6-week Eco-Dyeing Short Course with Pinal Maniar

Explore the art of natural dyeing and botanical printing in this hands-on, six-week course. Pinal will introduce eco-dyeing techniques using natural materials and traditional textile processes. You’ll learn how to prepare fabrics, understand the basics of natural dyes, and experiment with resist techniques such as itajime shibori, stitched shibori, and bandhani. The course also covers eco-printing with tannin-rich plants and rust, encouraging you to explore the interplay of colour, pattern, and composition. Throughout the program, you’ll build a collection of dyed and printed samples, developing both skill and confidence. In the final week, you’ll transform your work into a finished textile piece—such as a painterly fabric collage, a small Kawandi quilt, a stitched tablecloth, or a fabric journal. By the end of the course, you’ll leave with a set of practical skills and a unique, handmade textile artwork. No prior experience is required—just curiosity and a willingness to experiment.

About the Artist
Pinal Maniar, with fine art textiles qualifications and years of textile industry experience, now practices as an independent studio artist and has a special interest in embroidery. She moved from the USA to Australia and established Idyl Ink, a design label that enables her to combine the traditional art of natural dyeing, eco-printing, shibori, and hand block printing process.