Indigofera tinctoria is commonly referred to as true indigo and the plant that is known for producing the color Indigo. According to some guy named “Roy G. Biv” Indigo is one of the primary colors found in the rainbow, but if you were to ask Isaac Asimov he would have scoffed and not even given it specific consideration in the color spectrum beyond saying, “To my eyes it seems merely deep blue.” Lucky for us the world knew better and India has been a source for indigo dies since the Greco-Roman era. During the late 1700’s Indigo was known as Blue Gold in the United Stated and the second most popular crop next to rice in the Carolinas. It’s a very beautiful legume as can be seen from the image and is grown in mild climates all over the world.
Indigofera tinctoria is commonly referred to as true indigo
Enough about olden people, flowers and rainbows, I want to know what this has to do with raw selvage denim, organic cotton and American made goods! Tellason is known for producing 100% Made in USA, Premium Selvage Denim featuring color derived in part from natural Indigo. Many of their custom made Cone Mills selvage denims use as much as 24% of real indigo to produce the classic deep blue color “Denim-heads” have come to expect in premium denim. They have now taken their propensity for making premium quality dry goods and applied it to socks.
Mineral Workshop in the process of converting Certified Organic cotton socks to true indigo colored works of art.
Tellason starts with certified organic cotton that is grown locally right here in the USA by a certified organic cotton grower. Then the cotton along with some stretch nylon and elastic are woven together in Oregon to produce Natural organic cotton socks as seen in the lower left hand image above. Once a large bunch of socks are ready they are sent off to Carrie Crawford at Mineral Workshop in Fairfax California for the last step in the manufacturing process, Coloring.
Carrie Crawford’s Mineral Workshop with numerous pairs of organic cotton socks being dyed for Tellason Denim.
Mineral Workshop is a is the art and textile design studio of Carrie Crawford where she specializes in using natural indigo to create one of a kind textiles that can be seen both in art galleries and retail boutiques. Using locally grown Indigofera plants Carrie practices the ancient Japanese art called Shibori, commonly referred to as resist-dying or tie-dying in he West. Though the binding aspect of the art is not specifically used in the case of the Tellason socks, the remainder of the dying process is very much the same. Over a series of steps the socks are soaked in various mixtures of water and indigo dye so that the indigo color is absorbed into the cotton. When the socks come out, initially they are a green color, but as they are exposed to the air oxidation occurs and the color changes to indigo. This process can then be repeated until the final desired color is achieved.
At Vintage Styles Now we are very proud to carry Tellason denim premium goods in our store. Now along with their 100% Made in USA raw selvage denim shirts and jeans we have these amazing organic cotton socks available. They are made in ‘one size fits most’ and will fit most men’s or women’s feet. I wear a men’s size 8 boot and these socks fit me comfortably as a mid-calf crew length. The Tellason socks are very soft and after wearing them a few times they don’t really impart any color on me or my boots. Though I did pre-soak them before wearing them the first time. If you are all about No-GMO’s and Organic farming or just looking for premium Craftsman goods made in the good ‘ol USA then you can’t go wrong with Tellason socks. Stop by Vintage Styles Now on The BLVD in downtown Lancaster, CA. and pick up a pair today.
Vintage Styles Now
759 W Lancaster BLVD
Lancaster CA 93534
661-916-7757
http://www.v-s-n.com
vintagestylesnow.wordpress.com 
Nice article about these socks! I bought a pair recently and really like them =)