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BioChromes

Understanding biochromes

Biochromes are natural pigments found in living organisms that give them color. These pigments are chemical compounds that selectively absorb and reflect light, creating the colors we see.

These can be categorized into:

Non-nitrogenous pigments

Family Colors Source examples
Carotenoids yellow, orange, red carrot, tomato, annatto, saffron, paprika, marigold
Quinones
Benzoquinones yellow-orange primrose, secretions of some beetles
Naphthoquinones brown, red, purple henna, walnut hull, alkanet, Lithospermum
Anthraquinones red, pink, orange madder, rhubarb, cochineal, senna
Polycyclic red, purple hypericin, crinoid pigments
Flavonoids yellow, red, blue, purple red cabbage, hibiscus, purple corn, butterfly pea, onion skin, weld, safflower, logwood

Nitrogenous pigments

Family Colors Source examples
Porphyrins green, red spinach, nettle, parsley, matcha (chlorophyll); blood (heme)
Bilins blue, red-pink, green, yellow spirulina (phycocyanin), red algae (phycoerythrin), biliverdin, bilirubin
Melanins black, brown, sepia squid/cuttlefish ink, chaga, dark hair and feathers

History

In Mexico natural dyes have been understood and applied since prehispanic times, they were used to color textiles like clothes and rugs as well as wood. Some of the most used were cochineal, a red dye obtained from an insect that lives on nopal, añil, a blue dye extracted from the jiquilite plant and the purple dye of the sea snail plicopurpura pansa. These processes are still used today, although interest in them is less due to the arrival and accesibility of synthetic dyes. Today they are preserved by artisan communities, open to teach people who have sustainable interests.

4. Process and workflow

For this practice we used the laboratory at Ibero Puebla, guided by Majo.
Materials
  • Glass beakers
  • Watch glass
  • Laboratory spoons
  • pH indicator strips
  • Digital stirrer
  • Analytical balance
  • Precision thermometer
Ingredients
  • Sodium hydroxide
  • Hydrochloric acid
  • Potassium aluminum sulfate
  • Distilled water
  • Hibiscus

Fabric

We used animal fabric: wool and vegetal: muslin.

  • Cut in 10cm x 10cm squares
  • Wash with water
  • Boil at 60°C
  • Boil with mordant at 60°C for 1 hour

Mordant

500 ml water
50 g Potassium aluminum sulfate

For the pigments

Hibiscus

-Weight (50g) -Rinse with water -Boil (80°C) 50g 500ml water -Let it cool

Modifiers

acid - hydrochloric acid base - sodium hydroxide

Dyeing the fabric

Soak for 10 min. in the pigment Rinse with water Let it dry

Results

...

Dyeing my hair

After doing the experimentation at the lab I started to be curious about the applications of these and how possible it was to use it as hair dye.

References

Recipe

Mordant 4 g alum 400 ml water 30°C

Dye 14 g hibiscus 140 ml water

Tests

Before trying in my hair I tried on my pets (with the hair they dropped after being groomed) I first soaked them in mordant for 20 min.

Left it in dye for 3 days

My hair

I washed my hair without conditioner While it was still humid I started applying the mordant, let it act for 20 min. Put the dye on and left it for 8 hours.

6. Reflection

7. Recipe files & References

  1. Recipe: download my recipe booklet here ↩

  2. Recipe: Dye recipe pdf ↩

  3. Reference: Author; Title; Source; year ↩