Natural Dyes Vs Synthetic and their Effects on the skin This is no news to people that our clothes are dyed, each one of them. But more than...
Natural Dyes Vs Synthetic and their Effects on the skin
Lets us start by getting to know more about Fabric Dyes:
Fabric dye is a coloured substance that helps to colour the fabrics and substance. Do you know the colour that makes you differentiate between white and any other colour? Yes, that thing. As pigments bond chemically with the material it is introduced to, fabric dyes on the other hand do not bond with the material also they are easily soluble in water.
Let us have a look at Different Types of Dyes to get more perspective:
1. Animal-derived Dyes: Such dyes are extracted from invertebrate bodies. Invertebrate bodies are mainly insects with soft skeletons such as molluscs, crustaceans etc. Different colours are extracted from different things such as Cochineal is a scale insect and red dye is obtained from it after extracting Carmine; whereas Indian yellow is derived from the urine of cows or cattle, Ouch.
Another insect that is used for extracting colour is Lac. Lac provides red and violet dyes. Purple(Tyrian) is derived from murex snails. Crimson is produced from the dried bodies of the kermes insect also known as crimson kermes. And, Sepia brown is obtained from cuttlefish and octopus.
2. Plant-derived dyes: These are based on dyes that are extracted from the roots, stems, leaves, flowers and fruits of plants. Plant-based dyes like indigo, saffron etc. 3. Mineral Dyes: They are extracted from minerals like iron, Azurite, Malachite etc. they are used in the production of carpets. Gosh, didn't know that! 4. Synthetic Fabric Dye: Also known as artificial dyes which are man-made. As if others mentioned above were not. They are perfect for dying synthetic fibres and can be done in large quantities. Different artificial fabrics need different methods of dying.
Let us get into the interesting part where we can spot the difference between natural dyes and synthetic dyes:
Natural Dyes
Natural Dyes can be divided into 3 types of dyes which are plant-based, animal-based, mineral-based. But mostly what is used today in the fashion industry is plant-based dyes.
Natural colours are more subtle and mild in appearance.
It has a more earthy feeling to it compared to synthetic dyes
Natural dyes are comparatively less long-lasting
But here comes the main point; natural dyes are less destructive to the environment
Natural dyes are harmless and as company owners, you would like to think for your employee’s wellbeing
Natural Dyes are more expensive compared to synthetics as extracting them is a long process which makes it costlier.
Synthetic Dyes
Natural dyes are organic & Synthetic dyes are inorganic. Most of the brand uses synthetic dyes to make modern clothes.
Synthetic dyes are made of some chemical compounds including Mercury, lead, chromium, copper, sodium chloride, toluene, and benzene. These chemical compounds can be harmful to the human body and skin.
Why avoid Synthetic Chemical
Made from Plastic
Tough to digest that synthetic clothes are made from plastic and oil products even if they're made from crude oil which is used in your car. We are aware that plastic is very harmful to the human body. Our point is, always prevent synthetic clothes and don’t purchase them.
Synthetic material needs synthetic colours
When talking about Synthetic material then comes Synthetic dyes. All Synthetic materials need Synthetic colours and the above-discussed cons for synthetic colours and Dyes. Accordingly, It’s expected that synthetic clothes are made from synthetic dyes.
Holds bacteria
Synthetic dyes can cause allergies such as contact dermatitis and respiratory diseases. Allergic reactions can break out in the eyes, skin irritation, and irritation to the mucous membrane and the upper respiratory tract. Oops, not a real pleasant purchase. These diseases mostly affect people who are in contact with synthetic dyes for way too long such as workers (DEXTERS).
Yucky feeling clothing
Well to explain the yucky feeling let us start by stating it makes you feel regretful. They require a lot more water to produce good results compared to natural dyes. And such chemical water is released in the open water bodies which makes nearby areas unfit for agriculture, it makes the crops and lands toxic. I don't need to explain how it affects lives! In other words, they are non-biodegradable.
Well, here is a bonus point to all this. Now people have come up with ideas and trends for Homemade dyeing:
Homemade dyeing is safer and affordable. They look like you make cool art and you can play with it. You know, mix and match! You can pick up an old T-shirt and kitchen vinegar and natural dyes. And you are good to get set ready. Have you heard about companies that became big news around 2018-2019 when they started making rainbow dyed t-shirts? It became a big trend and still is.
Their small business grew up doing it on a small scale and attaching various size labels for clothing and using fancy plastic packaging for clothing and shipping ideas and they became billionaires in no time. Well, no one is asking you to start a business but just letting you know how cool and huge a thing has become. Which is both safe fun and saves a lot of water. It makes us responsible citizens, you know.
