Coloring batik is a patient process. It begins with the first color bath applying the dominant color. Then, having been washed, the textiles are folded onto screens in open air providing abundant sunlight. Strings of color are then applied to make the characteristic blends that Mirah is so famous for.
Knowing how to fold the fabrics and apply the color requires both experience and method. The workers are from generations of batik workers, where the experience of coloring and stamping runs from father to son for generations. Soda is applied to preserve/enhance color, and bathing in the tropical sunlight makes the colors both deep and vibrant.
Timing is of the essence. The fabrics need to bathe in the sun to get the right tan of color, neither staying too long nor too short in the sun to get exactly the color Mirah is looking for.
