JOURNAL

ATON indigo is dyed with Ryukyu indigo produced in Okinawa and dyed with Hon Aizome in Kyoto, where the water is clean and dyeing is very popular.

The natural and beautiful blue produced by this indigo dye is a unique colour with complex layers of depth and astringency that cannot be produced with chemical dyes.

Another distinctive feature of Honshu Aizome products is that the colour of the seam allowance, edges and other parts of the garment will blend in like a denim after use and washing.

In a turtle filled with indigo dye solution, the green-coloured cloth is removed and oxidised with oxygen in the air to produce a blue colour.

The blue colour of the indigo dye is adjusted by repeating the dyeing process. If the number of times it is repeated is small, the colour becomes lighter; if it is repeated more often, the colour becomes darker.

Unlike indigo from other regions, Ryukyu indigo has a less reddish colour and can reproduce modern colours, which is a characteristic of Ryukyu Honan indigo.

The raw material for Ryukyu indigo is a perennial plant of the foxglove family. The cut branches are soaked in water, the pigment content is extracted, lime is added and after vigorous stirring, mud indigo is produced to make indigo.

Mud indigo is produced in Izumi, Motobu-cho, Okinawa Prefecture (northern part of Okinawa's main island), the production area of Ryukyu indigo, and uses indigo made by Mr Morimasa Inoha, the only nationally selected preservation engineer for Ryukyu indigo production.

It is said that there are 48 colours of indigo.

The number 48 comes from the 48 wishes of the Pure Land sect, and is a very auspicious number for the Japanese.

The reason for such a large number of colours is that indigo dyeing is a unique dyeing technique, and it is to increase the density of the dye as it is dyed over and over.

It also has the unique feature of going through a 'fermentation' process at the dye-making stage, which is completely different from other plant dyeing methods. After the dye is exposed to air and light, it reacts with them to produce such an indigo colour.

The colour is easily influenced by the adjustment of the conditions of the water and indigo solution, which is also the reason for the variety of indigo colours.

The name of the indigo dyeing colour developed this time is "Kachi Iro", which is produced by repeating the dyeing and reaction process about 30 times.

The name comes from the fact that the indigo is pounded (called '搗(Katsu)' in japanese) during the indigo dyeing process, hence the name is '搗色(Kachi Iro)'.

It is also said that its dignified colouring was favoured by medieval warriors who respected quality and hardiness, and the sound of 'katsu' is the same meaning as 'victory' in japanese.

※The middle colour of the three indigo dyes is "kachi-iro".

Maxi-length flared dress with a large open collar.

The flared drape and the material's elegant sheen are beautiful and dress up casual coordinates. The indigo colour gives this dress a unique look.

Full-length skirt in straight silhouette.

Tucked draping at the centre of the back finishes the design to give movement to the wearer's figure.