Hawaii Dye Plants and Dye Recipes 9780824845605

Table of contents :
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
PREFACE
PART ONE Dyes of Old Hawaii
PART TWO Natural Dye Sources
PART THREE Mordanting and Dyeing
PART FOUR Hawaii Dye Plants and Dye Recipes
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
GENERAL INDEX
DYE SOURCES AND RECIPE INDEX
DYE SAMPLES

Citation preview

Hawaii Dye Plants and Dye Recipes

Hawaii Dye Plants and Dye Recipes

by Val Frieling Krohn

Drawings by Jay Wilson

The University Press of Hawaii Honolulu

C o p y r i g h t i , 1 9 7 8 , 1 9 8 0 by V a l Frieling K r o h n AI! rights r e s e r v e d M a n u f a c t u r e d in the United S t a t e s of A m e r i c a First edition d e s i g n e d by David Isaacs

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data K r o h n , V a l Frieling. Hawaii dye plants a n d d y e r e c i p e s . Bibliography:

p.

Includes index. 1.

D y e s and d y e i n g . D o m e s t i c

Hawaii.

I.

TT854.3.K76

2.

Dyeplants—

Title. 1980

ISBN 0 - 8 2 4 8 - 0 6 9 8 - 0

667'.26'09969

79-27162

CONTENTS

7

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

9

PREFACE

11

PART ONE: DYES OF OLD HAWAII Tapa Cloth 13 Traditional Dye Sources 13 Traditional Dye Methods 13

15

PART TWO: NATURAL DYE SOURCES Plant Dyes 17 Lichens 17 Collecting Dye Plants 17 A Dyer's Garden 17 Convenience Dyes 18 Poisonous Plants 18

19

PART THREE: MORDANTING AND DYEING Equipment and Supplies 21 Preparation of Wool for Mordanting and Dyeing 22 Mordants and Mordanting 2 3 Successful Dyeing 2 8

31

PART FOUR: HAWAII DYE PLANTS AND DYE RECIPES Arnotto Family (Bixaceae) 3 3 Bixa 3 3 Banana Family (Musaceae) 3 5 Banana 35 Bird of Paradise 37 Bignonia Family (Bignoniaceae) 39 African Tulip Tree 3 9 Buckwheat Family (Polygonaceae) 4 1 Mexican Creeper 4 1 Seagrape 4 3 Cactus Family (Cactaceae) 4 5 Prickly Pear 4 5 Coffee Family (Rubiaceae) 47 Gardenia 47 Ixora 4 9 Custard Apple Family (Annonaceae) 5 1 Soursop 5 1

Daisy Family (Compositae) 5 3 Wedelia 5 3 Euphorbia Family (Euphorbiaceae) 5 5 Croton 5 5 Kukui 57 Fig Family (Moraceae) 59 Banyan 59 Breadfruit 61 Fig 6 3 Ginger Family (Zingiberaceae) 6 5 'Olena 6 5 Red Ginger 6 7 White Ginger 69 Grass Family (Gramineae) 71 Golden Bamboo 7 1 Heliotrope Family (Boraginaceae) 7 3 Kou-haole 73 Laurel Family (Lauraceae) 75 Avocado 75 Legume Family (Leguminosae) 77 Koa 77 Koa-haole 79 Monkeypod 8 1 Indigo 8 3 Royal Poinciana 8 5 Yellow Poinciana 87 Lily Family (Liliaceae) 89 Aloe 89 Ti 9 1 Mallow Family (Malvaceae) 9 3 Hau 9 3 Hibiscus 9 5 Mango Family (Anacardiaceae) 97 Christmas Berry Tree 97 Mango 9 9 Myrtle Family (Myrtaceae) 101 Blue Gum 101 Java Plum 103 Mountain Apple 105 Silverdollar Eucalyptus 107 Strawberry Guava 109 Contents

5

Naupaka Family (Goodeniaceae) 111 Beach Naupaka 111 Palm Family ( Palmae) 1 1 3 Areca Palm 1 1 3 Manila Palm 1 1 5 Panax Family (Araliaceae) 117 Octopus Tree 117 Passion Flower Family (Passifloraceae) 1 1 9 Passion Fruit 1 1 9 Rue Family (Rutaceae) 121 Mock Orange 121 Spiderwort Family (Commelinaceae) 123 Blue Ginger 123

