We are often asked how to wash African Indigo. And it can certainly be done, but it should be done with care! Please review these tips for caring for your vintage African Indigo so that you can enjoy the rich and wonderful hues of this organic dye without compromising too much in the way of crocking, bleeding or fading.
Crocking is the color transfer that occurs when your indigo fabric rubs against your furniture, other textiles, or your skin. It happens when the dye has not fully adhered to the fabric. The chemistry of the indigo dye makes crocking an undesirable, yet unavoidable result of this particular dye process.
Indigo dye adheres to the exterior of the cotton fiber and gets trapped in between the fibers, rather than soaking into the fiber and being fully absorbed. The BEAUTY in this fact is that through multiple washings and through casual wear, the textile may reveal the white fibers in time, giving the fabric and soft and feathered mix of deep indigos and whites of the fibers.
Some of our most treasured indigo finds have embodied this characteristic. As a result though, it is why to be aware that friction may break the ends of the fibers and release the pent up dyes onto your hands and clothing.
The longer the indigo dye has lived its life and the more washes and wear it has seen, the more fast the dyes become.
We recommend that you only DRY CLEAN your indigo pillows if you must wash them.
Color bleed is another unfortunate aspect to be aware of and try to avoid with your indigo pieces. This particular process occurs when the fabric gets wet and the dye subsequently leaches out of the fibers and adheres to other nearby fibers.
This commonly occurs in the washing machine and can result in color transfer between items in the load. Because many of our pillows are paired with a lighter organic cotton material, this is certainly an area of concern.
Color fading is when the fabric has lost much of its dye and therefore lacks vibrancy and depth of color.
Our vintage piece range in age, and while the desired shade of indigo is often achieved by the number of times it is dipped into the dye, it is also possible to guess the age of the indigo by its more worn color. In the image above, you can see the variety of slub in the textiles, as well as the shades achieved by the amount of indigo absorbed, and in addition to that the indigo that has released over time to reveal a more worn texture and color. All of these variations of the African Indigo make them unique and desirable.
If you have a bright white slubby linen sofa made of 100% cotton, linen, ramie or other organic (not synthetic) material then we recommend that you consider the more aged and faded, and thus color fast, indigo options. We are always happy to go out and source something specific to suit your needs!
https://dengarden.com/cleaning/How-to-Prevent-Fabric-Color-Transfer-Bleeding-and-Fading
