Natural Blue Dyes with Indigo and Woad - Thursday 11th and Friday 12th September - at Ria's Studio and Dye Garden, Congresbury (BS49)
Thursday 11th and Friday 12th September - 10am-4pm - at Ria Burns’ studio, Congresbury (BS49)
A two day deep dive into natural dyeing with woad and indigo. Hosted at Ria’s home studio and dye garden in Congresbury, the course will be a holistic approach to creating blues, from leaf to pigment!
Over the two days you will learn many ways to extract the blue pigment from the green plants of woad and Japanese indigo, starting with the simple and progressing to the complex.
Day One
To begin, Ria will take you on a tour of their dye garden, explaining how woad and indigo is grown and propagated. We will then harvest woad and Japanese indigo leaves from the garden, using them in basic processing techniques to create our first blues on silk fabric.
We will then will make an organic vat using pre-extracted indigo pigment to learn the science behind vat making. A gradient of blue samples using cotton fabric will be dyed using this vat.
At the end of the day we will dye some British wool yarn using weld and madder to produce yellows and reds, which we will overdye with woad in day two.
Day Two
After establishing the basic knowledge of indigo pigment extraction, participants will proceed to making a vat with fresh woad leaves. We’ll work collaboratively to make a an organic vat with woad from the garden, and use this to dye a selection of undyed and dyed British wool yarns.
At the end of the workshop we will collate all of the samples and marvel at the blue magic we have created!
You’ll will leave with a wide selection of dyed samples consisting of British wool yarn, cotton and silk fabric, lots of notes and the knowledge and confidence to work with woad and indigo in your own textile practice. If you like, you can also take home some Japanese indigo cuttings and woad seeds to grow your own blue!
This workshop is hands on, communal and collaborative. With an intentionally small class size (maximum 6 students), there will be plenty of opportunities to learn from Ria’s vast experience and knowledge of working with natural dyes.
Tea, coffee and some snacks will be provided but please bring a packed lunch on each day, or you can buy lunch from Cadbury Garden Centre (conveniently located over the road!).
Please wear comfortable clothing that you do no mind getting splashes of dye on, or bring an apron. If the weather is good we will be mostly working outside; please dress appropriately for this and bring sunscreen! In the event of poor weather we will work indoors. The dye garden could be muddy and slippy, so please wear appropriate footwear!
This workshop will be held at Ria’s home studio and dye garden at Woodlands, Smallway, Congresbury, Bristol, BS49 5AA. It’s accessible by public transport and there is parking available nearby.
Please email hello@riaburns.co.uk if you have any questions about this workshop.
STUDENT AND LOW WAGE DISCOUNT: Students or those on a low wage can save 15% off the ticket price of this or any other workshop using the code CONC15
Cancellation policy: We will provide a full refund for cancellations who give at least 7 days notice. If shorter notice is given, a refund will be offered if a replacement can be found for your place. As the number of students on this workshop is intentionally small, we reserve the right to cancel this workshop if there are not enough attendees - we will ensure plenty of notice is given if this occurs.
Thursday 11th and Friday 12th September - 10am-4pm - at Ria Burns’ studio, Congresbury (BS49)
A two day deep dive into natural dyeing with woad and indigo. Hosted at Ria’s home studio and dye garden in Congresbury, the course will be a holistic approach to creating blues, from leaf to pigment!
Over the two days you will learn many ways to extract the blue pigment from the green plants of woad and Japanese indigo, starting with the simple and progressing to the complex.
Day One
To begin, Ria will take you on a tour of their dye garden, explaining how woad and indigo is grown and propagated. We will then harvest woad and Japanese indigo leaves from the garden, using them in basic processing techniques to create our first blues on silk fabric.
We will then will make an organic vat using pre-extracted indigo pigment to learn the science behind vat making. A gradient of blue samples using cotton fabric will be dyed using this vat.
At the end of the day we will dye some British wool yarn using weld and madder to produce yellows and reds, which we will overdye with woad in day two.
Day Two
After establishing the basic knowledge of indigo pigment extraction, participants will proceed to making a vat with fresh woad leaves. We’ll work collaboratively to make a an organic vat with woad from the garden, and use this to dye a selection of undyed and dyed British wool yarns.
At the end of the workshop we will collate all of the samples and marvel at the blue magic we have created!
