Dye Using Fresh Indigo Leaves
Dye!
Now, you’re ready to dye! Dip natural fabrics into the dye, use any tie dye, shibori, or just make up your own techniques! The dye binds best to natural fabrics — cotton, linen, wool, silk. It will not stick to polyester — so check your fabric labels before dipping. We can’t wait to see what you create!
Aerate & Compound
Once you’ve collected the water from the jars, you will add two chemicals to the mix. The first is lime. Once you add this the water will start to turn bright blue-green. Pour the mixture back and forth between two buckets, creating a blue foamy froth on top. Continue to aerate for 15 or so minutes. Once aerated, add carbamide and avoid any further aeration. Stir gently and you’re ready to dye!
Harvest & Steep
Harvest leaves from your mature indigo plants and collect into a large jar until well-packed. Fill the jar with water and let steep in hot water for 90 minutes. Once well steeped, carefully open the jars and collect all all of the “tea” inside the jars into a large pot. This brown water contains the indigo dye. Squeeze all the water you can out of the leaves to get the most dye out of your leaves.
