Tinctorium Studio Journal

Tinctorium Studio Seasonal Profile: Winter Evergreens in Portugal, focused on natural dyeing and eco-printing with introduced trees.

An exploration of spring weeds in Portugal and their transformation into naturally dyed and eco-printed garments through botanical textile practice.

An exploration of summer garden plants grown for natural dyeing and eco printing, following their transformation from seed to textile at Tinctorium Studio.

Autumn Trees explores the leaves and materials gathered as forests shed their foliage across Portugal. From oak and walnut to liquidambar and pomegranate, fallen leaves become sources of color through natural dyeing and eco printing.

Garments on the left dyed with reseda and printed with bidens aurea and coreopsis grandiflora. On the right dyed with ruiva tinctorum and then printed with wildflowers and wild fennel. Spring is a season of emergence, of soft color and untamed resilience. Each year, the Spring collection is shaped by the wild plants many overlook—or worse, seek to eliminate. These so-called “weeds” erupt along roadsides and field edges, thriving despite our attempts to control them. This seas

Each season brings its own rhythms and materials into the dye studio, and winter is no exception. While much of the natural world slows down or goes dormant, a special group of resilient evergreen plants remains vibrant—and it's with these that I create the Wear Tinctorium Winter ‘24–’25 collection. Working with Winter Evergreens in Portugal Winter dyeing began just before Christmas, around the time of the winter solstice on December 21st. While many artisans wind down for a

An exploration of regenerative natural dyeing and how permaculture principles shape studio practice, ecological decision-making, and botanical textile processes at Tinctorium Studio.

In many ways, Fall is THE season for ecoprinting because this is when most leaves have the highest concentration of tannins and deciduous trees are just dropping their leaves asking you to print with them.   It filled my heart to see so many pieces from the Fall (and almost everything from Summer) find new homes through the holiday markets. Markets are always the best place to see pieces in person, touch the fabrics, and try them on. If you weren’t able to make it, I’ve uplo

The beginning of 2024 found me presented with an extremely special challenge. Create an exhibition with Sara Simões for Casa da Cerca's greenhouse. But before I talk about the exhibition, I need to set the stage and introduce key actors. This exhibition is one of the most meaningful things I've done precisely because of where it was and who it was with. The Place Casa da Cerca is a contemporary art museum in Almada, just across the Tejo River from Lisbon. The museum has rotat

The summer collection is dyed entirely with plants growing in the garden. Inspiration came from the growing wildness of the garden, with its harmoniously chaotic shapes and movement. Clear blue skies and weekly trips to the ocean are reflected in the indigo blues - grown in the leaves of Persicaria tinctoria and reduced in a dry-leaf indigo vat. The last inspiration came from the dryness of summer. Most people think of bright, vivid colors when they think of summer. In realit

In the Spring I ecoprint with the spontaneous weeds that pop up after the winter rains.

Escondido em Plena Vista faz parte da iniciativa Efeito Estufa do Festival Jardins Abertos - 3 projetos de arquitectura e 6 artistas criando obras em 3 jardins botânicos em Lisboa. A apresentação fotografada decorreu no dia 25 de Maio. Sinopses Desde o início da memória, o vestuário é um elemento essencial para o ser humano. Todas as sociedades registradas praticam algum tipo de decoração e/ou proteção do corpo por meio de tecidos, peles de animais e até pigmentos aplicados d

Learn to make easy watercolor paints from the plants around you!

Learn how to make iron water for natural dye using simple materials found at home. This beginner-friendly method introduces an intuitive iron mordant for eco printing and textile dyeing.

The idea of colors hidden in plain sight has been floating in my head for the past year. This concept is inspired by my walks through Lisbon's streets, admiring the flora and uncovering the natural colors stored beneath the surface. It evolved into an exploration of how natural inks would react to modifiers on watercolour paper. As surreal shapes and textures emerged from chemical reactions between natural pigment and mordant, the fascination grew. This meditative and intuiti

On July 3rd, a group of curious, plant-loving humans spent the day in Monsanto Forest Park to learn about natural dyeing with me and Tamara from Distinto Studio. From plant to fabric, participants deepened their connection to Lisbon's trees and learned new skills. We started the day with a walk through Lisbon's Monsanto Forest Park - a huge stretch of greenery in the middle of the city. Monsanto is full of oaks, pepper trees, grevistas, maples, and eucalyptus which can be tak

An inside look at building a natural dye garden, growing dye plants locally, and developing a plant-based color practice rooted in seasonality and place.

What happens when a natural dyer joins forces with two local brands? An unforgettable event that celebrates local businesses, traditional processes, and sustainable products. All photos by João Hasselberg During the in-store event, friends of +351 were invited to dye shirts from a past collection and Patapaca socks in a 1-2-3 banana indigo vat. They learned how to do some basic tie dye folds to create interesting patterns in their fabrics. Collaborations like these are c

In July I had the honor of assisting the inspiring Italian artist, Alex Cecchetti, on his exhibition 'Everything is Welcome'. In just two and a half weeks I dyed 23 four meter panels from which to hang Alex's watercolours and worked with Alex to naturally dye 6 dervish skirts. In the end, this experience allowed me to channel Alex's vision through natural dyes and challenged me to work on the largest scale I've ever experienced. It was a true joy to work alongside another pla

Welcome to July! Summer is in full swing and the flowers are blooming, bees are buzzing, and the sun is shining. The first half of the year I was focused on establishing a dye garden. It was tough work and I was in way over my head, but now it's time to get back to things I meant to do at the beginning of the year. One of those things was writing a monthly newsletter to let everyone know what is going on at Tinctorium Studio. So first things first, Wear Tinctoria has turned