In the lush village of Modiya in the Kindia region of Guinea, a team of women harvested plants, gathered discarded onion skins, avocado seeds and skins for dye baths, and collected water for the natural dye workshops. 

Over one hundred distinct botanical colors were created from plants, minerals, and the pits and skins of vegetables. Natural mordants employed included kola nuts, which are abundant and traditionally used for textile arts in the region, and iron from rusty nails soaked in water. Hues were shifted for an expanded palette with soda ash from the wood fire, citric acid from local fruit trees, and scraps of copper wiring. After the formal training, for which the women received a certificate from TINLF’s Association of Women Tie Dyers, the women of Modiya self-directed in peer-to-peer learning and explorations of natural dye techniques.