Resist Dyeing and Printing

Wax
Resist
(Batik)
Resist
dyein
g

Resist
Printin
g

Tie and
Dye
Fabric
resist
dyeing

Arashi
Shibori
Itajime
Bandhan
i
Tritik

Starch
resist
Warp and
Weft resist
dyeing

Ikat

Warp Double
ikat
ikat
Weft
ikat

Mud
Resist
(Ajrakh)

Stencili
ng

 The word is derived from the Japanese root verb shiboru, which
means to wring, squeeze,press
The basic technique of Shibori is to draw a design on a piece of
fabric(ususaaly cotton or silk), then to tie very tight knots when
they are untied there is apattern of dyed and undyed areas.
Shibori entered Japan around 1300 years go from China, along
with the Chinese style of dress, and was interpreted in a
particularly Jpanese fashion.
Traditionally , shibori was created by dyeing fabric in a
fermented indigo vat. Aiandigo has a long history in Africa,
China, Japan and India, where it is recorded in four thousand
year old Sanskrit documents. Egyptian Pharaohs buried their
gead in indigo dyed cloth.
Shibori was originally an art of the poor peasant Japan. The art
of shibori evolved as a means of making old clothes look new.
Three terms for separate shibori methods have come into
international usage:
Arashi Shibori
Itajime
Bandhani
Tritik
Ikat

Arashi Shibori
This is the kind of resist dyeing
where the fabric/yarn is pole
wrapped and dyed.
This technique in Japan was worked
using a long, tapered wooden pole.
The fabric was wrapped around
this and then wrapped with thread
every 10cm or so. Then it is
pushed down the pole to form
folds. This process continued until
all the fabric was wrapped and
compressed. The fabric was then
lowered into a long narrow vat of
indigo dye.
The western way of achieving this
fantastic technique is to wrap the
fabric around a short length of
plastic drainpipe before being
wrapped with a thread, the fabric is
pushed into folds to compress it
before immersing into a dye bath.

Tritik
Stitched resist, like tie and dye, prevents dye
reaching parts of the cloth. In Indonesia this
technique is known as tritik and in Nigeria as
adire alabere.
It is a commonly used technique in Japan,
Indonesia and West African countries of
Senegal, Mali, the Gambia, Sierra Leon,
Burkina Faso, Nigeria and Cameroon.
In some places of Indonesia (Sumatra) effects
are produced in combination of some other
resist technique along with stitched resist
technique, the process is called Selendangs.

Leharia and Mothara

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Marwaris ,
the dominant business community of Rajasthan and
India, wore elaborately tied, brightly coloured turbans
as their distinguishing mark. These turbans were
made by the leharia technique. This process is
continued to be practiced in the dyeing quarters of
Jodhpur, Jaipur , Udaipur and Nathdwara.
Long length or turban cloths are folded first in usual
width and across fold . Then the folded fabric is rolled
diagonally, ties are placed at intervals and the roll is
dyed. This way wavy resist lines are produced on the
cloth, known as leharia.
In case of mothara the long turban fabrics are
folded diagonally from one corner. Ties are placed at
regular intervals, dyed then unfolded and the process
is repeated from the opposite corner, hence check
patterns are produced.

Leheria

Mothara

Itajime- folded and bound/clamp resist

The process of folding fabrics and then clamping it between
boards or sticks originated in the 8th century, but with the
emergence of chemical dyes in the 19th century, the technique
begun to flourish.
Katano Arimatsu , who invented the arashi shibori has been
credited with developing the technique at Arimatsu, where the
technique is known as kekka shibori.
The fabric is folded into wide vertical pleats, subsequently
folded into squares, rectangles or triangles and then clamped
between two pieces of wood or similar material. The shapes of
the boards will determine the resulting pattern on the dyed
fabric. The bundle of fabric is then bound with a strong thread
or a clamping device. The pressure exerted during the binding
or clamping process will affect how the dye penetrates the
fabric.

Bandhani
This technique is used extensively in India, where it is
known as bandhani from which we get the word
'bandanna' - a silk neckcloth that was originally tiedyed.
Its an Indian term of plucking and binding cloth at
small points.
In one of the most traditional methods, now used less
frequently, the dampened fabric is placed over a
pattern block of raised pins. The cloth is pinched
between the thumb and index finger at each point and
tied with waxed thread.
A tie-dying method called lehariya is used in India for
turban cloths. Fine cloth such as muslin is folded
concertina-fashion and tied tightly at intervals. It is
dipped quickly in dye of a pale colour. Some areas are
then unrolled and the process is repeated with
progressively darker dyes, to build up a range of
colours in stripes.

