For many years, I was happy and content dyeing with plants found practically under my feet. Sometimes, when studying dusty old dyeing books, I saw intimidating indigo recipes, which required purchase and use of chemicals I couldn't pronounce, and even less understand the effects and consequences of. So I didn't make blues, even though it's a favourite colour of mine. But didn't care that much, really, there's a big world of colours, besides blue.
There's a time for everything. The blues started growing in my own garden, and then I just had to go with the flow. A new world opened up to me through the japanese indigo, and now I've even begun flirting with the 'real thing'. There are - and has been, for generations and generations - ways of fermenting indigo, that are not harmful to the environment. It's like fermenting food, just a tad more smelly
Above is a vat I started approximately 2 weeks ago, and since then it has come alive and developed a copper film on top of the vat, standing on the warm bench of our mass oven. The recipe is from here; and it goes as follows:
· 50 grams of finely ground indigo
· 28 grams finely ground madder root
· 28 grams regular old wheat bran (I made it by milling and sifting some grain of wheat)
· 170 grams washing soda
After mixing the ingredients and placing the bucket (with lid) a warm place, all you have to do is gently stirring once a day.
Some of the initial testings - oh, the possibilities, I'm so looking forward to play with this ...
japanese indigo.
Wow, I love indigo! I've always loved the colour and the name of it too. When you say 'washing soda' do you mean sodium bicarbonate or some other thing?
ReplyDeleteI love the sheep picture--it's like a before and after of white sheep wool, then some dyed indigo wool.
It's Sodium carbonate, also known as Soda Ash. Yes, Indigo is a word from the land of myths and fables :)
ReplyDeleteI have some frozen japanese indigo leaves and liquid left over from last summer.
ReplyDeleteI did not get a good blue from them, but a turquoise greenish colour, and not wanting to throw away the dye, I froze it.
Should I dare defrost and try again - any idea how what to expect?
Hi Joanne, what method did you use? And did you freeze fresh leaves, or soaked?
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DeleteI used the cold water method - so i wasn't expecting indigo blues - and I froze soaked chopped up leaves...what do you think? I also dared to dry and crush fresh leaves. I don't have a lot three or four tablespoons, but how should I treat them for dye?
ReplyDeleteI tried the cold water method too, the colour turned out nice, but washed out after a couple of washes. I don't know if freezing will effect the dye potential, but you could try the method described here: http://riihivilla.blogspot.dk/2010/09/my-japanese-indigo-varitatar.html - or you could try this: http://www.indigrowingblue.com/Dyeing_With_Fresh_Indigo_Leaves.pdf
DeleteOr perhaps a method using frozen leaves from Inda Flint could work for you. Jenny describes here, how she tried it with a handful of woad leaves: http://www.jennydean.co.uk/index.php/dyeing-with-frozen-woad-leaves/
Considering the dried leaves, you haven't much to work with. Maybe you could try a gather some more this year, and extract the indigotin. Extracting requires a fair amount of leaves. Hope this can be of help to you.
:) Mona
Thank you Mona!
DeleteI will check out the links, and am sprouting some new indigo seeds for a new crop this year. I will pay a little more care and attention with the process - last year I was in such a hurry to harvest the leaves, I left them too long standing in the hot sun and lost the best of the cold water extraction...
Thanks again :)
Ooooh... looks like fun.
ReplyDeletewow I love it!
ReplyDeleteHi Mona.
ReplyDeleteI read your blog the fermentation of Indigo.
And I am curious.
Do I have to mix the recipe you showed into the plane water? I can't image only that materials is going on fermentation.