Contents

Terminalia Family (Combretaceae) 125 False Kamani 125 Urtica or Nettle Family (Urticaceae) 127 Pilea 127

129 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 131 GENERAL INDEX 132 DYE SOURCES AND RECIPE INDEX 136 HAWAII DYE PLANTS - SAMPLES

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Before all others I am indebted to my students who are a constant inspiration and joy, and who share my enthusiasm and interest in the fiber arts. I wish to express my deepest appreciation to Jay Wilson, who did magnificent work in drawing the beautiful plant illustrations for this book. The enormous task of mordanting and dyeing most of the samples was the contribution of my former students Karen Higa and Laurel Kono, to whom I will always be indebted. I would like to thank my former students for arranging and assembling the dye samples for the book, in particular, Alison Kanno and Kelly Okada. Many students, friends, and neighbors have been immensely generous in providing plant materials for the dye experiments, and I am happy to have this opportuni-

ty to express my thanks to all of them. My appreciation also goes to Dr. Charles Lamoureux and Dr. Gerald Carr, both of the Department of Botany at the University of Hawaii, Manoa Campus, who verified plant names and identified several plant specimens used in this book. I would like to thank Shige Yamada for his helpful and valuable advice throughout the writing of the text. My thanks go also to editors Suzie Jacobs and Elizabeth Bushnell. The book most often referred to for botanical information and classification was Marie C. Neal's In Gardens of Hawaii, a most informative and reliable source of knowledge. Another valuable source of taxonomic information was Harold St. John's List of Flowering Plants in Hawaii.

Acknowledgments

PREFACE

The renaissance of dyeing with natural materials gives us the opportunity to explore and rediscover a onceforgotten craft. Natural dyes differ from their man-made counterparts. Rich, soft, subtle colors, so commonly obtained from natural dye sources, are not easily copied synthetically. The pleasures and rewards derived from working with natural dyes are manyfold. We begin to know and appreciate our natural environment. We look at flowers or trees not only for their external beauty, but also for their "hidden" color qualities and possibilities. A greater respect for craftsmen of the past, and a deeper appreciation for the material are every natural dyer's rewards. Curiosity and a desire for experimenting are prerequisites to working with natural dyes. Ohe of my first experiments with natural dyes dates back to my early teen years. At that age it was a novelty to wear nylon stockings, but they never seemed to last long enough, and sooner or later I ended up with many single stockings, none of them matching in color. I recall searching the house for dye sources and ended up looking in a kitchen cabinet filled with spices and sauces. In my judgment some of the sauces appeared to have a good dye potential, among them Worchestershire and soy sauce. Reasoning that soy sauce was oniy rarely needed for the continental cooking done in our house, I made it my final choice. After simmering the soy sauce, water, and stockings for half an hour, I discovered 1 had beautiful, evenly dyed stockings—but all of them were green! Results like this, however, did not stop me from continuing to experiment and enjoy gourmet dyeing, as well as other methods of natural dyeing. Most plants discussed in this volume were chosen for experimentation not because they were traditional dye sources used by the ancient Hawaiians, but rather because they were readily available today, or beautiful, or seemed to be good possible dye sources. Almost all of the plants can be found within walking distance in most neighborhoods in Hawaii. After a successful dye result, additional research on a specific plant was conducted. In several instances records of previous use of a particular

