Every Sunday for Sunday Visit, Botanical Colors sits down for an interview with a luminary in the natural dye, textile and art world. Grab a cup of tea and settle in to learning about someone you never knew! Catch up on all our Sunday Visits here. This week we sit down with Indigo Doula and aficionado, Brittany Boles of Indigo Fest.
Tell us the origins of Indigo fest. How did you begin your journey into the world of natural dyes?
The Indigofest seed sprouted as a collective dream: The Coastal Indigo Vat. Our inspiration lead us to test and trial whether we could source all our ingredients exclusively locally and how it could inspire & include our community. We develop our regional vat with wild Salal berry, oyster shells converted into local lime, and cooperatively harvest indigo pigment that all comes together in a hand-thrown wood-fired vat vessel. We’ve now blossomed into our 5th annual retreat with myself, Iris Sullivan Daire and incredible team of Blue Crew. It all takes place August 26th-30th at the Sou’wester in Seaview, WA. Essentially, it’s the indigo summer camp of our dreams. We cover the whole range of fresh plant processing, pigment extraction, vat making, pattern play, and more! https://www.indigofest.org/store/indigofest-retreat-30
My journey began with inspiration from natural indigo dyers and tumbled into local foraging and then into growing my own dye garden in partnership with a local farm. At this point, I consider the blue cloth to be the incidental, secondary art, as what I’m really inspired by is process at the seed + source level.
I love that you call yourself the Indigo Doula, can you tell us a little bit about the moniker, and the care that a doula brings?
I’ve lost count of the number of beautiful indigo vat “babies” I’ve had the honor of being a doula for, but my main objective is to inspire intuitive observations. To highlight that indigo is a Living Blue and that it requires a wholly present relationship. To help folks build and trust their own library of experiential knowing. I created the Facebook group Indigo Pigment Extraction Methods with this goal: to provide support and community resources to individuals who are growing indigo and building connection at root level. Out of these global interactions with the indigo community and the reoccurring questions that came(how can I tell if my indigo vat is reduced, why isn’t it working, how can I keep it going, etc), my Intuitive Indigo Course was born to inspire and unravel the blue mystery of vat making, with a special place in my heart for homegrown pigment/local vats.
What does the color blue mean to you?
Blue encompasses the whole range of emotions from cloudless sky highs to the lowdown blues. It’s also a color of hope and peace and calm. It’s a global connector but it’s also precious and rare pigment. Its range is as expansive as the oceans and I’m certain I’ll never know the width and breadth of it.
What can we expect from your fresh indigo class?
You can expect me to nerd-out on why it’s the most generous plant to grow and propagate, there will likely be a few blue puns & poems, and a jam-packed session of learning the simplest ways to utilize fresh Japanese Indigo plants.
If I am a newbie and don’t have access to fresh indigo, can I learn along too?
If you’re indigo-curious/thinking about growing indigo, this course is great research before beginning your growing journey. The indigo world can be daunting to dive into but this course focuses on the most efficient and effective fresh plant techniques with minimal tools without the need for vatting or pigment extraction.
What advice would you give to younger you?
A debut excerpt of my poem For Little Britt: “You are held by earth, by deep soil and soul. Do you know that the roots of you are the intercessory threads for the reconciliation of you? The sharp edges of you have been tumbled smooth in the waves of you, like ankle bones clinking together at the bottom of the river, like ice cubes at the bottom of a glass.”
What practices feed you aside from dyeing?
I am in a local band, The Orbitronz, and play piano/vocals, I also enjoy poetry, listening to my daughter read, any and all open water escapades(ocean, rivers, lakes), I love plein aire with handmade pastels, and camping with the family.
Last song on your playlist go!
“ I Need to Start a Garden” by Haylee Henderix, it’s a tradition to scream along outside while working in the yard. Ludovico Einaudi is always on when I’m working in the inside the studio. I also have playlist called Blue Beats with all my fav blue songs, but if I had to pick one it would be “Blue” by Joni Mitchell 💙 https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6XmC7R17MrQarQY3dAMLod?si=yEL_qwbrRS6qoLFlolq-Fg&pi=u-4Y8X7Pv9SsG2
Take Britt’s Upcoming Workshop: Fresh Leaf Indigo Five Ways or Try Indigo Making Yourself!
