • Simmering time: 3 hours
  • Chilling: Let cool for use next day.

Preparation:

Simmered the dye for 30 minutes and let it cool. Prepared 12 pieces of 11x11 cm cotton and 12 pieces of 11x11 cm linen. Boiled the fabrics in alcohol and water, rinsed them in cold water afterward.

Mordant Treatment: Soaked 8 pieces of cotton and 8 pieces of linen in an alum and water mixture for 30 minutes.

Dyeing Without Mordant: Remaining fabrics (4 cotton, 4 linen) were placed in different dye solutions:

  • Dye + Sprite
  • Dye + Baking soda
  • Dye + Hydrochloric acid
  • Plain dye (no additives)

Fabrics were left in the solutions for a few hours.

The image shows the results for the fabrics without mordant.

Dyeing With Mordant:

Fabrics with mordant were placed in the same dye solutions as above. An additional solution was created: Dye + Orange juice with a few drops of hydrochloric acid. Fabrics were left in the solutions for 3 hours 37 minutes

The image shows the results for the fabrics without mordant before drying.

RESULTS

Two ways of showcasing and comparing results with images below

On the left an image of a sample made by fabrics without mordant. Sprite, BS, HCl, and plain dye gave some color to fabrics. Colors faded after washing, especially the plain dye and BS fabrics. On the right, an image of a sample made by fabrics with mordant. Colors didn't adhere well, even after mordant treatment. HCl and orange juice with HCl gave slightly stronger results, but still faded after washing.


Recycling the dye into pigment and ink

Ingredients & Recipes

Prepare this recipe [^1] by collecting the ingredients necessary, to be found in the list below:

ingredients
  • Concentrated Red Cabbage Dye: 2-3 Cups
  • Alum: 3 grams
  • Baking soda 3 grams
  • Water: a few drops for thinning

Green pigment

pigment from left-over dye bath
  • Reduce the Dye: Simmer 2-3 cups of the red cabbage dye on low heat until the liquid reduces significantly (this could take 1-2 hours).
  • Make the color: mix in 3 grams of baking soda
  • filter the solution until you are left with a thick paste
  • Dry the Pigment: Spread the thick paste onto a non-stick surface and let it dry completely (overnight or up to 24 hours).
  • Grind the Pigment: Once dry, scrape off the solid pigment and grind it into a fine powder using a mortar and pestle.

Purple/Indigo ink

ingredients
  • Red Cabbage Dye: 1 cup of dye from the above recipe
  • Gum Arabic (or Substitute): 2 drops (alternatives in the same quantity: cornstarch paste, honey, agar-agar, or egg white glair)
  • Essential Oil (preservative): 2 drops (clove, wintergreen, or tea tree)
  • Salt: 1 pinch (to prevent mold)
Ink from left-over dye bath
  • Prepare Ink: Take 1 cup of the strained red cabbage dye.
  • Thickener: Add 2 drops of gum arabic (or alternative: use 1 tsp cornstarch paste, or 1 tsp honey, or 1 tsp agar-agar mixture, or 1 tsp glair).
  • Preservation: Add 2 drops of essential oil (clove, wintergreen, or tea tree) to preserve the ink. Add a pinch of salt to help prevent mold growth.
  • Store: Pour the ink into sterilized jars or small containers. The ink is now ready for use.

RESULTS

As expected the results were not that great as purple cabbage dye fades over time, but the dye with Hydrocloric acid yilded the best results, the color managed to stay