Traditional method of dyeing textiles with patterns
A nembok process in batik-making method, especially for batik tulis (handmade batik).
Batik, created using the technique of wax-resist dyeing, originated in Indonesia.
Resist dyeing (resist dyeing) is a traditional method of dyeing textiles with patterns. Techniques are used to \"resist\" or prevent the dye from reaching all the cloth, creating a design and ground. The most common forms use wax, some paste made from starch or mud, or a mechanical resist that manipulates the cloth, such as tying or stitching. Another form of resistance involves using a chemical agent in a specific type of dye to repel a different kind of dye printed over the top. The best-known varieties today include tie-dye, batik, and ikat.
Rōketsuzome printing wheels at Roketsuzome Yamamoto, Kyoto.
Guizhou Province, China, has a strong tradition of wax-resist dyeing.
Indonesia is known for its batik traditions.
In Japan, rōketsuzome (wax-resist dyeing), katazome (rice-paste stenciled resist dyeing), yūzen (freehand rice-paste resist dyeing), and tsutsugaki (freehand rice-paste resist dyeing, typically plain white patterns on an indigo ground) are all common resist dyeing techniques used on a variety of textiles.
In Africa, the Yoruba people of Nigeria use cassava paste as a resist, while the people of Senegal use rice paste. Madiba shirts are also well-known for their resist-dyed patterns.
Traditions using tying or stitching
Indonesia is well-known for the ikat weaving tradition, where the warp or weft is dyed before the fabric is woven. Warp and weft ikat are more common, with the double-ikat being rarer.
Indian textiles featured tied or stitched resists.
The Yoruba people of Nigeria produce Adire textiles, which are tied before being dyed with indigo.
In Japan, shibori is a tie-dye technique known for its use on kimono and other traditional textiles. It has been produced in Japan for centuries, following the technique\'s likely introduction from China.
Traditions using printing
In Japan, katazome and bingata use stenciled resist-dyeing methods to create highly-detailed resist-dyed fabrics. Beni itajime is a block-resist dyeing method that was common throughout the Meiji period (1868-1912) and used to make red-lining fabrics with crisp white designs.
In China, the jia xie method, invented around 500 AD, uses wooden blocks to dye patterns onto fabric, usually silk. An upper and a lower block is made, with carved-out compartments opening to the back, fitted with plugs. Traditionally folded several times, the cloth is inserted and clamped between the two blocks. By unplugging the different compartments and filling them with dyes of different colors, a multi-colored pattern can be printed over quite a large area of folded cloth.
Other traditions
A mix of modern and traditional Ukrainian pysanky
Ukraine, Russia, and Poland – Pysanka, with wax for eggs at Easter
