Simple ‘Marbling’ Technique with Indigo

Create a unique hand-dyed textile using simple ingredients.

Resist dyeing is one of the oldest ways to create pattern on fabric. By protecting parts of the surface before dyeing, you can create everything from crisp white designs to beautifully cracked, marble-like textures.

In this tutorial I'll show you my favorite low-tech resist paste made from nothing more than flour and water, and how I use it with indigo to create organic, stone-like patterns without any specialized equipment.

• In Japanese shibori, the white zones are created by tying, folding, and stitching.
• In Indonesian batik, it is done by applying wax in intricate patterns.
• In German Blaudruck it is done with a starch mixture called 'papp'.
• India has Bandhani.
• Even Ikat is in a way, a resist dye technique. Just that the resist takes place at the thread stage, and not on the woven fabric.

There is a wonderful article online regarding many resist-dye practices from around the world that is worth looking at for your enjoyment here.

Preparing your fabric.

• Your fabric should be clean and scoured (or just well-washed)
• This tutorial is intended for natural fibers such as cotton, linen, silk, and wool. I have not tested this method on synthetic fabrics.
• Important: If you are working with indigo you will not need to mordant your fabric. For pretty much every other natural dye you will have to pre-mordant, rinse, and dry your fabric before applying the resist technique of your choice. I will address other natural dyes in a different post.
• If you are dyeing a garment, separate the layers using baking paper or recycled plastic bags (your resist will 'glue' the layers together and make it hard to handle).

How I make my resist paste is really quick and easy:

Resist Paste

• 300 g plain flour
• 400 ml water

Mix until smooth.

The consistency should resemble a thick pancake batter.

• Apply the Paste
• Brush onto the fabric.
• Avoid overly thick layers.
• Separate garment layers with plastic or baking paper.
• Allow to dry completely (approximately 24 hours).

Note in the following video I have put a barrier between the two layers of this silk and cotton shirt

• Do not apply the paste too thick.
• Let your fabric dry on a rack of sorts or hang it up in a dry and warm place and leave to dry until it is as stiff as a corpse. This will take at least 24 hours.
• Toss out any leftover resist because it becomes absolutely vile (stinky and too viscose)

Getting cracked.

Once the resist is completely dry, deliberately crack it. Every crack becomes a pathway for the indigo to enter the fabric.

Few cracks produce large white areas.

Many cracks create a fine marble effect.

• Fun tip: only crack the bottom or top part.
• Fun tip 2: play around with areas that are broken up more, and those that are broken less.
• Because this part is a bit rough, this technique is not so great for very delicate fabrics.

• Blue 'marble' effect on a white background - making the indigo solution
• You now have to make an indigo solution. You could just dump it in a vat, but a large piece makes it very hard. It will also require you to do front and back with paste or everything will just be blue. So I tried something else and this is what I did that worked very well:
• Mix 10 grams of indigo powder very very well with 100 ml of hot water and 20 grams of soda ash. Make sure there is no grit left, it should be completely smooth.
• Add 10 grams of sodium hydrosulfite. Wear a mask and gloves while doing this.
• Stir well and let this sit for 15 minutes, the mixture should turn green.
• Brush this mixture on your fabric. Be careful to not saturate the resist. It should stay rather dry. In the video you see how the solution seeps right into those cracks.

• Let this sit until the green has turned blue and your piece is dry again.
• Scrape or flick off most of the resist and rinse in plenty of cold water with a little vinegar, the vinegar is to neutralize the alkalinity of the soda ash.

If you have trouble removing all the starch, a bucket of cold water with half a cup of bran will solve your problem. Just let it soak for a few hours. Rinse once more.

I made a silk indigo marbled spectacle case, and a gorgeous flowing cotton skirt for myself. I will try to upload a blog asap on doing this technique with A; other resists, and B: other natural dyes.

Dear readers,

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