plant as a natural dye source in other cultures were found in the literature. The recipes presented are the result of many years of experimenting with plants in Hawaii. As far as I know, nobody has ever approached natural dyeing with these plants using wool fibers as extensively as I have done. Standard mordanting and natural dyeing methods were used since animal fibers are successfully dyed in this way. Other natural fibers, such as cotton and flax, also lend themselves to natural dyeing but are more difficult to work with, and results are less dramatic. Synthetic fibers, such as acrylics, polyesters, and nylons respond very poorly to natural dyes despite mordanting. The arrangement used in many dye books is according to colors obtained. However, because a variety of colors can be obtained from a single plant by application of various mordants and dye processes, it appears to be more meaningful to arrange the information according to the plants used and their family relationships. The reader with some botanical interest will enjoy the arrangement for its clarity and ease of reference. Plant families represented are arranged in alphabetical order rather than by botanical complexity. Because different colors can be obtained from the same plant part depending on the mordant used, the colors that result are not usually indicated in the dye recipes in this book. The colors obtained from each dye recipe with each of the differently mordanted yarns are illustrated at the back of this book. The sample numbers correspond to the recipe numbers in the text, and each dye set is separated from the next by a piece of white yarn. Within each sample set, the yarns are arranged according to the mordant used, in the following order: alum, chrome, copper, iron, chrome/iron, and tin unless otherwise indicated. Hawaii is a special place, and so are its plants. The Islands present us with a rich and diversified flora. Native plants are either endemic or indigenous. The famous Maui silversword is endemic to Hawaii; the only place it grows in the world is within and outside the rim of Hale-

Preface

9

akala crater on the island of Maui. Indigenous plants are those found elsewhere but which c a m e to Hawaii without the help of man, such as the beach naupaka. Polynesianintroduced plants were brought to Hawaii by early Polynesian voyagers, prior to the arrival of Captain C o o k in

10

Preface

1 7 7 8 . Examples are breadfruit and ti. Plants introduced after this date are classified as exotic. Most ornamentals, fruits, and vegetables found in Hawaii today belong to this group. Native or not, almost all of them are potential sources of natural dyes.

PART ONE

Dyes of Old Hawaii

DYES OF OLD HAWAII

TAPA CLOTH Hawaiian people, like those of other cultures in tropical regions around the world, produced a cloth by beating and matting the inner bark of certain trees, and decorating it with natural dyes. Hawaiians called the cloth kapa or tapa. Accurate details of methods of producing and dyeing tapa were lost when this craft was discontinued in Hawaii decades ago. In addition many of the rituals observed in dyeing tapa were kept secret, and only a few Hawaiians broke the kapu (taboo). But today in Hawaii, with the growing awareness of a cultural heritage and love for the land, there is also a search for authenticity in Hawaiian crafts. In all of Polynesia, Hawaiians produced the finest tapa and applied the greatest variety of color and pattern to its surface. The inner bark of the paper mulberry (wauke) was the best source for the finest tapa, but the inner barks of breadfruit ('ulu) and hibiscus (hau) were also used. A complex process of soaking and beating the inner bark with heavy, wooden, patterned beaters produced the paper-like, tan-colored cloth. For ceremonial purposes the tapa was left undecorated, while tapa used for most other purposes, such as clothing, was decorated with paints or dyes. Natural dyes can be plant, animal, or mineral in origin. The tapa makers of ancient Hawaii almost always obtained their dyes from plants, using particularly bark, roots, and fruits—rarely flowers and leaves.

TRADITIONAL DYE SOURCES Yellows, oranges, and golds were obtained from the tuber of the turmeric ('olena), a ginger variety which used to grow abundantly in wet cultivated valleys. The kukui tree provided browns from the inner bark of the trunk, and black from the burnt soot of the ripe nuts. The large, bitter-tasting berries of the native raspberry ('akala), a plant found growing only in the upper rain forests, gave lavenders and pinks. Reds were extracted from the leaves of ferns, the stem bark of the Indian mulberry (noni), and bixa seeds. A choice blue originated from the ripe berries of the dianella lilly ('uki'uki), and a rare green was ex-

tracted from the leaves and the green berries of the black nightshade (popolo) and from the leaves of the native Hawaiian cotton (ma'o). Mineral sources were occasionally used by the Hawaiians to dye tapa. The cloth was either submerged in a mudbath of red dirt and water, or soaked in a taro patch for several weeks. The sea urchin (wana), one of the few animal dye sources, was used at times to provide lavender. In Hawaii, dyes received their names according to their source, and not according to their actual hue. For example, color produced from the bark (hili) of the noni was referred to as hili noni.

