aboubakar fofana Archives - Botanical Colors

Construction Techniques with Aboubakar Fofana: Create a Pair of Stripcloth Trousers

Video From Aboubakar Fofana (LIVE) Bamako Studio Tour!

Last week on FEEDBACK FRIDAY, we welcomed back Malian artist, educator, indigo farmer and friend, Aboubakar Fofana. Aboubakar took us for a live tour of his Bamako studio where we saw him harvest indigo, do some indigo dyeing, got to meet his artisans and see all the amazingness that is Aboubakar on his home turf. We received so many nice emails from people expressing how wonderful this episode was. You won’t want to miss it. We also sold a bunch of his classes and the number of spots left is dwindling so grab your spot now. Go here. Watch the … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: The Color Association of the U.S. (+ Aboubakar Fofana Trunk Show!)

Last week, we had The Color Association of the U.S. (CAUS) plus an Aboubakar Fofana trunk show! Leslie Harrington, Executive Director of CAUS and Tess Murdoch, Senior Trend Analyst gave us some background history on CAUS and talked about how forecasting is changing and also, how they just launched their very first natural dye collection with Botanical Colors as part of the 2022/2023 color forecast! We also get some usually members-only access to some of their exciting historical colors spanning over 100 years. If you are interested in having access to the CAUS site, that includes access to the CAUS … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Indigo Master Dyer Aboubakar Fofana

This week’s FEEDBACK FRIDAY was with indigo master dyer and multidisciplinary artist Aboubakar Fofana. Aboubakar is based in Mali and France and updated us on his latest projects including cotton cultivation in Mali. He also talked about his indigo farm, exhibits and the workshops he is teaching with Botanical Colors this spring and summer. Watch the video recording here: Shop the Finimugu (Malian Strip Cloth) Aboubakar talked about and showed us beautiful images of here. If you don’t know indigo master dyer Aboubakar Fofana, he is a multidisciplinary artist and designer whose working mediums include calligraphy, textiles and natural dyes. … Read more

Seven swatches of blue fabric from very pale on the left to dark navy blue on the right

A Deep Dive into the 1-2-3 Indigo Vat

Indigo gradation from Aboubakar Fofana’s workshop on indigo. The vat is a 7gpl fructose vat. Diving into indigo blue We have been working with the 1-2-3 indigo vat for nearly 10 years and over time made some adjustments to the original recipe from Michel Garcia. Here we share a recent experiment where we set up 4 different types of 1-2-3 vats and present the results. New instructions are linked below for each vat type with hints for a successful indigo vat! You can also search our blog posts for information on indigo vats and answers to your many questions. Our … Read more

FEEDBACK FRIDAY Love Letters #3

Adire Eleko, 20th century Nigeria, Yoruba Factory woven plain weave cloth, cassava paste resist with indigo dye Gift of the Christensen Fund, Seattle Art Museum FEEDBACK FRIDAY has meant so much to Kathy and I, and we know it means a lot to you too. We so appreciate all the emails and notes you send weekly about how they help you through this time. So why not have a little series with some of your love letters that make us all feel the love of this natural dye community? Got something you’d like to share? Email me, Amy at [email protected] … Read more

Video from LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Aboubakar Fofana

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring Aboubakar Fofana. We got to take a walk through Aboubakar’s art and life’s work through a visually stunning slideshow as well as a mini-film featuring his farm in Mali, West Africa. We’ve never had more emails thanking us for giving access to such an inspiring human, and presentation as well as how honored they felt to be part. Thank you again Aboubakar. WATCH THE RECORDING HERE: Below is the introduction from today we didn’t have in the recording (because we almost forgot to record!) Many have asked how to … Read more

Video From LIVE FEEDBACK FRIDAY: Cara Marie Piazza

This week, we’ve got video from our live FEEDBACK FRIDAY featuring natural dyer and artist Cara Marie Piazza. Cara took us through her process foraging for and utilizing flower and food waste in Brooklyn. We also just opened up registration for two online classes with Cara Marie Piazza taking place June 6th and June 27th that you won’t want to miss. Watch the recording here: During this FEEDBACK FRIDAY, Cara discussed transforming avocado pits and peels, edible flowers, onion skins, nut shells, and other dye stuffs into dyes. We’ll also talk about how to set up your own home dye … Read more

FEEDBACK FRIDAY: This Week in Natural Dye Questions

This week: scouring, reducing, hydrating and are fresh flowers better than dry flowers for natural dyeing?