Turkish University Tests Natural Dyes for Textiles

Turkish University Tests Natural Dyes for Textiles

As the denim and apparel industry moves toward more natural materials and inputs, some are leading the changes in developing those materials for an industry in need. That’s one of the things that faculty and students at Dokuz Eylül University in İzmir, Turkey, are working on.

In the Faculty of Fine Arts, Textile and Fashion Design Department, there are three Bachelor’s Degree majors, plus post graduate education in the Institute of Fine Arts at Faculty of Fine Arts. Each is designed to train creative and innovative designer candidates to the textile and fashion sector, according to Professor Dr. Özlenen ERDEM İŞMAL.

Currently, one study is focused on using natural dyes in place of their more synthetic counterparts.

“The study entitled, ‘Experimental ecoprint designs by using natural dyes and TENCEL™ lyocell fabrics,’ was conducted within the frame of Bachelor’s Degree graduation project,” Özlenen said. “We have combined science, art and design altogether in this project by dyeing TENCEL™ lyocell fabrics with natural dyes and patterning with plants which were used as stamps and stencils.”

Hear from both professor and student on how the project could change the landscape for natural dyes.

Carved in Blue: Where are the students from? What year are they graduating?

Özlenen: There have been Turkish and international students in our university. Textile and Fashion Design Department offers four-year of Bachelor’s Degree in three majors; Textile Design, Fashion Apparel Design and Accessories Design. The Department is the first and only one state institution providing education in three fields as Textile Design, Apparel Design and Accessories Design to serve Textile and Fashion Design sector. Our students take courses in art, design, technology, fashion marketing, CAD, trend analysis etc. during their four-year education. They also represent the department and faculty successfully in national and international platforms and are awarded in many design competitions such as home textiles, garment textiles, weaving and printing fabric designs, fashion, clothing, accessories, leather, jewelry, shoes, carpets. We continually improve our education with contemporary approaches, innovative methods, R&D projects along with the university-industry collaborations, academic and art/design activities. Within this scope, we organize seminars, interviews and career days with the company owners and designers who take place in the sector.

Carved in Blue: Where do your students prefer to work after they graduate?

Özlenen: Some students can prefer to work in textile companies, textile factories, design studios, design centers, fashion houses, art studios, shoe and bag producers, universities, etc., while some of them prefer work as freelance designers. Some of the main fields for our students are weaving, knitting, printing, ready-to wear, furnishings, interior textiles, fashion, leather, saddlery, jewelry.

Carved in Blue: What are the projects are you working on with the students?

Özlenen: The study entitled “Experimental ecoprint designs by using natural dyes and TENCEL™  Lyocell fabrics” was conducted within the frame of Bachelor’s Degree graduation project. We have combined science, art and design altogether in this project by dyeing TENCEL™ lyocell fabrics with natural dyes and patterning with plants which were used as stamps and stencils.

Nowadays natural dyes are one of the main areas of textile researches and important in terms of sustainable and ecological textiles, niche market and value-added unique textiles. We have been using industrial/agricultural wastes and by-products and various parts of plants, fruits and vegetables such as leaves, roots, barks, skins, peels, seeds. Especially wastes/by-products from food and beverage industries and agriculture are becoming increasingly popular as alternative and novel natural dye sources. Valorization of these wastes/by-products is of economic and ecological value. In this context, we have included two novel natural dyes in the scientific literature; prina (by-product of olive oil production) and outer green shells of almond (agricultural waste) through our research projects. We do not expect natural dyes to replace wholly synthetic dyes. However, they have proven themselves as rich sources and complementary alternatives to synthetic dyes to produce value-added textiles with unique properties.

Carved in Blue: Can you tell us more about the environmental savings with the natural dye?