TRADITIONAL DYE METHODS

Women made and later decorated the tapa cloth, while men were responsible for the production of the dyes By pounding the plant matter with a stone mortar and pestle, the dye was extracted and mixed with water to make an infusion. Mordants used by the Hawaiians to fix their dyes to the tapa were lime, seawater, and urine. Lime was obtained from burnt coral. The addition of lime to a dye changed the color of tapa drastically. For example, the inner bark of the noni gave a yellow color without lime, but red with lime. Different methods of color application were used in Hawaii. The two oldest were immersion and surface painting. In the immersion process the whole tapa or strips of tapa were placed in a cold or heated dyebath. Heating was done by placing hot stones in the dye liquid and submerging the tapa in the same bath. As a result the tapa was dyed on both sides. In order to obtain deep colors, the dyer often had to repeat this process several times. The second decorating technique was painting, a method not often utilized by Hawaiians. Tapa swabs or individual fruitlets of the hala tree were used to brush the natural dye pigments on the tapa and create a design pattern. Other methods of decorating tapa were overlaying, cord-snapping, and block printing. In the overlaying process a piece of colored tapa was bonded to an undyed piece and the two were permanently fused by being D y e s of Old Hawaii

1 3

pounded together. The result was one piece of tapa cloth with each side a different color. In the cord-snapping method, a cord was dipped into the dye, held taut over the tapa, and snapped back, leaving the image of the cord on the tapa. Block printing was done by carving

14

D y e s of Old Hawaii

geometric designs into pieces of bamboo stalks. These bamboo stamps were then dipped into the dye and pressed against the tapa. The most decorative tapa in all of Polynesia was made by this method.

PART TWO

Natural Dye Sources

NATURAL DYE SOURCES

PLANT DYES

Until 1 8 5 6 , when m a n - m a d e dyes were first invented, only natural sources, plant, animal, and mineral, supplied dyes to color yarn and fabric. Plants are the most c o m m o n providers of natural dyes. Any or all parts of a plant can be dye-producing—leaves, blossoms, bark, roots, tubers, fruits, and berries. While most plants are used fresh, others can be dried and used at a later date. Colors obtained from a particular plant can vary considerably from o n e dyebath to the next. Influencing factors are the kind of climate the plant grows in, the soil conditions, and the time of year the dye material is collected. Finally, the dyeing process itself affects the color result.

LICHENS

-Lichens are excellent sources of natural dyes, ranging in color from yellow to green, orange to brown, and pink to purple. Botanically, lichens are lower plants and are made up of two different organisms, algal cells and fungal threads. T h e algae produce the food and the fungi, surrounding the algae, provide protection for them. Lichens may be found on rocks, trees, and rotten logs in various geographical locations, in dry or wet climates, and at high or low altitudes. Since lichens are extremely sensitive to pollution, especially sulfur dioxide, it is not surprising to discover that they are extremely u n c o m m o n in downtown Honolulu, but present in downtown Hilo. It takes a long time for a patch of lichen to grow; therefore, it is of utmost importance that they not be over-collected to the point of extermination. Most lichens are substantive dyes; that is, they are taken up by the fiber directly, without the aid of a mordant. Basically, two methods are used to extract dyes from lichens, either steeping or boiling. After having collected the lichens, it should first be determined whether they are orchil-producing or not, which will in turn determine which extraction method to use. Orchil lichens contain a colorless acid, which, when mixed with a m m o n i a , will produce blues, reds, and purples in wool. T h e test is d o n e by adding a drop of bleach to a cut piece of fresh lichen. If the orchil-producing acid is present, the bleach will change the clear acid of the lichen to an orange color.

If this occurs the steeping method should be used. In order to extract the dye by this method, the lichen, one part of a m m o n i a to two to four parts of water, and the wool are placed in a jar and stored in a dark place for several days or even weeks. T h e color change of the yarn should be evident after ten days, if not earlier. Nonorchiling lichens, which do not respond to the bleach test, can be steeped or boiled to obtain beige, brown, and yellow hues. If copper is added to s o m e lichen baths, green dyes are extracted. Dyeing with lichens is very exciting, but again, it cannot be emphasized enough that care should be taken when collecting them. It may take a single colony half a century to grow, since lichens expand only a fraction of an inch per year. S o m e of them must be left at the collection site so that they may replenish themselves.

