India’s affair with Indigo dates back to many centuries. Their love – hate relationship is full of drama and has inspired not just designers by poets, writers, and artists throughout the world. Some of you might wonder – what is indigo and why is it suddenly so important? Well friends, this past week marked the centenary of the Champaran agitation movement and I was chosen in my department to deliver a lecture to commemorate the same. Inspired by the research, that I did for my lecture I have come up with an Indigo jewelry collection. Called Blue gold after the precious indigo dye, my collection is a tribute to the dye makers of rural indigo who colour the world.
Indigo dye – an introduction
Indigo, or indigotin, is a dyestuff originally extracted from the varieties of the indigo and woad plants like Indigo tinctoria and indigofera suffructiosa. Natural Indigo dye is a precious commodity (called blue gold) because plant leaves contain only about small amount of the dye. Furthermore, the dye extraction is a laborious process.
Indigo has a deep connection with the evolution of textiles of India, ranging from dyeing techniques to block printing and hand painting. Its popularity can be owed to fact that the color to suit all skin tones. Moreover the natural dye fabric is soft for Indian summers and transcends both western and ethnic wear.
Centenary of Champaram Agitation
The year 2017 marks a 100 years of the champaran agitation when Mahatma Gandhi used the subtle art of political persuasion along with civil disobedience to revolt against the pitiable conditions of indigo farmers and dye makers of India. Focusing on human values of equality and freedom the struggle was a catalyst for unleashing patriotism. Subsequently the heavy indigo taxes were withdrawn and wages were increased, and the Teen Katha system was abolished with the Champaran Agarian act of 1918.
While the agitation per se was against coercive exploitation of indigo, its centenary provides an opportunity to celebrate the natural dye so intrinsically part of Indian history and culture. It highlights sustainable practices, and ethical values that was woven into the narrative of the principled protests. It motivates us to contextualise indigo with regard to the design and fashion industry and support the ethical trade of indigo dyed products.
Blue gold – Indigo jewelry collection
As Indigo is a surface dye ( it does not permeate into the fibres) it fades easily. Consequently a number of shades of blue can be achieved through dyeing and washing. So, in my collection I have used these derivative blue tints, tones and shades propped up by accents of red, yellow, green and pink. The collection used metal components, ceramic beads, lampwork glass, wire wrapping and fabric bits. Come, Delve into the goodness of Indigo!
In this post (the first one on Indigo jewelry collection), Let me show you some of the earrings of the range. These earrings in shades of blue are all inspired by iconic block print motifs used in indigo textiles and the places they are created. The pieces are available for sale and they are all super light weight to wear.
Lattice Blue – Combined with a snowy blue ceramic bead and textured silver spacer are components with world famous Indian Jaali Work. The intricate Lattice charm is patinaed in an ombre of blue shades and accented with gold. These long danglers with artistic wire earhooks are light and very comfortable to wear.
Blue Daisy – Floral motifs are very common in Indian Batik and block prints and I have chosen daisy and evening primrose for this pair. The daisy is a dark blue with a silver center that has a subtle elegant sheen.It is wire wrapped to a lampwork bead with evening primrose motif. These long danglers with artistic wire earhooks are light and very comfortable to wear.
Woven daisy earrings – This pair of earrings combines the opulence of gold with the charm of old word indigo. The daisy is painted a silverish gold with metallic inks. I have woven dark and light blue thread in a spider stitch to create a basketry style finish. The tops are lampwork glass studs which are interchangeable with any other stud that you might own.
With that we come to the end of this showcase. I’ll blog about the Blue gold necklaces in my next post. Find a teaser in the above image. So how do like this concept and the Indigo jewelry collection so far? Do tell me in the comments.
All earrings showcased here are light on both weight and your pocket. They are available for sale. Please email or message me (on social media) to buy these economically handcrafted beauties.
Looking forward for your support as always. Check out the full collection at JewelsofSayuri on Facebook
Find the rest of the collection posts below:
Blue Gold earrings
Metal – Blue gold necklaces
Blue Gold Fabric Jewelry
I hope you found it interesting
Cheers
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