Category: Colours

Annatto lipstick tree, achiote, slight spicy nut Annatto seeds dye. Post contributed by Ariel Dong (studio assistant at Wild Dot) The annatto tree (Bixa orellana), also known as the lipstick tree or achiote, is a hard tree to miss – especially with its bright red and hairy fruit. For those who are unfamiliar with this…

Noni it also goes by many names such as the cheese fruit, mengkudu, aal, engkudu… Painting with Noni pigments. By Shirin Rafie. We first learnt the usage of the noni roots as a source of dye colourant while researching traditional dye plants in this region. Its scientific name, Morinda citrifolia, came up In multiple books…

Sappanwood of peaches, bougainvilleas, and paddle pop rainbow ice cream The first time we dyed something with sappanwood was at a permaculture farm in North Thailand. I remember the farm by the spacious sala (open pavilion) of the main house, where one could sit and have a gorgeous view of the mountains in the distance. Once…

Mango Yellow Made with the leaves of the Mangifera indica Our handmade watercolours are all available on our Etsy store.  Steeped briefly in hot water, the mango leaves gift a light yellow tea which also packs a healthy punch of mangiferin. It is a favourite to make in our studio because our studio is permeated with its…

Blue Pea Green Made with the flowers of the Clitorea ternatea Our handmade watercolours are all available on our Etsy store.  This may be a more familiar plant to people, as the flowers of the blue pea vine are popular as a source of blue food colouring! There is a hawker store at Marine Parade Food…

Yellow Flame Brown Made with the bark of the Peltophorum pterocarpum  Our handmade watercolours are all available on our Etsy store.  At the park connector behind our current studio, there is a playground sheltered by a few of these tall Yellow Flame trees; they feel like tree guardians, holding space and shelter for people to enjoy.…

Cosmos Orange Made with the flowers of the Cosmos sulphureus  Our handmade watercolours are all available on our Etsy store.  Fancy growing your own bouquet of orange and yellow flowers? Consider these plants!  Native to South America, they are well-attuned to the year-round heat and humidity. Perhaps this is why these flowers can be frequently spotted in…

Indigo Blue Made with the leaves of the Indigofera tinctoria Our handmade watercolours are all available on our Etsy store.  The Indigo blue has a deep, calming tone, perhaps reflective of the fermentation process that transforms the deep green leaves into a luscious blue pigments. Our growing pots of Indigofera tinctoria are possible thanks to the people from Studio…