Ikat
Ikat is a dyeing technique used to pattern textiles that employs aresist
dyeingprocess on thewarpfibres, theweft fibres, or in the rare and
costly 'double ikat' both warp and weft, prior to dyeing and weaving.
In ikat, the resist is formed by binding bundles of threads with a tight
wrapping applied in the desired pattern. The threads are then dyed. The
bindings may then be altered and the thread bundles dyed again with
another color to produce elaborate, multicolored patterns. When the
dyeing is finished the bindings are removed and the threads are woven
into cloth.
As woven fabric rarely survives for more than a few centuries it is
extremely difficult, if not impossible, to determine where the technique of
ikat originated. It probably developed in several different locations
independently. Ikat was known to be produced in severalpreColumbianCentral and South American cultures.

Warp Ikat
Ikat created bydyeingthe warp are simpler to make than either weft ikat or double ikat.
First the material, be itcotton,silk,woolor other, is tied into bundles. The bundles may be
covered with wax wrapped tightly with thread or some other dye-resistant material- to
prevent unwanted dye permeation. The resist dye procedure is repeated depending on the
colouration desired of the warp bundle. Warp threads are adjusted for the desired
alignment for precise motifs.

Weft Ikat
Weftikat uses resist-dye for theweftalone. The variance in colour of the weft means
precisely delineated patterns are more difficult to weave.

Double Ikat
Double Ikat is created by resist-dyeing both thewarandweftprior to weaving.
This form of weaving requires the most skill for precise patterns to be woven and is
considered the premiere form of ikat. Indian and Indonesian examples typify highly precise
double ikat. Especially prized are the double ikats woven in silk known in India and Indonesia

The Process
Step 1: The master weaver studies the design,
and calculates where the yarn needs to be tiedyed.
Step 2: Before the tying begins, the yarn has to
be collected into a length of 25 metres (length of
one warp on these looms).
Step 3: After the yarn is marked by the master
weaver, helpers (employed by the master weaver),
sit down to tie the yarn. A thick rope of many yarns
together is used for thin lines, and rubber is used
for
thick
or wider
white
Step
4: The
yarn is
tied patches.
and dyed repeatedly for
different colours. For example, if the pattern
above has to be replicated in blue and green, the
yarn is first tied in all places that are eventually
going to end up as either green or white. Then
the yarn is dipped into a vat of blue dye.
Step 5: The yarn is dried, and then all parts that
were dyed blue are now covered with rubber. The
parts that are meant to be white stay covered,
and the parts that are meant to be green are now
uncovered.
Step 6: Then the yarn is dipped into a vat full of
green dye, where the exposed yarn turns green.
Finally, the yarn is dried and all the covered parts
are untied.
Step 7: Once the yarn is completely dried, it is
ready to be woven.

Wax Resist
The application of a wax-resist before dyeing to form a pattern in
negative is most often referred to by the Javanese word batik.
Wax resist dyeing of fabric is an ancient art form. It already existed
inEgypt in the 4th century BC, where it was used to wrap mummies;
linen was soaked in wax, and scratched using a stylus. In Asia, the
technique was practiced in China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907
AD), and in India and Japan during theNara Period(645-794 AD).
Batik is practiced in India, Srilanka, China, South-East Asia, Turkey and
West-Africa, but in Indonesia, on the island of Java, the craft has been
brought to an acme of refinement. Nowhere else has wax-resist cloth
been so finely detailed.
Firstly, a cloth is washed, soaked and beaten with a large mallet.
Patterns are drawn with pencil and later redrawn using hot wax, usually
made from a mixture ofparaffinorbees wax, sometimes mixed with
plant resins, which functions as a dye-resist. The wax can be applied
with a variety of tools. A pen-like instrument called acanting. After the
cloth is dry, the resist is removed by scraping or boiling the cloth. The
areas treated with resist keep their original color; when the resist is

 The origins of batik are obscure, but what is certain is that the
Javanese invention of the canting waxing instrument enabled the
finest hand drawn batik to be produced.
In Java in the middle of the 19th century a very new technique of
wax resisting was evolved where engraved copper plates in the
line of early European printing blocks were used to create
negative pattern before resisting.

Starch Resist
In Nigeria and Japan starch is used as a
resist medium for designs on cloth to be
dyed with Indigo.
In Nigeria the starch is applied by hand.
The starch is derived from either cassava
or cornflower and known as lafun or eko.
The starch is applied on the whole cloth
and after drying the patterns are scrapped
on the surface of the fabric, then the whole
cloth is indigo died. Since the starch
applied is not completely impermeable so
the patterns assume some amount of dye
and the appearance of the cloth is light
blue motifs on dark indigo background. The
technique has a similarity to Indonesian
batik because the motifs are derived in
negative.
In Japan the starch resisting was very
popular and the application and patterning
was done either by hand or by stenciling.
The process is known as tsutsugaki if the
starch is applied by hand .
If the starch is applied by stencil then the
process is known as katazome. The starch
used is made of rice and known as tsutsu.

