About Mud Cloth
Mud Cloth fabric is more than a beautiful hand painted work of art — it is an extraordinarily beautiful fabric incorporating many African proverbs. These cloths enrich our lives by providing us a peek into the mind and soul of the African culture. The unique and exotic colors and designs of mud cloth combine with an almost impossible to find hand spun and hand woven fabric to produce a rich and elegant textile. No extra meaning is needed to gain pleasure from this art form.
Women traditionally hand paint and design the cloths. A Mud Cloth artist is much like any western artist. Each concept must be taught or learned over a long period of time. A person working in the art of Mud Cloth painting must learn how to make each of the different dyes out of organic substances, as well as how each of the substances will react with the fabric and fixatives. The mud used to make mud cloth is usually mixed with water and then set aside to ferment for about one year.
The first step in painting the cloth is to place it in a solution that dyes the cloth yellow and acts as the fixative. Typically this is a tea made from the Bogolon tree which is native to Mali, West Africa. Using twigs or metal instruments the artist hand paints the designs onto the cloth with the mud, being careful to saturate the area so the mud won’t fade out. The tea acts as a fixative for the mud dye. The fabric is then washed and another layer of mud is applied over the first, and so on, for each color. The fabric is then dried and put in an organic solution to make the patterns appear darker. Finally, a soda is painted to areas that will be white. This bleaches the fabric causing it to regain its original white color. Mud Cloth is 100% Cotton and all dyes used are 100% natural.
In recent years fashion designers including Chris Seydou, have employed bògòlanfini in international clothing lines, while Malian painter Ishmael Diabate has developed it as a fine art form.
CARE OF MUD CLOTH
Mudcloth needs to be treated with care and it is suggested that Mud Cloth products are dry-cleaned only!
Mud Cloth products should not be exposed to long and continuous exposure to the sun as fading of colors may occur.
About Mud Cloth
Mud Cloth fabric is more than a beautiful hand painted work of art — it is an extraordinarily beautiful fabric incorporating many African proverbs. These cloths enrich our lives by providing us a peek into the mind and soul of the African culture. The unique and exotic colors and designs of mud cloth combine with an almost impossible to find hand spun and hand woven fabric to produce a rich and elegant textile. No extra meaning is needed to gain pleasure from this art form.
Women traditionally hand paint and design the cloths. A Mud Cloth artist is much like any western artist. Each concept must be taught or learned over a long period of time. A person working in the art of Mud Cloth painting must learn how to make each of the different dyes out of organic substances, as well as how each of the substances will react with the fabric and fixatives. The mud used to make mud cloth is usually mixed with water and then set aside to ferment for about one year.
The first step in painting the cloth is to place it in a solution that dyes the cloth yellow and acts as the fixative. Typically this is a tea made from the Bogolon tree which is native to Mali, West Africa. Using twigs or metal instruments the artist hand paints the designs onto the cloth with the mud, being careful to saturate the area so the mud won’t fade out. The tea acts as a fixative for the mud dye. The fabric is then washed and another layer of mud is applied over the first, and so on, for each color. The fabric is then dried and put in an organic solution to make the patterns appear darker. Finally, a soda is painted to areas that will be white. This bleaches the fabric causing it to regain its original white color. Mud Cloth is 100% Cotton and all dyes used are 100% natural.
In recent years fashion designers including Chris Seydou, have employed bògòlanfini in international clothing lines, while Malian painter Ishmael Diabate has developed it as a fine art form.
CARE OF MUD CLOTH
Mudcloth needs to be treated with care and it is suggested that Mud Cloth products are dry-cleaned only!
Mud Cloth products should not be exposed to long and continuous exposure to the sun as fading of colors may occur.
