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April 30, 2008
Acid Dyes
* Ashford (New Zealand) acid dyes will be availble
at our shop in August-September
Dyes have spirits, a Japanese belief
The names of most colours in Japan are derived from their dye sources, and the colours themselves were seen as the essence of the "spirit" within the plant. There is the Japanese belief that when the colour is transferred to the fabric or yarn, the spirit in the colour would protect the garment’s wearer. This belief may have come from the medicinal qualities possessed by many dye plants. Until the 19th century, when chemical dyes were invented, dyes were extracted from natural substances: crushed insects, charcoal soot, ground minerals, and first of all plants. Vegetable dyes were combined with mordants such as iron, ash lye, plum vinegar or alum, they fixed the colours on the fabric and control the resulting hues. One of the most characteristic of Japanese dyes is indigo, or "ai", it was brought to Japan from China. Some vegetable dyes are still used today, though on a limited basis. - source: "Textile Art of Japan", Sunny Yang
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