ECO PRINTING TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

Colorfast … bundling … dirty pot … What the heck do all of these words mean? Here is a list of common eco printing terms and their meaning or definition

If you have been researching natural dyeing and the various techniques then you have surely run across a few new words along the way.

So, I thought it might be helpful to create a list of common terms with a simple explanation … in layman’s terms!

Please note, these are purely my definitions and may be slightly different that other hand dyer’s meanings.

When I first started learning how to eco print, there was not very much information available online yet. I kind of had to scrape the internet to discover the meanings of some of these terms.

That has been a few years, though and there is much more comprehensive information available now. However, even today, it seems that many websites only give you partial information which can lead to some frustration.

So, here is a list of terms that are commonly used in this process along with my definition.

List of common terms:

• Eco Printing:
  • Meaning: A natural dyeing technique that utilizes plant materials to create prints on fabric, paper and other materials using heat and direct contact. This technique is also known as bundle dyeing, eco dyeing, leaf printing and contact printing.
• Mordant:
  • Meaning A substance, such as alum, iron, or copper, used to pre-treat fabric, paper, etc. to enhance the bonding of plant pigments during the natural dye process.
• Natural Fibers:
  • Meaning: Fabrics made from natural sources like cotton, bamboo, silk, linen, or wool.
• Plant Materials:
  • Meaning: Leaves, flowers, and other botanical elements. In eco-printing or natural dyeing, you will ideally choose specific plant materials for their pigment content and visual appeal. (Here is a list of the best flowers and leaves)
• Bundling:
  • Meaning: The process of tightly folding and/or rolling the material to be printed around arranged plant materials, blankets and/or barriers before binding, creating a compact bundle.
• Binding:
  • Meaning: Securing the bundled fabric and plant materials with twine, fabric or string, for example, to ensure a close contact between the layers, allowing for optimal pigment transfer.
  • Meaning: Securing the bundled fabric and plant materials with twine, fabric or string, for example, to ensure a close contact between the layers, allowing for optimal pigment transfer.
• Steam Fixing:
  • Meaning: Applying heat through steaming to set the plant pigments onto the receiving material.

• Boiling:
  • Meaning: The alternative to steaming, involves boiling the bundled fabric and plant materials to release and fix the pigments onto the fabric.
• Modifier:
  • Meaning: A substance that can alter or shift the color of the prints before, during or after the eco printing process.
• Saddening:
  • Meaning: Introducing iron as a modifier to darken or “sadden” the colors in the eco prints, creating a more subdued and earthy palette.
• Dirty Pot:
  • Meaning: A pot or container used for boiling eco bundles that contain dye materials and/or have residual pigments or modifiers.
• Blanket:
  • Meaning: A covering soaked in a modifier or dye that is placed over the receiving material and plant materials which adds ‘background color’ to the final print.

• Colorfast:
  • Meaning: Refers to the ability of the natural colors to resist fading or bleeding when exposed to water, light, or washing.
• Tannin:
  • Meaning: A compound in many plants that acts as a natural mordant and can contribute colors and prints during dyeing.
• Soy Milk Binder:
  • Meaning: A natural binder made from soybeans that adds protein to cellulose fibers and helps the dyes to adhere to the fibers.
• pH Testing:
  • Meaning: Testing the acidity or alkalinity of water or dye baths.
• Heat-Set:
  • Meaning: The process of using heat to fix or set plant pigments onto the fabric, often done after boiling or steaming.
• Ferrous Water:
  • Meaning: Liquid containing iron, used as a natural modifier in eco printing to create dark and muted tones on fabric.
• Dye Journal:
  • Meaning: A personal log or notebook where for documenting the exact steps of a natural dye project. This includes the plant materials used, fiber content, dye bath recipes, and results.
• Overdyeing:
  • Meaning: Applying additional layers of dyes to previously eco-printed fabric to adjust the final color palette.
• Fugitive Colors:
  • Meaning: Colors that may fade over time or with exposure to light and air, characteristic of some plant-based dyes.
• Dye Extraction:
  • Meaning: The process of extracting pigments from plant materials using water, heat, or other methods to create dye baths.

This is, by no means, an exhaustive list of the terms used in eco printing. I will continue to add update this list as I find more definitions so please go ahead and bookmark this page.

Also, if you know of any specific terms or phrases that should be added, please let me know!

Happy Dyeing!
Annette

You can find more information at Threadborne site

ECO PRINTING TERMS AND DEFINITIONS