March 2010

  

Cochinilla, Berrimilla

I have been undertaking some tests on cochineal. In so doing I have discovered some facts about how it is bought, sold and used, and the attitudes of different dyers to knowing the source of their dyestuffs.

To start at the beginning; I know the exact source of the cochineal I am testing. But to make sense of a test dye I wanted to compare it to another sample. So I ordered a quantity from my usual suppliers.

I am implying no criticism of suppliers who have their own complicated issues to deal with. But when I phoned mine, they were unable to give me a place or country of origin because they buy from a wholesaler. Wholesalers can, it seems, be reluctant to disclose a source and it is not mandatory to declare one. Were they to declare a source, there is no legislation that supports buyers if the information is incorrect. In any case, they may well blend supplies from more than one source.

Buying a natural product for dyes has always been a problem, as I know from my own research into the nineteenth century orchil-lichen trade. Back then, agents often took lichen samples from bales in an incoming shipment waiting in port so that it could be tested in a Leeds lab for strength of colour. If it was acceptable, an offer was made and the bales bought. Sometimes, however, it was found to be of poor quality, or mixed with too much dirt and twigs, or maybe the costs of import could not be justified for a certain batch. All of these problems are still with us with the purchase of natural dyestuffs in an unpredictable market.

Rather to my surprise I also encountered a strong reaction in the attitudes of some natural dyers with whom I spoke or corresponded. Dyers seemed to divide into those that cared about every detail of the dyes they used, and those that feel that there are so many more overwhelming environmental problems besetting us that worrying about such things as the source of dyestuff is a waste of time.

Whilst accepting a certain logic in the opinions of the latter group, I prefer to site myself amonst the former and make enquiries about sources and supply, and find out as much as I can about the dyes I am using. Apart from anything else, customers are beginning to demand information too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Berrimilla arrivig in Hobart on March 1st 2010 after a historic circumnavigation via the North west Passage. Image courtesy of Dave Davey and Chris Palmer.