Özlenen: First of all, natural dyes are renewable sources. Only water, low amounts of metal mordants (preferably alum, iron) and bio mordants are being used in our natural dye applications. No other chemicals, auxiliaries, salts, acids, bases, solvents, etc. Comparing with synthetic dyes, natural dyeing could be cost effective depending on the kind of natural dye, mordant and dyeing method. In one of my articles, the cost of wool dyeing with prina was compared with acid dyeing.

Carved in Blue: Why do you prefer to use TENCEL™ fabric for the projects?

Özlenen: Combining natural dyes with an environmentally friendly fiber like TENCEL™ lyocell would be beneficial in terms of sustainability. It is believed that the best results in natural dyeing applications are obtained with protein fibers such as silk, wool. However, satisfactory results can also be achieved with cellulosic fibers like cotton, viscose, lyocell etc. in case of using optimum recipes and working conditions. This study proved that successful results could be also obtained with a man-made regenerated cellulosic fiber TENCEL™ lyocell. Many thanks to Lenzing-AG (Austria) and Apparel Project Manager Dr. Hale Bahar Öztürk for their intense efforts and supply of TENCEL™ fabrics used in the project. We closely follow Lenzing and appreciate its production strategies, contribution to education, and sensitivity to university-industry cooperation. Recently, we have seen with pleasure in Lenzing fabric catalogs how much TENCEL™ lyocell and its blends have been developed. We would like to continue our works with these new types of fabrics.

To get some insight from one of the students studying at Dokuz Eylül University, Carved in Blue also caught up with Özge ÖZEN whose Bachelor’s degree graduation project was “Experimental ecoprint designs by using natural dyes and TENCEL™ Lyocell fabrics”.

Carved in Blue: What did you study at this University?

Özge: In my four-year training process, I studied basic courses related to textile design and production in the fields of weaving and printing designs (interior design, garment-clothing design) and also had the education of the artistic textile design and computer-aided printing and weaving design by taking advantage of interdisciplinary interactions and studies that contain innovative ideas.

Carved in Blue: What did you gain from this project?

Özge: I experimented on how to work with natural dyes, how to create a natural dye color gamut and how to make the most clear, vivid and sharp patterns with plants using different mordants or materials. In contrast to general opinion that satisfactory results can be achieved with protein fibers such as wool, silk etc. in natural coloring and eco-printing, we have used a regenerated cellulosic man-made fabric successfully in this project. Within the scope of sustainability, unique textile designs and high value-added products were achieved by using renewable natural colorants and an environmentally friendly fiber. Our department follows the developments in the sector and cares about university-industry cooperation. In this context, I am very pleased to use TENCEL™ lyocell fabric in my project thanks to vision of my advisor Prof. Dr. Özlenen ERDEM İŞMAL. I would like to thank Lenzing and apparel project manager Dr. Hale Bahar Öztürk for their valuable support in my project.

Carved in Blue: What change do you want to see in the textile industry? Where do you want to make an impact?

Özge: In the textile industry, I want to create unique designs by using eco-friendly textile materials and textile printing technology with natural dyes. Thus, I am aiming to protect the balance of nature without damaging the environment and human health. In my opinion, inter-disciplinary interactions should be intensified with collaboration of textile designers and engineers in the light of technology. New natural dye sources should be found out by researches and they should contribute to protecting of existing resources.

Carved in Blue: What is your dream Job in textiles? 

Özge: Being a textile designer who is keen on nature and ecological products, I would like to produce original designs by working with natural materials. I would like to add innovations to my work by establishing workshops and creating my own brand. I would like to improve myself by reading, learning new topics and also making an academic career.

Carved in Blue: What does Carved in Blue mean to you?

Özge: I think that the use of TENCEL™ lyocell, an environmental friendly fiber that has an important role in the development of environmentally sustainable textiles, is a great plus for denim and raises its value. I think that this fiber is standing out due to it is nature and eco-friendly attribute, while providing a more flexible, durable form to denim as it brings a new approach to denim with its natural breathability, strength, softness, high moisture permeability, comfort and its recyclability.