Natural Indigo Dye Makes a Comeback with New DIY Kit

Healdsburg, CA (July 23, 2009) – For centuries, the blues were a hard thing to come by. Indigo dye, used to turn fabrics into brilliant shades of blue, was hard to find and hard to extract. With the invention of a synthetic indigo dye over a century ago, natural forms of Indigo have all but vanished. Leave it to professional-quality dye and paint manufacturer, Jacquard Products, to reintroduce the lost form of natural indigo dyeing to the at-home dyer with its new Indigo Dye Kit.

Indigo, first used more than 4500 years ago, is most commonly known as a dyeing agent in blue jeans. Recently, other indigo dyed products including traditional ethnic patterns have become popular. The Indigo Dye Kit is an easy and affordable way to recreate an ancient craft and, as it so happens, create a very fashionable piece of clothing or fabric.

Each Indigo Dye Kit will dye up to 15 yards, or 5 lbs., of natural fabric (approximately 15 t-shirts). Included in each kit is a packet of pre-reduced Indigo, reducing agent, gloves, rubber bands, 2 wood blocks, quick start instructions and a full-length instruction booklet with dye patterns and an historical and cultural overview of indigo dye. Appropriate for all ages, if supervised. MSRP $19.95

Using the Indigo Dye Kit is easy. Empty the indigo dye packet and the reducing agent into 4 gallons of warm water, stirring until dissolved. Cover with a lid and allow the mixture to settle for 15- 30 minutes; this is an ideal time to fold and tie any fabrics being dyed. Next, wet any fabric being dyed with water and submerge it in the dye container for at least a minute. Remove the fabric from the container, and allow it to oxidize for 20 minutes. For best results, rinse the fabric and wash with a mild detergent.

Jacquard Products created the Indigo Dye Kit so that each kit can be used multiple times. The dye vat made from the kit will keep for a few weeks, so users can dye a bunch of pieces at once, or they can dye them one by one. That way, users can try their hand at the wide variety of dye patterns included in the kit’s instruction booklet, representing everything from traditional to modern looks.

The Indigo Dye Kit is the latest in a line of kits for at-home consumers from Jacquard Products, a producer of professional-quality paints and dyes for the past 30 years. To learn more about the Indigo Dye Kit, visit Jacquard Products at www.jacquardproducts.com/products/kits/indigodyekit/.