We have just had a great letter from Veronica Soul. Veronica was instrumental in bringing the Maiwa Foundation to Morocco. That might be an understatment. She was the force behind connecting the needs of the Moroccan women with our resources and desire to help. She coordinated registration; sourced local suppliers of dyestuffs; searched the market for large pots, burners, and pH neutral soaps; organized the workspace and other volunteers, and kept everything organized and focused.

Veronica recently met up with Amina Yabis who was a student in the 2007 workshop. Veronica tells us that Amina took her knowledge of natural dyes and began teaching others. She is now in demand as a natural dye trainer and has conducted workshops in Taroudant, Ben Semim, Ribat El Khayr, Sefrou (2 workshops for women from the Middle Atlas, attended by 10 cooperatives), Ait Yahya Ouala, Mrirt, Timhedit, Zawiyya Sidi Abdelselem, Figuig (where she trained 37 women. The training was so successful that the 37 women had a workshop and trained 120 more women. The Figuig region is now successfully using natural dyes.) and 5 workshops in the region of Azrou.

In the old medina of Fes, there was a conference for “natural dye research specialists” from the Mediterranean region. Mr. Messaoudi (the translator for our 2007 workshop) and Amina were the only Moroccans who were invited. Amina said the participants were surprised to learn that Moroccans are using natural dyes. They didn't expect the Moroccans to know anything about natural dye techniques. Amina was so pleased to be able to talk about natural dyeing in Morocco, though there is still much work to be done.

In 2009 Amina was invited to be a vendor at the Santa Fe International Folk Art Festival. This festival is a huge event and a great way for artisans to come to know western markets. Veronica met Amina because she was now traveling in the US after the Santa Fe event. The future is looking good for Amina and she has a commission from a hotel chain in France to provide naturally-dyed shag rugs using henna and walnut.

When a workshop concludes it is very difficult to say what the students will do with their new knowledge. We couldn't ask for better news than what we received in Veronica's letter.

[Update: We have just been notified via the comments section that Amina Yabis has a website. Visit the Cherry Buttons Coop here.]

It is the last day of the Natural dye workshop. Students receive their certificates - which they love. We review procedures, answer questions, divide up any unused dyes and mordants and consider the future. With the workshop clean and tidy the class makes a field trip to the center of town where the local carpet market takes place. After a week of dyeing and washing wool the students see the local carpets with new eyes.

This is a market for artisans to sell carpets to the vendors. All the stalls face onto a central courtyard. The artisans bring their work and men will carry the carpet on a circuit that runs in front of each vendor. If they like the piece they will motion to the man and negotiations will begin. The man will then revisit the other stalls trying to better the price. This will be the real test of our student's knowledge and understanding; when it comes time to sell their work, are they confident enough to bargain for the higher prices that a carpet made with natural dyes deserves?

Much of what we see in the market could be easily made (for less) in China. Traditional Moroccan carpets are known for their idiosyncratic designs: quirky - unlike any other carpet and distinctly Moroccan. But there is no connection between some of the acrylic, synthetically dyed, poorly woven carpets we see and Moroccan culture. And because there is no cultural connection these poor carpets will be made by whoever can make them the cheapest. This is not elitism, it is market economics. Our students can all see all of this for themselves for they have grown up with this market and they have an intimate understanding of how it works.

We have seen our students as innovators and as enthusiastic artisans leading a revival. Now, in the market we can see that the switch to natural dyes may be essential if Moroccan carpets (made by Moroccans) are going to survive. Whenever a carpet makes the rounds of the stalls that has the character of a traditional piece the haggling is intense and the price is high.

With a set of new skills, knowledge and understanding, the students are finished the workshop. We are sad to be leaving but happy with the results and feeling very privileged to have seen this side of Morocco.

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On the fourth day, with the fun work of dyeing complete the real work begins. Students separate the hanks out into bundles of threads so that each student will complete the course with a full range of colours on wool. These must each be labeled with the dyes used. Some of the labels are in French, some in Arabic, and some in the Berber dialects. The students receive their books (if books are handed out on the first day students tend to leave with the book and not complete the course). The bundles of threads are made by everyone and piled onto a table. Each student receives a workshop book and a bundle of yarns clearly sorted and labeled.