You’ll will leave with a wide selection of dyed samples consisting of British wool yarn, cotton and silk fabric, lots of notes and the knowledge and confidence to work with woad and indigo in your own textile practice. If you like, you can also take home some Japanese indigo cuttings and woad seeds to grow your own blue!
This workshop is hands on, communal and collaborative. With an intentionally small class size (maximum 6 students), there will be plenty of opportunities to learn from Ria’s vast experience and knowledge of working with natural dyes.
Tea, coffee and some snacks will be provided but please bring a packed lunch on each day, or you can buy lunch from Cadbury Garden Centre (conveniently located over the road!).
Please wear comfortable clothing that you do no mind getting splashes of dye on, or bring an apron. If the weather is good we will be mostly working outside; please dress appropriately for this and bring sunscreen! In the event of poor weather we will work indoors. The dye garden could be muddy and slippy, so please wear appropriate footwear!
This workshop will be held at Ria’s home studio and dye garden at Woodlands, Smallway, Congresbury, Bristol, BS49 5AA. It’s accessible by public transport and there is parking available nearby.
Please email hello@riaburns.co.uk if you have any questions about this workshop.
STUDENT AND LOW WAGE DISCOUNT: Students or those on a low wage can save 15% off the ticket price of this or any other workshop using the code CONC15
Cancellation policy: We will provide a full refund for cancellations who give at least 7 days notice. If shorter notice is given, a refund will be offered if a replacement can be found for your place. As the number of students on this workshop is intentionally small, we reserve the right to cancel this workshop if there are not enough attendees - we will ensure plenty of notice is given if this occurs.
Thursday 11th and Friday 12th September - 10am-4pm - at Ria Burns’ studio, Congresbury (BS49)
A two day deep dive into natural dyeing with woad and indigo. Hosted at Ria’s home studio and dye garden in Congresbury, the course will be a holistic approach to creating blues, from leaf to pigment!
Over the two days you will learn many ways to extract the blue pigment from the green plants of woad and Japanese indigo, starting with the simple and progressing to the complex.
Day One
To begin, Ria will take you on a tour of their dye garden, explaining how woad and indigo is grown and propagated. We will then harvest woad and Japanese indigo leaves from the garden, using them in basic processing techniques to create our first blues on silk fabric.
We will then will make an organic vat using pre-extracted indigo pigment to learn the science behind vat making. A gradient of blue samples using cotton fabric will be dyed using this vat.
At the end of the day we will dye some British wool yarn using weld and madder to produce yellows and reds, which we will overdye with woad in day two.
Day Two
After establishing the basic knowledge of indigo pigment extraction, participants will proceed to making a vat with fresh woad leaves. We’ll work collaboratively to make a an organic vat with woad from the garden, and use this to dye a selection of undyed and dyed British wool yarns.
At the end of the workshop we will collate all of the samples and marvel at the blue magic we have created!
You’ll will leave with a wide selection of dyed samples consisting of British wool yarn, cotton and silk fabric, lots of notes and the knowledge and confidence to work with woad and indigo in your own textile practice. If you like, you can also take home some Japanese indigo cuttings and woad seeds to grow your own blue!
This workshop is hands on, communal and collaborative. With an intentionally small class size (maximum 6 students), there will be plenty of opportunities to learn from Ria’s vast experience and knowledge of working with natural dyes.
Tea, coffee and some snacks will be provided but please bring a packed lunch on each day, or you can buy lunch from Cadbury Garden Centre (conveniently located over the road!).
Please wear comfortable clothing that you do no mind getting splashes of dye on, or bring an apron. If the weather is good we will be mostly working outside; please dress appropriately for this and bring sunscreen! In the event of poor weather we will work indoors. The dye garden could be muddy and slippy, so please wear appropriate footwear!
This workshop will be held at Ria’s home studio and dye garden at Woodlands, Smallway, Congresbury, Bristol, BS49 5AA. It’s accessible by public transport and there is parking available nearby.
Please email hello@riaburns.co.uk if you have any questions about this workshop.
STUDENT AND LOW WAGE DISCOUNT: Students or those on a low wage can save 15% off the ticket price of this or any other workshop using the code CONC15
Cancellation policy: We will provide a full refund for cancellations who give at least 7 days notice. If shorter notice is given, a refund will be offered if a replacement can be found for your place. As the number of students on this workshop is intentionally small, we reserve the right to cancel this workshop if there are not enough attendees - we will ensure plenty of notice is given if this occurs.
