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4. BioChromes

This week, we ventured into experimenting with the creation of natural pigments for dyeing different types of fibers. During the global class, we learned the fundamental principles of these pigments, from their history and evolution to the various color palettes.

Main challenges:

  • To generate a natural dye with modifiers on fabric.

  • To experiment with natural elements to produce a pigment or ink.

  • To create experimental prints on a garment.

Research

To speak of natural dyes is to speak of an ancient practice that has been passed down from generation to generation and is considered a sustainable practice today, as its process is more environmentally friendly. Read more about tha netural dyes

Natural Dye

Based on their origin, coloring substances are either organic or inorganic. Organic substances, known as dyes, are obtained from animals or plants, are water-soluble, and are incorporated into fibers through a natural chemical process. Inorganic substances, called pigments, are of mineral origin. Since they are not water-soluble, they are applied indirectly using a binder. In the dyeing process, the color tone is fixed, intensified, or changed using a fixing agent or “mordant.” These mineral or metal salts work through an acidic or alkaline chemical process when added to the dye bath. The color obtained is determined by the delicate interrelationship and handling of the multiple natural elements and chemical reactions involved in the process. Understanding this through science not only allows us to control the results, but also to preserve this tradition.

Important considerations

The use of colors extracted from nature can be an important factor in determining the final color and fastness of the dye, as this can depend on the type of water used, the freshness of the materials, the use or non-use of different mordants, and the type of fibers being used. Similarly, the temperature of the dye and the time the fiber is left to rest in the dye. The best fibers to dye are those that are 100% natural such as cotton, wool, silk, line, etc.

What can we dye with?

  • Flowers
  • Vegetables
  • Fruits
  • Leaves
  • Roots
  • Barks
  • Insects

Mordants

As mentioned above, the use of mordants is necessary for successful dyeing. Upon further investigation, it is important to note that part of this success in dyeing depends on the combination of the fiber with the perfect mordant for it. Likewise, the importance of the mordant is not only reflected in the fixation of the color, but it can also intensify or modify the brightness and tone of the color, improve resistance to washing, and protect the color from UV rays to prevent deterioration. You can read more about Mordants for textiles to get better dyes.

The best perfect match:

  • Silk and wool, due to their protein nature, bond better with acidic mordants such as potassium alum or cream of tartar.

  • Cotton, linen, and hemp, require mordants alkalized with sodium carbonate or calcium hydroxide.

For this exercise we are going to use "Alumbre" wich is an acid, and according with the info, the wool should have a better reaction with the alumbre.

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References & Inspiration

Dyeing with natural extracts has been a technique used for thousands of years in different civilizations around the world, especially in Mexico, my country of origin. There, we can find communities whose entire economy, cultural activity, and daily life are based on these artisanal techniques. Mexico is a country with a great diversity of dyes, especially in places such as Teotitlán del Valle, Oaxaca, and Puebla. Chiapas, where ancestral methods continue to be used with materials such as cochineal, indigo, cempasúchil, purple snail, etc. However, these techniques have been replicated throughout the world, with more and more commercial brands no longer seeing it as just a craft but as a lifestyle, creating bridges where they combine with fashion.

He is a descendant of a long line of weavers in Teotitlán del Valle; He learned the craft at the age of 12, as he is a descendant of a family of artisans who work to promote and preserve the use of dyes obtained from plants and insects, using techniques that date back more than a thousand years of Zapotec tradition in an attempt to revive ancient traditions and due to concerns about the environmental and health risks associated with the use of synthetic dyes.

Art with natural dye


Her sister, Juana Gutiérrez Contreras, is the dyeing master; she combines seven or eight natural elements to produce more than 40 colors, using potassium alum, a mineral found in the mountains surrounding Oaxaca, to fix the dye in the wool.

Juana Gutiérrez Contreras prepares wool with indigo dyes.


It is a brand that uses natural dyeing techniques on silk, linen, wool, and other fibers to create unique garments and accessories. It is characterized by being a brand that bridges the gap between craftsmanship and fashion.