Stenciling
Stenciling is a widespread technique used either to implant a
design directly, or to apply starch in the dye-resist process. The
Japanese perfected this stenciling technique as early as 8 th
century .Their specialty of stenciling became famous as
katazome.
This was the mother process of the present day hugely popular
screen-printing process.Some other parts of the world has also
seen some advent of this process, like Afghanistan and India.
Katazome is aJapanesemethod ofdyeingfabrics using a
resistpasteapplied through astencil. With this kind of resist
dyeing, ariceflourmixture is applied using a brush or a tool such
as apalette knife. Pigment is added by hand-painting, immersion
or both. Where the paste mixture covers and permeates the
cloth, dye applied later will not penetrate.
One attraction of katazome was that it provided an inexpensive
way for over-all patterns similar to expensive woven brocadesto
be achieved on cotton. As with many everyday crafts of Japan it
developed into a respected art form of its own.Besides cotton,
katazome has been used to decoratelinen,silk and fabrics that
are all or partiallysynthetic.

Ajrakh
Ajrakh is a time-honored emblem for the local communities of Kachchh. Nomadic
pastoralist and agricultural communities like the Rabaris, Maldharis, and Ahirs wear
Ajrakh printed cloth as turbans, lungis, or stoles. It was given as a gift for the Muslim
festival of Eid, for bridegrooms, and for other special occasions.
Ajrakh is a rectangular cotton textile, traditionally worn by men as a shoulder mantle,
shawl or turban. It is believed that this word may have arrived from the arabic word
blue. Dominant colours are blue and red with some white retained and black used as
outlines.
The patterned configuration of an Ajrakh print is a mirror interpretation of the
trigonometric architectural symmetry in medieval Islamic structures encapsulating it
with the singular binding theory of the of the universe.
A bust of a priest-king excavated atMohenjo-daro, currently in theNational Museum of
Pakistan, shows him draped over one shoulder in a piece of cloth that resembles an
ajrak. Of special note are thetrefoil pattern etched on the person's garment
interspersed with small circles, the interiors of which were filled with a red pigment. This
symbol illustrates what is believed to be an edifice depicting the fusion of the three sundisks of the gods of the sun, water and the earth.Excavationselsewhere in theOld
World aroundMesopotamiahave yielded similar patterns appearing on various objects,
most notably on the royal couch ofTutankhamen. Similar patterns appear in recent ajrak
prints.

 The cloth is made in a sixteen step process of washing, dyeing,

printing, and drying, which requires a high level of skill and
concentration in order to keep colors fast and even. Pomegranate
seeds, gum, Harde powder, wood, flour of Kachika, flower of Dhavadi,
alizarine and locally cultivated Indigo are just some of the natural
resources that printers in this craft.
The process of 'Ajrakh' is a long drawn process with many stages
individually taking days to finish. The process is as follows:
Saaj
Cotton cloth is taken and washed to remove any finish applied in the
mill or workshop. It is generally the starch that is to be removed from
the cloth. The cloth is soaked in a solution of camel dung, soda ash and
castor oil. It is then wrung out and kept overnight. The next day the
cloth is semi-dried in the sun and then soaked in the solution again.
This
process of Saaj and drying is repeated for about 7-8 times until the
Kasano
cloth
foams
when rubbed.
It is then
The cloth
is washed
in a solution
of washed in plain water.
.Myrobalan; which is the powdered nut
of the Harde tree. Myrobalan acts as
the first mordant in the dyeing
process. The cloth is sun dried on
both sides. The excess myrobalan on
the cloth after drying is brushed off

Khariyanu
A resist of lime (used for whitewash) and gum arabic
(Babool tree resin) is printed onto the cloth to outline
the design motifs that will be white. This outline
printing is known as Rekh. The resist is printed to
both sides of the cloth using carved wooden blocks.
Kat
Scrap iron, jaggery is mixed with water and left for
about 20 days. This makes the water ferrous. This
ferrous water is then mixed with tamarind seed
powder and boiled into a paste. This paste is used for
black printing. This paste is called Kat. The paste is
printed onto both sides of the cloth.
Gach
Alum, clay and gum arabic are mixed into a paste
used for the next resist printing. A resist of lime and
gum arabic is also printed at this time. This combined
stage is called as Gach. Sawdust or finely powdered
cow dung is sprinkled on to the printed areas to
protect the clay from smudging.
Indigo dyeing

Vichharnu
The cloth is washed thoroughly to remove all of the resist print
and unfixed dye.

