Colour is a manifestation of energy, it conveys the energy of the sun’s rays, and it has fascinated Man for millennia.

The dyers circle aims to use the ingenious energy of colour to infuse positive change within our industry: we aim to bring together colourists and dyers, as well as historians, designers and all those who work with dyed fabric, and those who specify and commission coloured cloth.

As we try to reboot production during this pandemic, we observe from all corners that the “post-corona-sapiens” is crucially aware of man-made degradation of the natural world. The textile industry is often quoted as being the second largest polluter of Earth’s waterways, with “dyeing and finishing” being the most significant process impacting on climate change[1]

The current environmental crisis, where we face such a mass loss of biodiversity, excessive greenhouse gas emissions in the biosphere and persistent organic pollutant release in our waters; requires us, as an industry creating the beauty of colour, to radically change our ways with urgency. 

We cannot continue to dye as we do now, the sustainability imperative we face imposes change.

Every ancient civilization developed its own dyed textiles. Dyes are symbolic of their era and owner; each different culture around the globe evolved their own usage of available plants and dyestuffs to make colour and dye their clothes. We have practised botanical colouring for over 5000 years, with trade since the 16th century increasing a vast exchange of logwood, madder and indigo across the Atlantic and through Persia to deepen and enhance our palette, with some dyestuffs valued as much as gold. Natural dyers who mastered their art with refinement caught the eyes of kings and were sought after by European courts. Colour was a symbol of power. Yet since the industrial revolution and the invention of mauveine in 1856, petrochemical dyes have ruled the market. Today, dyers are mostly unknown, colour is a very small factor in a fabric buyer’s budget and only [2]1% of textiles are dyed naturally, with only rare indigenous pockets of knowledge remaining and botanical dyeing lying in the realm of conservation, restoration and textile art.

Tomorrow however, botanical dyes could be salvaged from history and brought into a post-petrochemical future. We can produce them now from biodynamic agriculture as well as extract pigment from food waste and other urban by-products. 

Carbon farming dye plants harvests carbon from the atmosphere through photosynthesis and fixes it into the soil; in the case of indigo, a Leguminosae it also fixes nitrogen simultaneously. We have seen many recent demonstrations of growers regenerating the cultivation of dyestuffs, not only organically but in sustainably restorative ways. Increased experiments worldwide have proven there is a case for repositioning natural, botanical dyes within a sustainable textile market. Thanks to many scientific studies[3], we understand the chemistry of natural dyes more than ever before, in order to guarantee colour consistency and fastness. 

It is time for a complete behavioural shift within our industry; by coming together on this hub, we hope you will upload and exchange knowledge, upload recipes, upload colours, expand our palette, get in contact, discuss solutions, discuss mordants, exchange resource, organise workshops and dye…differently. 

This hub is a participative, sharing platform, based on resource shared under the Creative Commons. The circle will evolve as we all add our work to it. It is a hub for colour enthusiasts aimed at those who make and work with colour at many different levels, equally, if you are just curious about botanical methods, please feel welcome to join us and collaborate HERE.

[1] UNEP report 2020

[2] S Saxena and ASM Raja: Natural dyes: Sources, Chemistry, Application and Sustainability issues

[3] Ashish Kumar Samanta & Priti Agarwal: Application of natural dyes on textiles, Indian journal of Fibre and Textile Research

 
We will make dyes that offer more.

— Jackie Andrews-Udall

Colour is a manifestation of energy, it conveys the energy of the sun’s rays, and it has fascinated Man for millennia.

 
Archaeological digs show we have sought to colour fabrics for much longer than we thought, using complex processes transforming roots, bark and leaves into ritualistic tones that have often combined hue with healing. Botanical recipes dominated textile practise until the industrial revolution, then, since Perkins’ invention of mauveine, petrochemicals took over the market. Today, only 1% of textiles are dyed naturally, only rare indigenous pockets of knowledge remain and botanical dyeing lies in the realm of conservation, restoration and textile art. Yet recent increased interest in sustainable textiles has fuelled renewed exploration of natural dyes. Experiments in biodynamic agriculture as well as extraction of pigments from food waste are building the case for a repositioning of natural dyes within a sustainable textile market. It is time for a complete behavioural shift within our industry; this project aims to accelerate this shift by mapping, informing and interconnecting actors within the sector who may not usually collaborate. Aggregating knowledge from both small and large scale players, we seek to crystallise savoir-faire from the past with a vision of the future where fashion allows nature to flourish. The study aims to not only analyse how past methods of botanical dyeing can be modernised and adapted to normed machinery, but make an ethnobotanical inventory of dyestuffs available, that can be harvested or cultivated without displacing arable crops. If we plan a renaissance of botanical dyes, we must do so safely, without harmful mordants, without eroding plant populations in the wild. In return, we will decipher how to regenerate poor soil, use dye cultivation to capture carbon, study biodegradable recipes, use plant waste for building compost or making biomaterials, make recipes for anti-microbial barriers, make medicinal dyes for restoring health.

 
We will make dyes that offer more.

— Jackie Andrews-Udall