By this time, with the range of naturally-dyed colours sitting in front of them, the craftspeople are feeling confident. They have created these colours themselves and they now have a very good sense of what can be done with natural dyes. There is much vagueness around dyeing and misinformation abounds. For example, the local market sells a blue powder called "indigo." When we tested it we found that it is what would be called "blueing" a common laundry additive that is used to remove the yellow or cream cast of white fabrics. When you hold it in your hands it is very similar to the dye indigo. But if you try to dye with it all the blue colour will wash out. The misinformation is the result of lost knowledge - it is not malicious. The person selling the blueing as indigo does is not aware of the difference.

The students compile notes into the workbooks. They have completed four full days of natural dye work and they are excited to see what will happen on the last day.


























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The third day. Once again the previous days dyeing is thoroughly washed out in the morning and hung to dry. With colours now coming from combinations of dyes it is very important to label the hanks. The key to consistent colour is often careful note-taking. We record the concentration of dye (expressed as a percentage of weight-of-fiber or "WOF") and the dye sequence, for example, pomegranate over cochineal.


Today is the day we have all been waiting for, because today we learn to use indigo. Really, indigo is so much fun that one must be careful where one puts it when planning a workshop - the enthusiasm is high and everything ends up being immersed in the dyepot - it is just so tempting to turn things blue.

We have a wonderful set of light cotton scarves to work with before we turn to the serious work of dyeing hanks of wool. Right away it is evident that students understand the concept of tied resist and they begin to experiment. The volunteers are having just as much fun as the students and one or two shirts go into the dye pot.

With almost the entire group sporting new indigo head scarves we return to the wool and complete our colours by adding indigo blue. Greens are obtained by overdying some of the yellows that we made the previous day.


















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Day one concluded with hanks of yarns washed, mordanted and dyed. The hanks were left to dry overnight and in the morning they were ready to be washed. Many participants were anxious and concerned when we described the washing process - wash and wash again until there is no colour in the water. When the wool is washed this way the colour remaining on the yarn should be washfast. The group had some experience with synthetic dyes which were less than satisfying. Often the result of a thorough wash was a pale, faded, dimly coloured yarn.


Water conservation is important, especially in Morocco. The recommended system is a series of pails. Instead of repeatedly emptying and refilling pails, they are set in a line. The first contains the initial wash and has the most unused colourant. The hanks are then transfered from pail to pail with the last being the cleanest. The pails are not emptied until all the yarns have been washed.




The yarns are now ready for the second step - overdyeing. It doesn't take long before the colours multiply and the initial set of tones becomes a rich, varied, and beautiful palette.



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Before we can launch into five solid days of natural dye training we need to know what kind of situation we're dealing with. For a dyer that means one thing above all others: what is the water quality? Water can be either acidic or basic. The pH of the water will shift reds either into blue-based reds (closer to purple) or into yellow-based reds (closer to browns).

Dyers also want to know if there are any impurities in the water that will influence the outcome. Iron is a common problem. Look around the landscape - are there red rocks? If so iron oxide may be in the water supply. Are you in a European town where all the local brick is red or pink? If so the red bricks were probably made locally and there may be iron in the water.

A simple pH test strip will give an indication of the hardness or softness of the water. A test batch of dye should give an indication of problematic impurities.

Here Charllotte Kwon washes and scours the wool during the afternoon before the workshop. At our location there were no major issues with the water and we knew what to expect the next day when students arrived.




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Before the Workshop
Day One
Day Two
Day Three
Day Four
Last Day

In 2007 the Maiwa Foundation conducted a five-day natural-dye workshop. The students learned how to wash fibers and apply appropriate mordants for wools. They then created a range of colours from indigo, cochineal, madder, henna, cutch, chamomile and a number of local dyeplants. Students learned about light and washfastness, about water conservation, and about the importance of basic dye proceedures and safe use of materials.

Morocco is very well positioned to capitalize on a natural dye revival. It has a flourishing carpet industry. And, even though moroccan carpets do not enjoy the prestige given to Persian or Turkish works they are still a viable item of trade supported by the rural infrastructure. Weaving skills persist and women can gain additional income without disrupting domestic life or entering a factory environment.


What have largely vanished are dyeing skills. The local markets are a source of much misinformation. The large tourist centers make fantastic claims of natural dye use that have no basis in any tradition. Tourists are frequently told that greens are obtained from mint leaves and reds from rose petals. With natural dye knowledge back in the hands of artisans they can once again make the weavings that distinguish the tribal cultures of Morocco.

Over the next number of posts, we will be showing some of the photos taken to document the workshop.

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