The day was nice and sunny, and so seemed like a great day to play around with persimmon juice. The astringent juice can be applied directly to cloth or paper and turns a golden brown once it’s been cured in the sun. (If you google “kakishibu” you’ll get lots of examples.)
I started by plucking the fruit from the persimmon tree that grows down the road. (I find that pretty amazing.)
Then we grated the persimmon, and strained the juice through an open weave cloth. The frothy juice is a bright light green.
Using paintbrushes, we applied the juice to paper and put the sheets out to dry and cure in the sun. But the clouds came out and threatened rain, so I have no idea how my paper will turn out!
There is a prepared mix you can buy, so we used that to color some cloth for projects Bryan is working on. Here’s some fabric and thread drying in the sun.
I’m loving the light orange color achieved with multiple applications. The juice can be applied under or over indigo, so some color variations are possible. I really appreciate the non-toxic, readily available materials Bryan is using–makes me wonder what resources Minnesota has to offer. Any ideas?
mulberries!