Natural Dye with children;
Reconnecting to the land
Overview
Organization: Horizons at The Ethel Walker School
Roles: Designer / Facilitator
Deliverables: 250 Naturally Dyed Cotton Bandanas// Painted with soy, inspired by satchiko stitch & shibori fold
Tools: Naturally sourced food waste & invasive plants, alum, stainless steel pot, soy beans, clothing line / clothespins, rainwater, cotton bandanas, paintbrushes, rubber bands
Timeline: 4 Weeks
The Process
Drafted a Scope of Work
With a scope of work and a rough idea of an outcome, a collective project was born.
2. Researched best approach for scale of project
Much time spent on Youtube, crafting websites, online foreums, reality checks and experimentation lead me to the decision that painting with soy milk & shibori inspired folding as bandanas that the students could wear would be the main focus of the two classes I would have with each pre-k through 8th grade class.
3. Forage & source materials
At first I wanted to gather all fabric from second hand stores and hand-me-downs, but that proved to be a monumental task in both gathering, washing, cutting, and preparing for the impending 130+ students. Sourcing materials to dye with was it’s own monumental task; needing to make sure that at least half of our dye experiments were tried and true and something that could be collected in large portions and not have a detrimental environmental impact.
4. Prepped & rehearsed workshop
Washing, mordanting, and blending soy beans was the majority of my time the first 2.5 weeks and did not allow much time to rehearse a workshop beforehand. This meant that the first two days were really improvisational until a rhythm was established in the madness.
5. Trouble-shooting & creative problem-solving
Some challenges off the bat were establishing a place to host the class, not having a full awareness of the pace in which students would finish and then what to do when they had. Perfectionism was a big monster starting in ages as early as 2nd Grade. Another learning moment was how best to keep track of 250 bandanas and to which girl they belonged to.
6. Delightful discoveries
Collaboration was key. When I wasn’t able to go one-on-one with every students (most classes were 15+) it meant that I had to rely on the students who excelled at following the assignment to lend hands to those who didn’t. One treasured discovery was learning how inherent the need to be of service is at all grade levels, kids want to help if you ask for it. Many of the students are coming from concrete environments and were not fully comfortable in the heat, sitting outside on the grass and being at the mercy of nature, but to watch them collect acorns and berries for future classes mean not only were they being mindful of what would come after them, but that nature is a part of us and we all have an essential role.
Takeways
Connection to the land.
It all began with being approached to do a “graphic design” project for the students who range in grades from pre-k to 8th Grade. I really wanted to do something that would put all of us outside and natural dye had been on my radar as something that I wanted to explore all year long, this finally gave me the excuse.
Connection to community.
Foraging in the wild was one thing, but for certain food waste items like onions skins and avocados seeds and skins, it was scarce to find by happenstance in northwestern Connecticut. I was then forced to connect with my local community through restaurants, supermarkets, and my community living Facebook group. This was such a vulnerable experience to ask for the aid and then to be happily gifted by those willing.
Aligning to rhythm of nature.
Sourcing dye products in the wild puts you at the mercy of mother nature in the best way. You can’t collect what isn’t in its prime, so being flexible and knowledgeable of the land and what grows on it is an essential skill that is required in order to succeed. Summer days mean summer rain thralls which are inconvenient for hang drying fabrics, but opportune for collecting rainwater to use in dye pots. Bright sunny days meant being able to work outside with the students and have projects that dried quickly. It also meant conducting the workshop in the shade of a giant maple tree and showing the girls not to be fearful of ants, bees, and other insects who were curious about our work.
Connection to self.
One of the only rules that I continuously upheld throughout the grades and this process was that we are not here for perfectionism, but are here to practice “imperfect action” as my friend once coined. We can’t expect soy milk to act as acrylic paint would in its consistency. Neither was not fair to hope for vibrant or deep expressions of color when the nature of natural dye is much more subtle with hues that we find reminiscent of morning light. We had to approach every process as practice, with investigative and curious minds.
Expression, surrender, & investigation.
Those who were more ease-fully able to surrender to the process were delighted in the results where others needed more practice in releasing their expectations. This process taught us all, both teacher and student that flexibility, improvisation, and presence were the most important ingredients of all.