COLLECTING DYE PLANTS

Blossoms and leaves used as dye sources should generally be used fresh. An excellent time to gather leafy plant material is when a plant or hedge has to be trimmed or cut. Conserving natural products is particularly important when barks, heartwoods, or roots are selected as dye sources. T w o possibilities are feasible: o n e can watch and wait until a tree has to be trimmed or removed for various reasons, or o n e can approach the owner of a woodcarving shop and ask him to save various exotic wood shavings. Since woody dye matter retains its tinctorial quality even when dried, it can be stored for a long period of time. Most of the samples for this book were dyed with plant materials collected in Hawaii-Kai, Manoa, or Nuuanu; Hawaii-Kai is the driest part of Honolulu. Generally, I found that plant material from drier geographic locations produced brighter colors. W h e n dye plants were collected a day or two after a few days of rain, the intensity of the color obtained was to s o m e extent diminished.

A DYER'S GARDEN

For those who are interested in natural dyes and who own a h o m e with a yard, it is a delight to landscape with dye-yielding plants. Most casual observers will be unNatural Dye S o u r c e s

1 7

aware of the hidden wealth in your attractive garden. Particularly suitable in the ornamental category are plants such as ginger, aloe, wedelia, hibiscus, bixa, and silverdollar, all excellent sources for natural dyes. Most gingers look exotic, and s o m e have a lovely scent. Aloe can help sooth a minor burn; wedelia works well as an easy-care groundcover; a hibiscus hedge offers privacy, combined with lush foliage and attractive flowers; the bixa shrub is very ornamental, and its seeds add color to food. T h e round, grayish leaves of a silverdollar tree will add interest to any gardenscape. Ti plants for good luck, a patch of marigolds, and a few fruit trees, such as mango, fig, or avocado, will m a k e your dyer's garden almost complete.

POISONOUS PLANTS

T h e existence of poisonous plants in Hawaii should not be ignored by a n y o n e , particularly those of us who use plants as dye sources. T h e fact that most medicines o n c e were extracted from plants should m a k e one aware that plants are potentially dangerous and harmful. Most poisonous plants are harmful only when ingested. However, fumes inhaled while cooking such plants may cause dermatitis, slight temporary dizziness, headaches, or numbness. T o avoid such unpleasant experiences certain rules should be followed: 1. 2.

CONVENIENCE DYES

Natural " c o n v e n i e n c e " dyes can be classified into two groups. T h e first group includes those that have long been established as excellent natural dyes, such as cochineal, indigo, madder, and many exotic woods. All of them and more can be purchased from a natural dye supplier. T h e second group of natural dyes includes those that are food-related and can be bought in most grocery stores. Here in Hawaii one does not have to rely heavily on convenience dyes during the winter months since fresh plant sources are readily available almost continuously. However, it is interesting to see the wealth of natural dye possibilities in the supermarket. T h e following list shows only a few such sources: Beverages: T e a , coffee, grape juice Fruits: P o m e g r a n a t e , plums, purple grapes S e e d s : Annatto, sunflower Spices and sauces: Turmeric, paprika, chili powder, curry, saffron, soy sauce Vegetables: Onion skins, beets, watercress, purple cabbage, carrot tops Standard recipes for mordanting and dyeing, as described in the text, also apply to convenience dyes.

1 8

Natural Dye S o u r c e s

3. 4. 5.

6.

B e c o m e aware of and know poisonous plants by n a m e and sight. Never use a plant for dyeing unless you know it is non-poisonous. Refer to a reliable source for its nontoxicity. Poisonous Plants of Hawaii by Harry L. Arnold, M . D . , is an excellent reference book. Do not use toxic plants for dyeing. Generally, stay away from latex-producing plants as dye sources. Should a plant cause a sticky or milky dyebath, discontinue its use. It is normally not a good dye source anyway. Always work in a well-ventilated room, or out-ofdoors.

