Statement of Practice

My academic history is in garden design with emphasis on the design of planting plans. This form of design incorporates the necessity to take into account the combination of forms, textures and colours but to also be aware of the changes that occur over time. With regards to plants, this involves the seasonal change of the plants, flowering periods and growth all having to be taken into consideration in the initial design. My design methods revolved around the idea that nothing clashes in nature. It is this underpinning philosophy of design that I want to bring into fashion and textiles.

I therefore plan to incorporate nature into as many elements as possible of my project. I plan to do this by incorporating planting into my work through imagery and using plant material and also exploring natural patterns and processes to inspire the design of my final pieces.

It is important that my work reflects my ethical stance in regards to the wastefulness and destructive nature of modern society as well as the general public's sole dependence on modern technology.

It has become very apparent in modern media that awareness of the dangers and health problems associated with modern technology is becoming well known and this has brought rise to the popularity of reviving old methods. Organic textiles have become increasingly popular over the last decade with increasing recognition of the seriousness of the environmental impact of the textiles industry. As a result, natural dyes created from organic ingredients and the use of organic fabrics are having a dramatic revival. Reports have also shown that fabrics dyed with chemical dyes contain toxic chemicals that can be harmful to people as well as the environment. As natural dyes are closely related to traditional herbal medicines, they are well-suited for fabrics that come into direct contact with the skin. For example, certain plants are effective in preventing the spread of germs and providing warmth or having a cooling effect as well as repelling insects. (www.ethicalfashionforum.com, www.cottonedon.org)  

I recognise that modern technologies hold a strong place in society and have their own benefits and as natural dyes themselves require a chemical mordant, I cannot deny that the inclusion of chemicals are necessary in effectively dying fabrics. My aim with this project is to raise awareness regarding the environmental impact of none sustainable fabrics and present alternatives to purely chemical methods of dying fabrics. I also want to show that colours derived from natural dyes are unique colours and cannot be synthesised.

Another aim of my work is to break social perceptions which are so easily accepted by the general public. The fashion industry and society attach connotations to things which are so regularly upheld. A perception I find associated with natural dyes is that firstly it is an easy and archaic form of dying and that it is mostly associated with new age fashion, simple lines and patterning created through methods such as tie-dying. I want to contradict these associations and work with both natural and chemical dyes in order to create modern pieces using modern and traditional techniques. A common negative aspect of natural dyes is the fact that they fade as a result of sunlight exposure, washing and general wear and tear. Instead of trying to fight this supposedly negative side of natural dyes, I want to use this in order to create garments that change over time (as planting does). This will create a long term interest in the garment which would combat recent problems with wasteful fashion as the result of cheap and poor quality clothing which has become so readily available.

In preparation for my practical work I studied the existing use of natural dyes with books by Jenny Dean (2009) (1999), Linda Rudkin (2007) and India Flint (2008). I started off by dying small sample pieces with easily sourced plant material such as Brambles and Ivy from the garden. I then explored the fading rate by continually washing the fabrics. This is not an exact art as natural dyes fade purely from exposure to air and sunlight and from general wear and tear as well as washing. It became apparent that the dyes washed out of cotton a lot easier than with silks.

I then expanded on this by dying the material with Procion and Acid dyes as well as natural dyes and then furthered this with screen printing over the naturally and chemically dyed fabric. The theory being that as the natural dye fades, it leaves behind the chemical dyes thus changing over time and creating an interesting effect in the process.

I have also explored the use of laser cutting, digital printing and knitting in order to possibly incorporate these into the effect I want to create.

Area of Focus:

I plan to create garments that will be designed through inspiration of nature and the colours and designs will be inspired by nature and change as nature changes. These garments will be theatrical pieces to inspire commercial garments aimed at the younger generation but will be flexible enough to be adapted for others.

With regards to the visual aspects of my work, my inspiration comes from nature; the patterns, forms, textures and colours. Through drawings I have studied and captured the life cycle of the plant including the death and decomposition of the plants as I feel that this element of a plants life is rarely celebrated as something that can be beautiful but it is important as the death and decomposition of plant material is responsible for the existence and nutrition of new life. For design ideas I want to look into natural geometry of nature by exploring concepts such as the golden section, fractals and the Chaos theory.