Rang
The cloth is then boiled with Alizarine (synthetic madder) to give
the alum-residue areas a bright red colour. Alum acts as a
mordant to help fix the red colour. The grey areas from the black
printing stages get a deep shade. For other colours the cloth is
boiled with a different dye. Madder root (Sanskrit. Manjishtha
root) gives an orange colour, Henna gives a light yellowish-green
colour, and Rhubarb root gives a pale brownish colour.

Heat Setting
Heat setting on fabrics is a technical approach of fabric manipulation
that provides a platform into some of the most creative and
innovative approaches to surface and textile design. This technique
enables a flat fabric to be transformed into structural and sculptural
forms.
All synthetic fibres will melt at a certain temperature, but below this
point they will often heat set into a different form. By tying, stitching
or clamping fabrics into folds before heating, various features can be
created.
100% Polyester organza, georgette, crepe and netting fabrics.
Polyester belongs to the group of Synthetic
Heat setting an effect caused by textile treatments, mainly Shibori.
In the process of Shibori, high temperature and suitable pressure are
applied to a fabric under controlled conditions, so that the physical
properties of the fabric are altered. In another words, the amount of
pressure and type of resist determine the 3D shapes created on
fabrics.
Shibori is more than creating patterns on cloth. It can turn fabric
from a two-dimensional into a three-dimensional object.
Quality of a fibre whose molecular structure breaks down and
becomes fluid at a certain temperature, making it possible to
reshape the fabric by pleating, moulding, vacuum-forming or
crushing. The fabric is fixed on cooling and cannot be altered unless

 In order to demonstrate the heat-setting property of

different materials, three kinds of shibori were
employed accordingly. There are numerous types of
shibori existing in the industry but these three types
of them can produce obvious sculptural effects that
demonstrate the heat-setting properties of fabrics.

1)Twisting and Binding- Spiderweb

shibori .

Thread-resisted ring (ne-maki) shibori is one of the

examples using twisting and binding
skills to
create sculptural effects and dyed patterns on cloth.
Marble shibori is a type of shibori that can
demonstrate knotting and binding techniques. In
the process of Shibori, marbles are wrapped around
by the cloth so that the cloth is heat-set to the
knotted and bound shape. Binding must be needed
for this shibori to be carried out.
Another shibori that combine twisting technique
would be spiderweb (Kumo) Shibori. Spiderweb
Shibori has a long history in Japan. In this shibori,
the cloth is finely twisted and bounded to create
delicate spider web pattern. If the shibori is done by
hand, much skills and time are required

2)Gathering and Knotting- Woodgrain Shibori

Gathers on fabric can be created by plucking or
stitching on 15 cloth. Both the methods
can produce intense creases on cloth. When
knotting combines with stitching technique,
it is used as a securing method for heat-setting the
fabric.
Plucking (yokobiki) shibori is a kind of shibori
that create gathering effect by plucking a
tiny bit of cloth and bind it with thread. The thread
is not bound very tightly as the
gathering effect
is the focus of this kind of plucking shibori.
A line of running stitch on one layer of fabric is
called wood grain (mokume) shibori. Usually the
stitching is done in parallel to the weft of fabric
as a shorter thread can be used. Theoretically,
the parallel stitching can be in any direction to
achieve the wood grain sculptural effect. A knot
is drawn up at the end of thread to hold the
gathers. Besides wood grain shibori, there are a
lot of variations by manipulating the folding of
cloth and the arrangement of stitches. For
example, Japanese larch (karamatsu) shibori,
linked circle (shippo-tsunagi) patterned shibori
and chevron stripes (maki-nui) shibori.

3)Folding and Clamping- Board-clamping Shibori

Among the different folding techniques, pleating is an important skill that has been used for
more than three hundred years in the history of Japan. Parallel strips of shapes and colors
can be set by pleating. It has a wide variation as the sizes, direction and patterns of
pleating vary according to designs.

Factors affecting Heat Setting:

The fiber content of fabric;
- The fabric structure of materials;
- The duration of heat-setting process;
- The temperature throughout the heat-setting process; and
- The amount of pressure applied (if any) onto the fabric

One of the most innovative fashion

designers who use the heat setting
technique is Issey Miyake. Issey
Miyake is fascinated by
the transformation of a twodimensional, flat
and inanimate fabric to the moving
sculptural
form it becomes when worn and
Issey
Miyake explore this by pleating
horizontally,
vertically and diagonally Texture
and form
are created simultaneously using this
process
which reacts with the memory of the
fabric,
resulting in permanently pleated
garments. 3
The few methods of production used
in this

Tsuyoshi Kuno
Tsuyoshi Kuno is a textile artist who
modernized shibori with highpressure and high-temperature
industrial chambers. His studio
reached high production of shibori
fabrics in early 1990s. Kuno is famous
for applying shibori on unusual
fabrics. As a young textile designer,
Kuno often cooperates with different
fashion designers and also designs
costumes and home textiles