ARQ Cleo Leo (hand dyed)

This piece was dyed using cochineal, which is the shell of a parasitic beetle (ew) that lives on the prickly pear cactus. Cochineal was used by the Maya and Aztec people for textiles and ceremonial paints. After the Spanish invasion, it was exported to Europe and was the dye that gave the British “Redcoats” their name. It is such an effective dye material, it is still used today under the name Carmine Red. This is part of an ARQ dye project so please see my closet for other pieces. I am not sure how to price them yet - I don’t want to price gouge (like some sellers are doing with ARQ!) but I’d like to recover some of the cost of the dye materials. Make me an offer and help me determine a fair price 😁 I’m dying them by hand, using natural plant dyes. The process involves a lot of soaking, simmering, stirring, and rinsing, and in some cases, this caused the ARQ logo to wear off, but all pieces are new and unworn. Natural dyes are usually not as colorfast or lightfast as chemical dyes. As with any ARQ pieces, wash by hand or in cold water on the delicate cycle and line dry. Do not line dry under direct sun.