Recette de teinture aux graines de roucou

Annatto Seed Dye Recipe

The Opportunity for Women association is happy to welcome you back for this new installment of our series “The secrets of plant dyes”. Did you like our dye recipes with bauhinia bark and yam root? Discover today our article on a plant much appreciated by dyers: roucou!

What is roucou?

The roucou, also called annatto or rocouyer, is a fruit tree that produces burrs, which contain the famous seeds. The fruit, in itself, is not edible but, once dried, it is possible to extract the wax that surrounds its seeds, to use it for various purposes: culinary, medicinal and dyeing. The shrub grows very quickly: the fruits can already be harvested 90 days after flowering!

The roucou fruit is halfway between the chestnut and the passion fruit!

Did you know?

Although native to South America, this plant has traveled to Southeast Asia, stopping in Europe. You have certainly already come across it on your way, even if its name is not familiar to you. And for good reason!

Annatto seeds are omnipresent in our industrial food products, since they are one of the main colouring agents. For example, they are responsible for the bright orange colour of mimolette or haddock!

It is also used in other areas, such as the pharmaceutical or cosmetic industry: roucou seed oil facilitates tanning. In decoration, know that it can also be used to tint bamboo and rattan.

Finally, if we go back in time, the American Indians used it to make their body paints, which earned them the nickname “Redskins”! This plant is not toxic to the skin, quite the contrary.

You wish learn more and know where to find roucou seeds , to test our dye recipe for yourself?

Mrs. Thao Vu's Dyeing Class

Vietnamese weavers experimented with a dye recipe using roucou seeds to dye their cotton threads a bright orange. What a pleasure to discover the colorful photos of their dyeing class! The craftswomen, guided by their teacher Mrs. Thao Vu, dyed several textile samples and listed the different steps necessary to obtain the different shades of orange, with the aim of creating a color catalog.

The vegetable dyeing teacher, Mrs. Thao Vu, is also a fashion designer.

The recipe for vegetable dye

For this dyeing class, the weavers needed only two ingredients: annatto seeds and cream of tartar!

Did you miss our previous articles and want to know more about washing and mordanting cotton, the essential steps that precede dyeing? Here is a  catch-up course ! Plus, we tell you everything about cream of tartar.

And now, follow the recipe in pictures with the weavers of the Lao ethnic group!

Above, from left to right:

Weavers No, Pom and Giot open the bugs to collect the roucou seeds.

It tickles more than it stings!

The seeds are left to soak overnight in a basin of water at room temperature to extract the coloring. What a beautiful orange hue!

Once the seeds are infused, they are pressed and filtered:

We only keep the tinted water, which serves as a dye bath.

Above, from left to right:

Vi Thi Xien and Pom dye a cotton cloth orange.

To do this, they have to boil the cotton in the dye bath for 45 minutes!

Above :

The weavers hang their freshly dyed cotton threads out of the sun to dry. Nice work!

The weavers return from the dyeing class, their arms full of dyed cotton!

Our social and solidarity economy project in Vietnam

The weavers of the Dien Bien Phu cooperative were able to be trained thanks to the funding of this training by the Agir sa Vie foundation, as well as your donations to our association.

You wish support our projects, contribute to the development of weavers and the improvement of their daily lives?

Even a small gesture can help these women live their passion! Thank you!

 

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