EXAMINING THE UTILISATION OF LOCAL AND SYNTHETIC INDIGO DYES AND QUALITTY OF DYED FABRICS IN ÌTÒKÚ MARKET, ABẸ????ÒKÚTA , ÒGÙN STATE, NIGERIA

Africans had been producing fabrics locally before the advent of Western fabrics. Àdìrẹ fabrics are purely African textile concepts; dyed with local/indigenous materials and readymade synthetic materials in Abẹ́òkúta, Òṣogbo, Ìbàdàn, Kánò, Ṣókótó, and other parts of Nigeria, and Africa at large. The study focuses on how leaves, bark of plants, and trees are utilised in producing colours of dyes. For example, shade of red can be obtained from leaves of guinea corn (sorghum village), leave of teak wood (tectona grands), leaves of henna law (Sonia intermis), bark and roots of African rose wood (ptrocerpus erinaceus), and wood of the came wood “osùn” (baphia nitida). The sap of old physic nut tree (fatopha curca) produces a black dye. Likewise, many other colours are produced when the need arises. When yellow is desired, afromosia taxifora or a root wood (Morinda lucida) or group grand are used. The mango tree bark, when dried and boiled with water gives a brown dye. Two other fruits Kigelia African and vitex grandifolia are also used for dye. There is an argument on which of the colour registered fast, is it the natural dye or the imported synthetic dye? The answer probably lies in the method of preparing and implementing the dye and the skill/creativity of the dyer. The study examines the utilisation of local and synthetic indigo dyes and quality of dyed cotton fabric in Ìtòkú market, Abẹ́òkúta , Ògùn State. Some participants were interviewed, and questionnaires were administered to respondents for data collection. The result of hypothesis tested justify that there is no significant difference between utilisation of local and imported dye in the quality of textile in relation to colours. Results and findings were discussed, comparism between the local and synthetic dyes was concluded and recommendations were made.