The luxury of natural dye


INSPIRATION

For this practice, we worked as a team. You can check out my teammates' documentation here: Dani, Alberto,Sam and Laura. Each of us gathered the elements we wanted to work with. Among the elements we collected were cochineal, roses, beets, muicle, cempasuchitl flowers, bougainvillea, purple cabbage, and turmeric. We decided to draw some inspiration from our instructors' recipes. In my case, I decided to work with purple cabbage for the natural dye and spirulina for the modifiers. For the pigment, I drew some inspiration from the collection of mexican marigold, which are normally used to decorate altars for the dead in Mexico during the Day of the Dead celebrations.

  • Natural dye inspiration

Images and reference from Pinterest

Tools

Process and workflow

The first step was to cut squares of 10x10 cm and prepare the fabric with baking soda, we used:

  • Wool
  • Cotton Duck

10x10cm squares of Wool and Cotton/reference

After this, we need to remove all the impurities and gumming that fabrics regularly have, we do this with baking soda and let it boil for 1 hour. The relationship is:

    Total weight fabric - 100%
    Baking soda - 2%

Wool preparation

Cotton fabric preparation

Boil for 1 hour

After this, we need to prepare another solution with the mordant to ensure better color fixation. We used Alum and the relation for this solution is:

- Total weigh fabric - 100%
- Mordent - 10%

Solution with mordant for better fixation

Ingredients & Recipes

Natural dye

Spiruline

For this first part, I tried with spiruline pigment to experiment with changing its color using modifiers, this pigment was already in the laboratory, so I just prepared the fabrics and made the solution to dye them, but not before seeing how this dye reacted with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and hydrochloric acid (HCI).

.1 gram between 3 containers

Modifiers: Sodium hydroxid(NaOH)and Hydrochloric acid (HCI)

Not significant difference between swatches

Spirulin dye bath

Final swatches

Prepare this recipe 1 by colleecting the following ingredients

ingredients for MODIFIER 1 Hydrochloric acid (HCI)
  • .1 gram spirulin pigment
  • 12.6 gr wool fabric / 6.8 gr cotton fabric
  • 200 ml Distilled water
  • 20 drops of Hydrochloric acid (HCI)
ingredients for NO MODIFIERS PURE COLOR
  • .1 gram spirulin pigment
  • 12.6 gr wool fabric / 6.8 gr cotton fabric
  • 200 ml Distilled water
ingredients for MODIFIER 2 Sodium hydroxid(NaOH)
  • .1 gram spirulin pigment
  • 12.6 gr wool fabric / 6.8 gr cotton fabric
  • 200 ml Distilled water
  • 25 drops of Sodium hydroxid(NaOH)
SWATCH/Color Fabric composition Ingredients Recipe Results
COLOR 1 MODIFIER 1 Hydrochloric acid (HCI) Cotton duck 1 gram spirulin pigment + 6.8 gr cotton fabric + 200 ml Distilled water + 20 drops of Hydrochloric acid (HCI Put hot distilled water, not boiling in a bowl. Dissolve 1 gram of spirulina pigment. Immerse the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the hot dye bath. Let it sit for 24 hours and once the color is obtained, rinse with cold water. Not so bright color, resulting in a slightly muddy green.Be careful because it is very easy for the color to come off.
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Color 2 NO MODIFIERS PURE COLOR Cotton duck 1 gram spirulin pigment + 6.8 gr cotton fabric + 200 ml Distilled water Put normal temperature distilled water, in a recipent. Dissolve 1 gram of spirulina pigment and mix. Immerse the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the dye bath. Let it sit for 24 hours and once the color is obtained, rinse with cold water. This was more like an experiment to prove the effect and intensity if the fabric dye in a hot dye bath or regular temperature bath. As the result showed, the intensity is very pour, so that might be necessary a second dye bath.
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Color 3 MODIFIER 2 Sodium hydroxid(NaOH) Cotton duck 1 gram spirulin pigment + 6.8 gr cotton fabric + 200 ml Distilled water + 20 drops of Sodium hydroxid(NaOH) Put hot distilled water, not boiling in a bowl. Dissolve 1 gram of spirulina pigment. Immerse the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the hot dye bath. Let it sit for 24 hours and once the color is obtained, rinse with cold water. The color is slightly brighter and greener, but the difference is not noticeable.
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COLOR 4 MODIFIER 1 Hydrochloric acid (HCI) Wool 1 gram spirulin pigment + 12.6 gr of wool fabric + 200 ml Distilled water + 20 drops of Sodium hydroxid(NaOH) Put hot distilled water, not boiling in a bowl. Dissolve 1 gram of spirulina pigment. Immerse the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the hot dye bath. Let it sit for 24 hours and once the color is obtained, rinse with cold water until the extra dye get lost. The color in this type of fabric is less bright, and the color adhesion has a more oxidized appearance.
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Color 5 NO MODIFIERS PURE COLOR Wool 1 gram spirulin pigment + 12.6 gr cotton fabric + 200 ml Distilled water Put hot distilled water, in a recipent. Dissolve 1 gram of spirulina pigment and mix. Immerse the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the dye bath. Let it sit for 36 hours and once the color is obtained, rinse with cold water. As in the first sample with cotton fabric, the color adhesion was not very intense. For wool, we decided to leave it longer, and the fiber absorbed more color, but not as intensely, resulting in a more earthy tone.
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Color 6 MODIFIER 2 Sodium hydroxid(NaOH) Wool 1 gram spirulin pigment + 12.6 gr wool fabric + 200 ml Distilled water + 20 drops of Sodium hydroxid(NaOH) Put hot distilled water, not boiling in a bowl. Dissolve 1 gram of spirulina pigment. Immerse the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the hot dye bath. Let it sit for 24 hours and once the color is obtained, rinse with cold water. The color is slightly brighter and greener, but the difference is not noticeable, it maintains an earthy color,and this fiber retains more pigment granules.

