Bai Tie-Dyeing

You might start thinking I`m obsessed with textile dyeing techniques…

The truth is I`m not obsessed, but it`s really hot in Shanghai lately and the blue and white colors of this kind of crafts give me a fresh and cool feeling like when sitting by the ocean.

But now let`s get back to the Bai tie-dyeing.

The Bai (which means “white” in Chinese) are a minority ethnic group living mostly in southwest China's Yunnan Province, more specifically in the Bai Autonomous Prefecture, where the textile tie-dyeing technique is passed on from generation to generation.

The Bai Tie dyeing industry in Zhoucheng village is 200 hundred years old, and so famous that in China the place is known as the “National Tie-dyeing hometown”.

The concept behind tie-dyeing is basically to prevent some areas of the cloth from absorbing the dye, which is achieved through tying parts of the fabric using knots, threads, etc. The color of the parts reached by the dye reaches changes, but the restricted parts stay untouched, creating an unlimited variety of patterns. 

Tie-dyeing process consists of the three parts of tying, dyeing and rinsing before hanging the fabric out to dry.

The fabric, usually a white cotton cloth, is tied, twisted, folded and sewn into various patterns by hand, and it could take several days to prepare the required pattern. Multicolored pieces need to be tied and dyed twice, imagine how complicated the procedure can be!

The tying process

The tied white cloth is soaked into the dye pot and taken out for dry; the procedure is repeated twice a day and continued for seven days.

The dye is made of woad leaves, which are fermented in a pit until they are indigo in color. In Chinese traditional medicine is believed that this plant has anti-inflammatory and detoxing effects, beneficial to health. Its qualities would also make Bai tie-dyed garments and bedding comfortable to wear and soothing to the skin, especially in hot weather.

The stitches are then carefully removed one by one, the cloth is rinsed and hung out to dry.

Before removing the stitches

The more than 1,000 tie-dye design patterns reflect Bai history, culture and customs, and include flowers, plants, bees, butterflies, fish, folk characters and symbols, most of which are wishes for auspiciousness and good luck.

Fish pattern

Complicated flower and geometrical pattern

The manual skills developed over time and passed down from generation to generation make each work a unique masterpiece! It`s really amazing!

It`s still boiling hot out there, but I feel refreshed! What about you? :)