The Joy of Plant Dye is Using Plants You've Grown Yourself

Can you tell us about the background of establishing your shop?

Masako "The trigger to start plant dyeing was when I met a teacher who specialized in Safflower dyeing among other types of plant dyeing about 40 years ago. When my child-rearing settled down a bit, I learned Safflower dyeing from that teacher.

I seriously opened the shop when there were discussions about rebuilding our house. As part of rebuilding, we decided to create a shop.
I started a plant dyeing shop 33 years ago because it was a hobby, and I didn't start off with a strong desire to increase income. I seriously enjoyed plant dyeing and thought I could make a living while farming."

Hiroshi "Previously, I was working in a computer-related job, but since I've always loved crafting things and wanted to preserve the dye field my mother had built, I decided to help her with her work.
I entered Tohoku University of Art and Design as a research student and spent a year studying plant dyeing."

What types of plants are currently used for dyeing in your shop?

Masako "We cultivate the Safflower, Indigo, Japanese Madder, and other plants we use for dyeing on our organic field and primarily dye Yamagata's Washi, silk, Yamagata-grown cocoons, hemp, and other materials. One of our shop's special features is that all our works and products are hand-crafted.

First, we started growing herbs in the field. My daughter was studying herbs in Tokyo, so we started growing them while learning from her. It was over 30 years ago that we first planted herbs, and we didn't even know if they would grow in Yamagata at the time. I had planted various herbs in different places, so I had plenty of experiences where some plants grew well in certain locations but didn't grow well in others. That's how our current field was established through trial and error.

In addition to the herbs and flowers that I have grown, my son has gradually introduced dye plants that he learned about in university. As a result, the variety of plants we grow has gradually increased.

We currently have about 2,000 tsubo (approximately 6,600 square meters) of field space including the field managed by my son. We're growing a wide variety of plants, including Safflower, and conducting a wide range of dyeing processes from classical to modern. The reason we developed the field is that we wanted to dye with the plants we grew ourselves. I think many people who do plant dyeing think that way. However, most of them don't have a place to grow the plants. Fortunately, we're in the countryside, so we were able to plant a lot of different plants."

You mentioned that the number of plants cultivated has gradually increased, but how do you select the varieties to plant in your field?

Masako "There are things that I plant because I want to dye them, and there are also times when I decide based on the overall color balance of the field. The field itself is like my canvas, so there are times when I plant things based on ideas like 'I want flowers of this color here' and 'It would be nice to have a tree like this'.

Because safflower has problems with continuous cropping, the safflower field from the previous year is left fallow for a year, and completely different varieties like turmeric and basil are planted in that field the next year. Turmeric was planted at my request. Okinawa is well-known as a producing region for turmeric and its distinctive feature is its rich color. On the other hand, the color of the ones in Yamagata is slightly lighter, but we grow a large amount in the dye plant field, so it is sufficiently dyed.

For Japanese madder, it is common to use alum as a mordant to stabilize the color, but we burn the camellia from our dye plant field, turn it into ash, boil it, and use it as a mordant. This is also an ancient Japanese technique.

Our motto is 'Let's do what we can do ourselves'. We just enjoy natural dyeing. Dyeing Yamagata's materials with plants grown in Hirashimizu. Previously, while wanting to deliver such products to the city center, I was making natural-dyed works and products.

However, in recent years, it has become easy to deliver products to the city center while being in Yamagata thanks to the internet. Still, there are many colors and textures that can't be fully conveyed through a screen, so there are many times when I still want customers to see the actual product and purchase it."

What kind of products are you currently making?

Masako "Our staple product is a two-color dyed scarf. We mainly dye Matsugaoka Silk from Tsuruoka City in Yamagata Prefecture with plants grown in our dye field. We do not use any chemicals or color-fixatives. As the color changes over time, you can add more dye to extend its life. To facilitate dye penetration, the ends of the fabric are finished by hand. It's a very soft and comfortable scarf.

In addition to that, we also have silk pouches and shawl pins. We also make Japanese paper tapestries and curtains, tied together with paper cords spun from the same Japanese paper that we dye with plants. We also make a hearth rug by inserting one by one paper cords spun from Japanese paper into linen dyed with persimmon tannin, and we make New Year and festive decorations, which bring good luck, by dyeing cocoons produced in the prefecture.

Basically, I just plant whatever grows in the field, and try to dye and make something with whatever grows. If I like it, I might make it into a product or grow more of it, but if I don't, it might just be used for ornamental purposes.

Our dye field is only about a 5-minute drive from our shop, so sometimes we bring customers who have purchased scarves or other products to the dye field to show them the origins of the plants. Also, when our customers have their products sent as a gift, we sometimes include a seasonal bouquet from our dye field as a service."