Purple cabbage

To obtain a natural dye, I wanteed to use purple cabbage and modifies such as lemon juice and vinegar

Dyeing agent Ingredients Recipe
Purple cabbage 520 grams of purple cabbage, 1.5 Lt of distilled water Boil pieces of cabbage in water for about 30 minutes to create a violet dye, then strain the liquid and it is ready to dye.

Final swatches

Prepare this recipe 2 by colleecting the following ingredients

ingredients for MODIFIER 1 VINEGAR
  • 200 ml dye purple cabbage
  • 12.6 gr wool fabric / 6.8 gr cotton fabric
  • 200 ml Distilled water
  • 15 drops of vinegar
ingredients for NO MODIFIERS PURE COLOR
  • 200 ml dye purple cabbage
  • 12.6 gr wool fabric / 6.8 gr cotton fabric
ingredients for MODIFIER 2 LEMON JUICE
  • 200 ml dye purple cabbage
  • 12.6 gr wool fabric / 6.8 gr cotton fabric
  • 200 ml Distilled water
  • 10 drops lemon juice
SWATCH/Color Fabric composition Ingredients Recipe Results
COLOR 1 (lilac) MODIFIER 1 Vinegar Cotton duck 6.8 gr cotton fabric + 200 ml Purple cabbage dye bath + 15 drops of vinegar While the dye bath is hot, pour in 15 drops of vinegar. You will automatically see the color change. Place the pre-mordanted and damp fabric (not wet) in the hot dye bath. As the color is easy to pigment, you can leave it to rest for 12 hours, but if you want a more intense color with greater fixation, you can leave it for 24 hours. Once you have obtained the desired color, remove it and rinse it with cold water until it stops releasing color. It results into a soft lilac color
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Color 2 (blue) NO MODIFIERS PURE COLOR Cotton duck 6.8 gr cotton fabric + 200 ml Purple cabbage dye bath While the dye bath is hot, place the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the hot dye bath. As the color is easy to pigment, you can leave it to rest for 12 hours, but if you want a more intense color with greater fixation, you can leave it for 24 hours. Once you have obtained the desired color, remove it and rinse it with cold water until it stops releasing color. It results into a soft bright blue color
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Color 3 (pink) MODIFIER 2 Lemon juice Cotton duck 6.8 gr cotton fabric + 200 ml Purple cabbage dye bath + 10 drops of lemon juice While the dye bath is hot, pour in 10 drops of lemon juice. You will automatically see the color change. Place the pre-mordanted and damp fabric (not wet) in the hot dye bath. As the color is easy to pigment, you can leave it to rest for 12 hours, but if you want a more intense color with greater fixation, you can leave it for 24 hours. Once you have obtained the desired color, remove it and rinse it with cold water until it stops releasing color. The result is a bright pink even though the dye bath looks like red-coral
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COLOR 4 (blue) MODIFIER 1 Vinegar Cotton duck 12.6 gr wool fabric + 200 ml Purple cabbage dye bath + 15 drops of vinegar While the dye bath is hot, pour in 15 drops of vinegar. You will automatically see the color change. Place the pre-mordanted and damp fabric (not wet) in the hot dye bath. For this fabric, the color is easy to pigment, but it takes longer because the fabric is thicker, it is best to leave it to rest for more than 24 hours for better absorption. Once you have obtained the desired color, remove it and rinse it with cold water until it stops releasing color. It results into a blue color
