For this week on Sunday Visit, we catch up with Cara Marie Piazza, a natural dyer and artisan working in New York City.
She creates one of a kind textiles only using natural dye stuffs such as botanicals, plant matter, minerals, non-toxic metals and food waste. She treats her fabrics through alchemical dye sessions, ancient shibori techniques and bundle dyeing, transforming each textile into its very own story.
She also teaches workshops on natural dyeing for us at Botanical Colors as well as being our Creative Ambassador! We are so grateful she is working with us.
She’s a busy person but we got her to sit down and talk all things ice to us.
Here’s what the queen of cool had to say:
How did you get into ice dyeing?
I first found ice dyeing during the middle of of covid during one of the lock downs. I was in a manic craft-searching spiral and found the technique on YouTube. My windowsill and fire escape were packed with fresh white snow, and I said to myself, wait, CAN WE DO THIS WITH NATURAL DYES? This led to weeks of experimentation until I got the science down and made some really gorgeous results.
Can you ice dye in the sun?
You can! The ice will melt a little faster if it’s brutally hot outside, which I actually don’t recommend. You want the dye to submerge in the fabric for a few hours. That said, it’s best to leave in the shade so it melts a little more slowly.
What is the strangest ice you ever made?
The silliest are my takeout containers. After playing with lots of exhausted baths and my big freezer, the large ice shapes have been the most fun. That’s the beauty of ice you can be very creative with its shapes! Freezing flowers directly in the freezer is also wonderful because they really pop and melt into beautiful objects.
Follow Cara Marie Piazza on Instagram!