In terms of fabrics to be used, I have been focussing on animal and vegetable fabrics as these are best for natural dying and the environment. My favourite of these was the use of silk and organic cotton as they dyed very well and had a nice texture and feel to them. As these had different rates of fading with regards to natural dyes I also purchased a cotton/silk mix fabric from Whaleys (Bradford) Ltd.

The techniques I want to focus on is primarily dying and screen printing fabrics with both natural and chemical dyes. I would also like to increase my knowledge of and experiment with laser cutting, digital printing and knitting with the intention of incorporating these into my final design.

Final project

Changes in direction

Through research into the long and impressive history of natural dyes and the current and potential future use of natural dyes, I have made the following observations that have redirected my studies:

• The increased awareness of the harmful effect that the fashion industry has on the environment and potentially to an individual’s health which has made natural alternatives increasingly far more popular to the general populous
• Sustainability is currently a big topic in the fashion industry with many designers researching more sustainable and ethical methods of fashion design
• There is research into the potential healing capabilities of natural dyes which opens a fresh and relatively new market
• There is increased interest in natural dyes and therefore active research into making natural dyes more available for a mass market as well as research into less toxic alternatives to the traditional metal mordant

This has taken me into a more natural and sustainable approach to my work and also the desire to research further into healing garments and the potential audience for this as well as the products as a whole.

Taking this into account, for my final project I want to make garments that are dyed with natural dyes and printed with natural pastes.

Ideally I want to create 3 garments, each one representing the seed, growth and decomposition stages of the plant life cycle. I want to design prints relevant to the plant cycle stages which wrap around the garments and are printed using natural dye pastes. I will also take advantage of pH printing using acidic lemon paste and alkali soda paste depending on the natural dye I use.

In contrast with the existing garments on the market today which tend to be quite plain and simple, I want to design garments that are more high fashion and interesting with tailored shapes.

Being a vegetarian and conscious of the use of animal products, I have decided to reduce and preferably cut out animal fabrics from my working practice and focus on plant fabrics such as cottons, hemp, banana and soyabean fabrics which I will purchase from reputable outlets. Additionally, these fabrics have benefits of their own such as UV protection, antibacterial properties, the promotion of blood circulation as well as activating collagen in the skin.

In order to be sustainable and have a strong ethical stance so my garments can be applied to a wider and growing market, I will use sustainable plant fabrics that are organic where possible. Additionally, I will avoid the use of chemical dyes and mordants.

I do not want to use recycled fabrics as I find it important to know the source of fabrics and the majority of waste fabrics have been treated with synthetic dyes and prints.

I do however consider my work to have the ability to be recycled as with natural dyes being temporary, the garments can be re-dyed which gives the garment a new life as well as a new look. This can be a method of survival throughout fashion trends; as fashions and personal tastes change, so can the garment.

Business direction

A highly marketable element of my research is the use of natural dyes as healing garments.

A further advantage to using a combination of low chemical content dyes as well as the use of natural fabrics and incorporating healing capabilities of the natural dyes is that it produces a hypo-allergenic product.

I have very sensitive skin as well as an intolerance to wool and many acrylic fabrics, I also suffer from eczema which is highly reactive to chemical contact. From research into other skin conditions I have found that there are many skin conditions that are worsened when in contact with chemicals such as Acne, Dermatitis, Rosacea and Psoriasis. A chemical that is commonly related to the flare up of these conditions is Formaldehyde which is used as a finisher for many fabrics.

This is a very interesting a relatively unexplored market. There are some companies that promote naturally dyed healing garments, especially in India but I have not found these healing fabrics being used to create fashionable garments that also cater for those with hyper sensitive skin.   

Bibliography:

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Chevallier, W, (2000) Encyclopedia of herbal medicine. London: Dorling Kindersley Limited

Dean, J. (2014) A heritage of colour: natural dyes past and present. Kent: Search Press Limited

Dean, J. (2009) Colours from Nature. Kent: Search Press Limited

Dean, J. (1999) Wild Colour. London: Octopus Publishing Group Ltd

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Falconer, K. (1986) 85: The Geometry of Fractal Sets. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Flint, I. (2008) Eco Colour: botanical dyes for beautiful textiles. London: Murdoch Books UK Limited

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Healy, M. (2012) ‘Miguel Androver’, Love a costume drama aw 2012, 8; 196-197 

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