Photo credit: Batik Bixa

Textile treatment has to be carefully taken care of right from the very beginning of the batik process. While many are not aware, most textile production starts with the initial mordanting step.

What is Mordanting?

Mordanting process is a pre-treatment of the raw fabric by removing the sizings, such as starch, gum, and oil. Sizings are often added to newly spun cloth to give a desirable qualities including weight, body, strength, stiffness, softness upon manufacturing and during long term storage.

These additives might interfere with the binding of the dye into the textile fibers or hinder the fabric absorbing the dye molecules. Hence, they can prevent maximum extraction of colour from the dye bath. As a result, the end product may have patchy spots or uneven coloration. It is, therefore, essential for the fabric to be cleaned before further processing. A spot of grease or soil might spoil the whole batik masterpiece.

How to Do Mordanting?

The basic mordanting process includes placing the water in boiling water filled with tawas (alum). This is followed by soaking the cloth in water premixed with TRO (Turkish Red Oil) overnight. After a day, the cloth may be whacked with wood to remove stubborn sizing materials. As a final step, thoroughly rinse the cloth with water and hang-dry. The cloth is now ready for the next steps in the batik making process.

Just prior to this mordanting step, reliable batik manufacturers and artisans will perform their first quality checks. They will inspect for physical damages, such as tears, holes, uneven weaves, on a table against bright light.

Beginners or hobbyists may simply soak the cloth in TRO, or mild detergent, overnight, rinse it with water and hang-dry.

While this step may sounds simple or ridiculous, mordanting is an important first step to ensure that your textile product is evenly coloured without unsightly spots.

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