Tag Archives: dye recipes

Glorious Color: Dyeing Workshop — Using Natural Materials

One and Two-Day Workshops in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico

If you are a weaver, a knitter, interested in cloth and textiles and you want to explore the world of natural dyes, you are invited to the famous rug-tapestry weaving village just outside of the city of Oaxaca. We offer this hands-on workshop for one or several people working with the master weaving family of Federico Chavez Sosa, his son Eric and daughter Janet. All instruction is in English.

Day 1: Explore the World of Cochineal

You will learn traditional Zapotec dyeing methods to prepare three shades of cochineal color – red, orange and maroon, learning the chemistry of color and the use of mordants. The Chavez family will explain the history of cochineal, and how it is cultivated and processed. You will see experiments with the “bug in the rug” and then practice using the color yourself to prepare glorious colors with hand spun wool from the Mixtec highlands of Oaxaca.

On the first day you will prepare three skeins of wool (200 grams each), wash it, assemble the cochineal and mordants, grind the cochineal on the traditional mortar, cut and squeeze limes that are used to adjust the color. During this time, you will come to understand the differences between natural and synthetic dyes and the mordant (fixing) process, dye with a neutral Ph to produce a maroon color, dye with an acid Ph to yield an orange, and dye with an alkaline Ph to achieve a purple or pink color depending upon the natural color of the wool selected.

This is a six-hour workshop. The cost is $160 per person including instruction and all materials.

Day 2: Explore the World of Indigo

You will learn the history of the indigo plan and how it is used to dye wool with traditional Zapotec recipes. As with the cochineal workshop, you will prepare the wool and the dye stuffs. We will use the Muicle plant that grows in the dry valley of Oaxaca, prepare the solution and dip the skeins until we reach the desired level of color intensity using the oxidizing method. You will also learn the theurea dioxide process, a different dyeing method.

This is a four-hour workshop. The cost is $130 including instruction and all materials.

You can enroll in a one or two-day workshop. Workshops are custom scheduled according to your availability and travel plans. Each participant will prepare and take home three skeins each of cochineal dyed wool and indigo dyed wool.

We also offer weaving workshops! and can refer you to great lodging in the village.

To Register: Contact normahawthorne@mac.com or (919) 274-6194.

Experimenting with Cochineal: A Pinch of This and a Tad of That

In July 2007, when Andrea Donnelly, a textiles student,  came to Teotitlan from NC State University to do a natural dyeing residency with Eric Chavez, I listened to their conversations and took notes.  Erick talked about how few people are coming to their home in Teotitlan since the teacher’s strike, so he appreciated that Andrea came to study and workshop with him and his father Federico.  Eric explained that he has experimented with cochineal and is able to get over 95 different shades ranging from dark purple to bright orange, reds, and pinks, by manipulating the Ph of the dye bath.  The color intensity and shading depends on whether he uses lime juice or vinegar and the quanitity of cochineal.  An acid solution will result in a brighter color, he says.  Eric is experimenting, measuring the Ph of the dye bath, and recording recipes (chemical formulas).  Another variable is the shade of natural wool a weaver chooses to dye.   Brown, black, white, and beige wool will absorb dyes differently and add to the variation in color.

We estimate that only about 10% of the village weavers are actually using natural dyes because they are so expensive and labor intensive, and those who do usually estimate the ingredients each time they dye, much like our great-grandmothers used to cook — a pinch of this and a tad of that.  

The way to create color using synthetic dyes is much simpler — one doesn’t need a mordant because there is sulfuric acid (toxic) already added to the dye mixture.  In natural dyeing, Eric and Federico use alum and cream of tartar to “fix” the dyes.  Ancient Zapotecs used only natural dyes from palnt materials.  Eric has researched this and says that the written  records that explained methods to extract dye from palnt materials were destroyed in the Spanish conquest.  He wanted to preserve this part of his culture, so began experimenting using modern chemistry techniques. 

In previous entries, I’ve talked about the toxicity of chemical dyes and their environmental impact.  When a weaver dyes 20 lbs. of wool at one time, standing over the dye pot, breathing the vapors,  not using a mask, this will cause itchy throat, watery eyes, and inflamed lungs.  Respiratory problems are not uncommon.  This is one reason why Eric wanted to learn more about natural dyes — to lower the health risks of his people. 

As Eric continues, he explains that there are other natural options for mordants that come from the plants called tejute (Teh-hu-tay) and pericone, in addition to using alum and cream of tartar.  There is an old Zapotec recipe for using tejute that is most effective.  You chop the plant, add it to cochineal along with oak tree bark and then boil it for the dye bath.  Pericone is used to make yellows, and results in the same coloration as the yellow one can extract from moss.  These plants are almost extinct.  The cooperative, Bii Dauu, runs an organic farm near the reservoir outside of Teotitlan and they are growing percone and tejute to reintroduce and preserve it.

When the Spaniards came to Mexico they hoped to find gold, but they discovered cochineal instead.  The Spanish imported 70 tons of cochineal a year for sale on the world markets.  Cochineal was used to dye the red coats of the British Army and the lipsticks made for Europe’s royalty.  The cochineal bug has a short life span as a parasite on the prickly pear cactus.  It is picked, dried, ground and then mixed with various ingredients to create many shades.  Cochineal mixed with baking soda yields purple, with lime you get red or orange, with vinegar — orange, mixed with pomegranate seeds and skins yields green and beige.