Butterfly Pea Dye Powder

Botanical Name: Clitoria ternatea

Common name: Asian Pigeonwings, Blue Pea, and Aprajita

Colorant: Anthocyanin

Dye type: Needs mordants for better fastness, adjective dye.

Shade Range: Depending on pH and mordants, shades of soft blues, of purples are achieved (even shades of pinks). The blues are favored by acidic conditions and the pinkish-purple color by alkaline environments.

Mordant Requirements: Butterfly Pea can reliably dye fabric without mordants; however, the use of alum (or even lemon juice) as mordants makes for more stable color and enhanced brightness on protein fibers such as silk.

Fastness: The colors from Butterfly Pea dye fade slightly when exposed to extended sunlight without mordants​​​, and it offers moderate washfastness and lightfastness.

Common Uses: Their use is inherently common for eco-friendly textile dyeing, especially in the shibori technique. This is particularly good on natural fibers but also good with man-made fibers such as nylon, acetate, and other rayon blends.

Country of Origin: Southeast Asia, India, Thailand, Vietnam

Vegetarian product: Yes