The Red Pigment in Safflower Makes Up Just 1%

Please tell us about the fun and features of natural dyeing.

Hiroshi "Plants change with the seasons. That's why one of the exciting aspects of plant dyeing is enjoying these changes.

These days, many things are dyed using chemical dyes, leading people to expect colors to remain constant. However, the color of plant dye changes gradually over time. Items dyed with safflower, in particular, can change color in response to sunlight and sweat, making them not suitable for everyday clothes.

Furthermore, the pigment content of plants changes depending on the climate of the year. The color can change not only after dyeing but also during the dyeing process. Even if the initial solution is dark in color, the color will fade as you dye more items and the amount of pigment in the solution decreases.

At our store, we do not immediately put items out for sale once they're dyed. We let them rest in a chest of drawers for about a year before offering them as merchandise. We don't sell items just because there's demand, we put them out when we feel the time is right.

One of the charms of plant dyeing is that you can enjoy it for a long time by adding color. A scarf can become faded and stained over time. When that happens, we dye it again, adding new color and enjoying a fresh palette. Stains can't be removed, so we create patterns to incorporate them. We hope that customers continue to enjoy their favorite scarves for a long time. In fact, many customers have asked us to dye their scarves again after about 10 years of use. Finally, we dye it black. There's not much black silk on the market, so it's often used and appreciated for its versatility, including for Buddhist rituals."

Could you tell us about the process and difficulties of dyeing with safflower, which is famous in Yamagata Prefecture?

Hiroshi "When we wash the harvested safflowers, the wash water contains pigments too. So, at our store, we don't waste this, but instead use it to extract color for dyeing.

The petals are to be made into 'beni-mochi'. We cut the water content, wrap them in a cloth, and let them rest for a few days, which produces a vivid red color. The reason for making beni-mochi is not only because it's easy to preserve, but also because in old times, it was a form that was easy to transport by 'kitamaesen' (northern-bound ships) to Edo. The process of making beni-mochi and sun-drying it is all done by hand.

The difficulty with safflower dyeing is the time and cost involved in extracting pure red. The red pigment in safflowers only makes up 1% of the total, the remaining 99% is yellow.
Because the red extracted from beni-mochi contains yellow pigments, if you dye as it is, it will finish in a soft red that includes yellow. When you want to dye with only pure red, you extract the red with plant fibers that do not absorb yellow, and then transfer the red to the silk fabric, finishing with only red dyeing.

For example, when dyeing one roll of fabric, we do what's called 'kanchu-zome', where we slowly dye in cold dye during winter when the threads are tightened and hard to dye. This is to avoid the color immediately setting into the fabric. Even if you put the fabric into the dye from the head, by the time you dye the end portion, the pigment concentration in the liquid has become thin, resulting in uneven color. So there's a need to devise ways to avoid that, like alternating the ends of the fabric when putting it into the dye.  

Even when dyeing one roll of fabric with one year's worth of red pigment from safflower (100 squares), it only dyes to a light pink. To dye it a deeper red, you need multiple times the amount of red pigment. Apparently, beni-mochi had roughly the same value as gold, so something dyed with safflower was a luxury item back in the day."

Pure red from safflower is not only precious but also difficult to handle properly.

Hiroshi "The red pigment of safflower can be altered and even disappear due to ultraviolet rays, human sweat, and saliva, so caution is needed not only during use but also during storage. However, as long as it's properly managed, the beautiful color can be maintained for hundreds of years."

What kind of customers frequently visit your store?

Hiroshi "We have visitors from both inside and outside of the prefecture, and recently, many people from overseas have started coming to our store and often purchase and send gifts. We've also seen an increase in orders from our online store. Once, someone brought in several scarves that their mother had used during her lifetime and asked us to redye them. After they were redyed, they were individually distributed to friends who held dear memories of the customer's mother. They were very pleased, and it was an experience that made us feel good as well."

Passing on 'The Beauty of Transience' to the Next Generation

Are there any initiatives you are undertaking to convey the appeal of plant dyeing?

Masako "I hope that we could have a permanent exhibition in museums in Yamagata.

It was a struggle to find a place to introduce safflower, but in July we were featured in NHK's '新日本風土記'."

Hiroshi "We have been using our website and Instagram to share the progress of our dye garden, works of plant dyeing products, and convey the charm of plant dyeing. We will continue to work with 100% natural dyes made from plants including safflower.

Recently, as we become more aware of the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), more people are starting to appreciate the transient nature of things. We hope to continue expressing the beauty of the transient through our plant dyeing, especially to a wider audience."