I first became aware of how toxic synthetic dyes were as a Costume Design student at London College of Fashion, more than 10 years ago.
Manipulating large batches of fabric in the industrial dye vats was quick and effective, but the potent fumes would often give me headaches, despite wearing PPE. After reading Alden Wicker’s article Are Your Clothes making you sick?, published in The Guardian in July 2023, it turns out I was far from alone. In 2018, for example, a Harvard study established a link between the new, brightly coloured polyester flight attendant uniforms introduced by Alaska Airlines in 2011, and numerous employee health complaints, ranging from cough to blurred vision and rashes.
Today, as much as 90% of clothing is dyed synthetically. Some of these dyes, such as azo dyes, are carcinogenic: banned in the EU, they continue to be used in other countries by fast fashion labels. In addition, synthetic dyes require large amounts of water and chemicals, with as much as 90% of dyes discharged back into rivers chemically unchanged – carrying with them hazardous chemicals, heavy metals, microfibres and mordants. No wonder, then, that the UN Environment Programme has found the textile industry to be the second largest polluter in the world. A report by CNN has even found that several waterways in Bangladesh and China were turned black and red, polluted by the waste of nearby garment factories and dye houses – affecting the health of local wildlife and locals, too.
After graduating, I launched a sustainable capsule collection made from repurposed uniforms. As part of my research, I met with a natural dyer on her own farm, learning about different dye plants, extraction recipes, mordants and natural fibres. Witnessing the whole process from plant to thread, in the same place, was truly magical.
In 2019, guided by Babs Behan’s book Botanical Inks and beautiful natural pigments from Wild Colours, a website created by textile artist Teresinha Roberts, I created an installation with several hundred fabric “petals” dyed with cochineal, madder, indigo and nettle. Natural dyes often have the reputation of being dull – but to my surprise, I was able to achieve a stunning range of hues, from the subtle to the truly vibrant.
Earlier this month, I attended the Wool Exchange event at Central Saint Martins (CSM), where I spoke with weave specialist Amber Fry about the joys and challenges of working with natural dyes. For the past six years, Amber has been cultivating an allotment in Kent. Chancing upon Violetta Thurston’s 1972 book The Use of Vegetable Dyes, which was about to be thrown away in a skip, turned her on to natural dyes. “Whilst natural dye recipes published in books of this time may not have been the safest to work with (…) the charm of this well used book (…) with handwritten notes was endearing. It felt like I was discovering a lost world of colour alchemy!” she shares.
Since then, Amber has been growing, harvesting, extracting, dyeing and weaving with plants – woad, indigo, madder, flax… – from her allotment. Using crop rotation – planting one crop this year, another crop the next in the same area -, and only natural pesticides such as rhubarb, she plans which dyes she will need ahead of time, according to her designs. The process takes time but is infinitely more sustainable for people and planet in the long run: no more pumping out toxic formaldehyde, chlorine, lead, or mercury back into rinse water. Waste material from natural dye extraction can be added to compost and fed right back into her allotment. As for mordants, according to the people at Wild Colours, there are many safe options including alum and cream of tartar, each of which are often used in water treatment and baking, respectively.
Choosing to use the allotment to grow plants for dyeing, rather than food crops, wasn’t easy – especially as a young female. With her demographic being underrepresented among allotment growers, Amber struggled to find local collaborators from the same generation and with the same intentions. I was surprised to learn that there is a lack of formal training when it comes to natural dyes, and natural dye specialists are hard to come by. So, she figured it out herself, through trial and error, with the few books she could find.
What about some of the hurdles that the fashion industry is facing with implementing natural dyes for wider use? Amber sees these as opportunities. Scalability issues? We should really be thinking about creating new systems of production that are safer for everyone involved in the garment production cycle. Mass-production could also mar the unique, delicate quality of plant dyes. Problems with colour-fastness? Fading is beautiful – with the passing of time, plant dyes develop into different, equally stunning, hues. Plus, chemical dyes fade too, Amber points out. Isn’t that what denimheads around the world are after, that authentic fade that only vintage jeans have? Ultimately, comparing synthetic and natural dyes is like comparing apples and oranges – same, but very different.
In episode 41 of the Where Does It Come From? podcast hosted by entrepreneur Jo Salter, Amber talks about the value of investing in “emotional durability” to extend the life of our clothes and our attachment to them. “If somebody you know (…) has patched your jacket, put stitches in it (…) (your garment) has more of a story. The same if you’re taking it to a workshop that’s putting on new buttons, mending holes, maybe new zips. (…) that’s giving your item a new story.” In a similar way, knowing how much time and care it takes to create and apply natural dyes could help us love our clothes more.
According to a report published in 2021 by the Ellen Macarthur Foundation, clothes production has doubled between 2000 and 2015, but consumers keep clothes for nearly half as long before discarding them. The environmental impact is alarming: in 2018, the global fashion industry alone was responsible for 2.1 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, nearly 4% of the global total. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
The growing popularity and accessibility of repair cafes and mending workshops is helping shift consumers’ relationship to clothes. Why not do the same with natural dyes? There is a hunger to learn about natural dyes and processes, Amber says enthusiastically. Start small, she encourages, with what is available – for example, dyeing with avocado or onion skins, locally foraged nettles, or even come together with locals to create a community dye bath and turn dyeing into a shared experience.
“We live in such a disconnected world at the moment (…) so I believe the most radical thing we can do is to connect through learning and knowledge back to the earth. By that I mean can you understand how a seed grows into a plant, and how those leaves can be extracted into pigment or colour?”, Amber muses, at the end of the podcast.
Looking at my fabric petals, now rearranged into a painting on my study wall, I ponder Amber’s words. I remember the hours spent researching each plant, then preparing fabric and experimenting with different dye recipes, anxiously waiting to see how each colour would turn out! Over time, the colours have continued to evolve, becoming more muted and subtle… Ultimately, this makes me cherish my piece even more.
