Everything Indigo – See What Blue Can Be
NATURAL INDIGO
The Colour That Connects Us
The fact that green plants can give us blue colours is something that never ceases to amaze us.
We try to get to know as many kinds of blue as possible. From the natural indigo we sell and use in all our clothing, bedding and cloth: (indigofera tinctoria) which is grown and harvested in India, to the robust and remarkable persicaria tinctoria, which will thrive even when planted in our research garden in the Pacific Northwest.
The Natural Dye Workshop
Tannins, Oxides & Indigo
The Ink Making Workshop
Journey Into Indigo
INDIGO: THE JOURNEY FROM PLANT TO DYE
THE INDIGO HARVEST
In southern India indigo dye is obtained from Indigofera tinctoria. Indigofera is a beneficial crop because it returns nitrogen to the soil. In many places it is grown in rotation and simply ploughed under (without ever extracting the colour). When it is grown for the dye, the crop can be naturally weeded by pasturing cows or goats — they eat the weeds but not the indigo. Depending on the weather, a single plant can give 2 to 3 harvests a year.
INDIGO EXTRACTION
Once cut, the indigo plants are placed in a large extraction tank, covered with water and allowed to soak until they ferment. The fermentation transforms indican (present in the leaves) to indoxyl (a soluble form of indigo). The water containing indoxyl is drained off and then whipped to introduce oxygen. The oxygen transforms the indoxyl to indigo. The indigo settles to the bottom where it is collected and concentrated into cakes. This is powdered indigo - the most famous dye in the world.
MAIWA'S NATURAL DYES
GET YOUR BLUES FROM US
Maiwa sells natural indigo extracted from crops grown in southern India. We carry everything you need to get started; like the natural indigo kit and keep going, like our largest size of indigo. In addition we offer an instruction sheet for Indigo and Woad and The Organic Vat.
PUT SOME INDIGO ON ... MAIWA'S BLANKS
To our U.S. customers – don't forget that the exchange rate works in your favour, it's like an extra discount.
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