Indigo Dye Workshop

Indigo is an old traditional plant-based dye.  Used by Japanese farmers as long as there has been cloth.  It is a working-class color and it also is the color of the original 'blue jeans'.  After a 'break' of 5 years, I"m finding myself drawn back to cloth again.  Thank you Darius for allowing me to use your indigo vat! 

Recently the designer Eileen Fisher has had exquisite shibori silk scarves in her collections.  I love the free form style of dip-dying (as seen below).
Though my garments are far from Eileen Fisher as you can get, I know I will enjoy wearing the indigo color and watching it fade over the years.  Other natural dyes may be more vibrant but somehow, this old blue is rather comforting and remains always, on-trend.

If you use indigo to dye your garments, remember that it is a plant and the dye is prone to fading--like the original 'blue jeans'.  That's part of the beauty, I think.  And also remember to rinse well and perhaps even wash with a little laudry detergent to get the smell out. 

I've happily worn there garments and always get compliments on them.  The asa panels made very nice sheer noren.  

To (un)Dye For

One day, I was mulling over why I had bought and kept a blouse and pant that I hardly ever wore.  It seemed wasteful to just throw them in the donation bin.  I must have loved the linen fabric (blouse) and Tencel (pant).  The color was yukky!  So, I decided to remove the color and change these garments into something I would hopefully like and wear this summer.

Rit Dye has a product called Color Remover.  This and plain old liquid bleach have become my go-to's to re-purpose clothing.  I wish I had a photo of the "before" colors, so will attempt to duplicate with a swatch:

This is the ugly manila color I started with...which has become my new white summer pant. 

Another linen blouse I wonder why I bought is a dark charcoal blue/grey.  Wore it once and it hung in the back of my closet, in the dark, unseen for a year.  (even this photo makes it look nicer than it was)

Dragged it out this summer intending to wear but it's such a dreary color I left in with the "donation" stuff.

The mottainai syndrome (waste not, want not) hit me and I flashed on Rit Color Remover and this is the result.  Yes, it took a while and several bleachings to remove most of the color down to a very light pink (?).  Then dumped it into a pot of Golden Yellow, let it soak all day, and here is the sunny yellow result! 

Perfect for summer!  Also, cut the sleeve and collar edges off to create a frayed, raw edge look.  I think it goes well with the rumpled linen.

Tenugui…not just a piece of cotton cloth

The history of tenugui dates back to the Heian (794 to 1185) period. It was originally undyed linen used as a head covering for rituals.  However, at the beginning of the Edo (1603 to 1868) period, bleached cotton tenugui gradually began taking the place of linen. 

Today, tenugui, a rectangular cotton hand towel, are sometimes distributed by shops as gifts for their openings or other occasions.  It can be used for anything – a washcloth, headband, souvenir or decoration.  They are found all over Japan in shops that specialize in the cotton hand towel or in department stores that sell them as souvenirs. 

My thoughts on the tenugui are that they are “too pretty to use” so I use it as “art” to decorate my home.  The collection consists of artwork for the season - New Year’s, Boy’s Day; food themes – sushi, fish, rice grains; flowers – cherry blossoms, lotus; hobbies - sake, baseball and many other delightful designs to display during the year.  And on top of all this, it’s so easy to store – in a few folds it takes very little space in a box.

You can find your own tenugui design and create a work of art to enjoy!

By: guest blogger Susan, my friend and fellow explorer.