Natural Dyes

“As anyone familiar with her styling work, her Amagansett, N.Y., boutique, Tiina, or her nearby home already knows, Tiina Laakkonen really, really loves indigo. “Blue is my favorite color and indigo is the most natural, alive version of it,” she says. “I used to live in black clothes when I lived in New York, but they seem […]

“Last Monday was a very special day. Bryan [Whitehead] showed us the way to meet one of Japan’s indigo masters, Noguchi san. It is there, at his workshop in Hachioji, were  he has been creating textiles all his life.  Apparently his studio hasn’t changed much over the years, they moved in after the big Kantō earthquake […]

We always love seeing how Botanical Colors can be applied to so many different mediums through the hands of talented artists. Brooklyn-based Lily Piyathaisere of Gamma Folk is new to our natural dye family and we are pretty crazy about her jewelry. Lily says her vision is to “combine traditional techniques with thoughtful, statement jewelry. […]

“Tea silk considered one of the most well-preserved gems in Chinese silk craftsmanship. Originating from the Ming Dynasty, this fabric was once considered the most luxurious silk. The ’30s became the gilded age for xiangyunsha (the Chinese name for tea silk, also called langchou)—more expensive than gold, it was among the most desired goods by […]

Aleksander Wozniak is a Poland-based artist, printmaker, and teacher at the University of Warmia and Mazury in the city of Olsztyn. He is also the head of an academic printmaking studio, where he teaches planographic printing techniques (stone lithography, aluminium lithography). Though focused on traditional and experimental printmaking, “as a unique source of inspiration and […]

“Los Angeles-based designer and Rule of Three founder Paige Cleveland has over a decade of experience in the graphic and fashion design industries. With an ardor for textiles, and the unexpected way color and pattern interact when combined, the seed was planted very early on. After traveling the globe and endless amounts of research on […]

Author Bronte Hogarth pens a story for 1 Million Women on natural dyeing and giving old clothing a new look. We agree with her 100%! Did you know that by “rebirthing clothes through upcycling, you could save an estimated CO2 Saving of 12kg per month (120kg per year), just by extending the life of your clothing?” […]

Tinctoria Designs was created by Samantha Backer and Jill Golden in the Spring of 2003. All of Tinctoria’s garments are the duos original designs and are “intentionally manufactured” in Portland, Oregon using only organic fabric blends including hemp, soy, and organic cotton and Botanical Colors’ natural dyes. Both Sandy and Jill use organic fibers to […]

272 years after the first successful indigo crop was planted in the Carolina colonies, Donna Hardy of Sea Island Indigo got an idea to research and track down the original strain of indigo plants that were grown in colonial Charleston. Her research and persistence located a few remaining varieties in isolated areas that had been […]

Like I’ve said before, working for a natural dye guru like Kathy Hattori can give one an inferiority complex. I hate inferiority complexes for me or anyone else, so when feeling less than, I say take on the thing that most scares you (unless it’s skiing). In this particular case, I accepted the challenge of […]