Not all parts of a single plant are necessarily poisonous. In s o m e cases, the fruits are edible, while the leaves are toxic. T h e green seeds of the kukui are a very powerful laxative when c o n s u m e d raw, but are safe to eat when baked. Extremely poisonous plants growing in Hawaii include all oleander varieties, crownflower, angel's trumpet, poinsettia, castor b e a n , coral plant, and apple of sodom. Individuals who are normally allergic to m a n g o e s or other plants, especially sap-producing ones, should probably not handle them in dye experiments.

PART THREE

Mordanting and Dyeing

EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES

FACILITIES Mordanting, a preliminary to natural dyeing, and the dyeing process itself can take place either indoors or outdoors. Indoor working areas should be well ventilated. For all dyeing purposes the kitchen stove, a portable burner, or even an outside fireplace can be used. Items once selected for dyeing, such as measuring spoons and cups, pots, stirring rods, or cooking chopsticks, should be used for mordanting and dyeing only, and kept separate from cooking utensils.

SUPPLIES NEEDED Several kinds of pots are suitable for dyeing—enamel, stainless steel, or glass. The 6 or 12 quart size is sufficient for most experimenting and for dyeing less than one pound of yarn.

Plastic bucket for rinsing Glass measuring cup Plastic measuring spoons Scale—postal or kitchen scale; should weigh between V2 ounce and 1 p o u n d accurately Wooden or glass rods, or cooking chopsticks for stirring Rubber gloves Cheesecloth or nylon hose for straining dye liquid Soap or detergent Chemicals as discussed in the section on mordants Knife and scissors, or clippers to cut plant material Masking tape Water-resistant marker Notebook

Mordanting and Dyeing

PREPARATION OF WOOL FOR MORDANTING AND DYEING

SKEINING Yarns must be m a d e into skeins prior to mordanting and dyeing. T h e weight of a skein can vary from o n e ounce to not more than four ounces. Skeins can be m a d e by wrapping the yarn around the back of a chair, around an elbow and bent wrist, on a skein winder, or around two pegs of a warping board. T h e two ends of each skein should be tied to each other securely with a firm knot. Additional ties have to be spaced at equal intervals around each skein with a different strong, colorfast yarn. T h e s e ties prevent any tangling that might otherwise occur during the mordanting and dyeing process. Each tie should be laced loosely through the skein o n c e or twice to keep the tie in place. T h e ends of each tie should be knotted securely to each other. An identification tag holding pertinent information such as mordant, dye source, and date can be placed around o n e of the tie threads. Masking tape folded back-to-back around a tie thread and marked with a waterproof pen is o n e of the simplest methods of identification.

CLEANING HANDSPUN WOOL Before wool can be dyed evenly, it must be absolutely free from dirt. Yarn that was spun "in the g r e a s e , " that is, spun directly from raw fleece, must be steeped and scoured. In the steeping process, skeins are placed in hot tap water and soaked until the water is cool. T h e purpose of steeping is to remove most of the superficial dirt and grease and to prevent felting. In the scouring process, which should follow the steeping process immediately, the wool is placed in a warm bath of soap and water, where it should remain until the water has cooled. T h e

Mordanting and Dyeing

procedure may have to be repeated two or three times, depending on the amount of grease and dirt in the wool. After scouring is completed, the wool should be rinsed in warm water until the water runs clear. T h e yarn can then be dried and stored or may be used immediately for dyeing.

NEUTRALIZING COMMERCIALLY PROCESSED WOOL If commercially spun yarn is used with natural dyes, it may be necessary to neutralize the fiber prior to mordanting and dyeing. This step is especially important if large quantities of wool are to be dyed the s a m e color. Different batches of factory-processed yarn may differ in level of acidity, which may cause variation in color after dyeing. There is no guarantee of uniform acidity of various skeins of yarn even though they may have been purchased from the same source at the same time. Neutralization removes this acidity in yarn, and should take place during the soaking stage prior to mordanting. Handspun or other evenly treated wool does not require neutralization.

Neutralizing Recipe Baking soda: 1 cup Water: 3 gallons W o o l : 1 pound

Place water in plastic or enamel container. Dissolve baking soda in small a m o u n t of hot water, add to other water and stir. Immerse dry wool for 1 2 hours or longer. "«