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Color 5 (blue-purple) NO MODIFIERS PURE COLOR wool 12.6 gr wool fabric + 200 ml Purple cabbage dye bath While the dye bath is hot, place the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the hot dye bath. For this fabric, the color is easy to pigment, but it takes longer because the fabric is thicker, it is best to leave it to rest for more than 24 hours for better absorption. Once you have obtained the desired color, remove it and rinse it with cold water until it stops releasing color. Once you have obtained the desired color, remove it and rinse it with cold water until it stops releasing color. It results into a soft bright blue-purple color
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Color 6 (Ligth purple) MODIFIER 2 Lemon juice Wool 12.6 gr wool fabric + 200 ml Purple cabbage dye bath + 10 drops of lemon juice While the dye bath is hot, pour in 10 drops of lemon juice. You will automatically see the color change. Place the pre-mordanted and damp fabric (not wet) in the hot dye bath. For this fabric, the color is easy to pigment, but it takes longer because the fabric is thicker, it is best to leave it to rest for more than 24 hours for better absorption. Once you have obtained the desired color, remove it and rinse it with cold water until it stops releasing color. The resulting color is a kind of light purple but with pink tones.

INK

As an experiment, we also used bougainvillea pigment with flaxseed oil. I understand the logic that a paint in contact with oil will undergo an oxidation reaction, allowing for an ink.

Recipe for ink 3

Dyeing agent Ingredients Recipe
Bugambilia 1gr of bugambilia pigment, 4.1 gr of flaxseed oil Mix all the ingredients until and keep stirring until you create an ink with a fairly thick consistency, then let it repose for 5 minutes. If you notice If you notice that it does not have the right consistency, you can add a little cornstarch to thicken it without losing its properties.

Bugambilia Ink

We tested it on a wooden base and on paper to see how it reacted differently. As you can see, during the drying process, the ink cracked only in some parts and the color changed from pink to a reddish orange.

Final swatches

PIGMENT

To obtain my pigment, I decided to collect all the leftover flowers from the Day of the Dead celebrations that we traditionally hold in Mexico during the month of November. I think it's a good way to use the flowers before they completely dry out and their color is affected by oxidation over time.

Tools
  • Drying oven
  • Perforated baskets
  • Crusher
  • Mortar and sieve

For a more controlled process and to avoid changes in color, I opted to use a laboratory drying oven that would help to achieve more efficient and uniform dehydration.

Dryin oven

Collect flowers and separate petals

Petals dried

After the petals were completely dry, we began to grind them with a mortar and pestle, and to achieve a finer powder we used a grinder.

Mexican marigold 4

Dyeing agent Ingredients Recipe
Mexican marigold 2 gram of purple cabbage, .250 lt of distilled water Put hot distilled water, not boiling in a bowl. Dissolve 1 gram of spirulina pigment. Immerse the pre-mordanted and damp fabric, not wet, in the hot dye bath. Let it sit for 12 hours and once the color is obtained, rinse with cold water.

Dye bath preparation

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Recipes

  1. recipe: SPIRULIN DYE ↩

  2. recipe: PURPLE CABBAGE DYE ↩

  3. recipe: PURPLE CABBAGE DYE ↩

  4. recipe: MEXICAN MARIGOLD ↩