Zest Dressed x Hanoux
Meet Hannah Ross, Founder and Owner of Hanoux, who sources the sustainably harvested natural dyes used in our newest collection
COLOR Quest
At Zest Dressed, we are rooted in celebrating fashion through thrifting, upcycling, and restoring. If we're going to make something new, we push ourselves to make thoughtful, special, and lasting pieces, choosing only local production partners whose workers receive a fair wage.
For our debut cut-and-sew collection we wanted to highlight the beauty of natural dyes. Unfortunately the commercial dyes used to create most products are likely synthetic petroleum based, and contain harmful chemicals that pollute the earth, water, our bodies, and the workers who are exposed to them during production. Natural dyes, on the other hand, create biodiversity, can be safely composted after use, and even have healing and microbial properties. Even so, some natural dyes are not sourced in environmentally friendly ways, and some suppliers cannot even guarantee the safety of their workers.
That's why we wanted to collaborate with a dyer who could reliably trace their dyestuff back to a specific, ethical source. We came across Hannah Ross, Designer and Founder of Hanoux on Instagram. In addition to her strikingly delicate use of color and texture, we were drawn to her strong connection to the community she sources her dyes from and her unwavering dedication to sustainability. Early in the process of developing our color palette for this project, Hannah was living in Oaxaca, Mexico studying the properties of local natural dyes and working directly with the independent family-owned farms that harvest them. She continues to visit annually, and generously shares what she learns along the way. Hannah is an invaluable creative partner in both giving new life to our upcycled wares as well as hand-dyeing this newest collection made from recycled cotton byproduct [cupro]. Learn more about her process below!
MEET Hannah
Natural dyes are colorants used since ancient times from plant sources— roots, berries, bark, leaves, wood and other biological sources such as insects, fungi and lichen. The dyes are biodegradable, regenerative and much safer for the environment. Utilizing natural color sources also supports communities across the globe whose lineage has practiced the art of dyeing and farming these materials for generations.
I always turn to nature to derive color and patterns. Learning more about the dye material always informs my process: where it grows, how it is used in different cultures, does it have medicinal purposes, what elements does it thrive in. The elemental forces of earth, water, fire, air & aether are the guiding principles in my natural dye art.
Natural dyes are a process of true alchemy and the use of them guides people into harmony with the Earth. These beautiful colors fix permanently to fabrics for a reason. We are at a time when many of the ancient natural dye recipes are at the risk of being lost forever, and it is so important to preserve these methods and share them with others.
