1
Woad vat
I used a modern procedure
using soda ash and sodium
dithionite to reduce dried woad pigment
on the stove-top.* This concoction was
left to reduce for a couple of hours.
The first lot of wool was brought up
to temperature in a separate pot of
clean water, then wrung out and added
to the vat for a few minutes. The yarn
was removed to oxygenate for a few
minutes, then returned to the pot.
2
Knitting up
The garment was knitted up in
panels on a Brother KH-891
with ribber attachment. All of the stitch
patterns were swatched, washed and
dried to determine gauge. I used two
punch card tuck-stitch patterns, one for
the sleeves and another for the body.
The sleeves are knitted in two colours
(medium and pale blue) with the aid
3
Dip-dyeing
To paraphrase: ‘no plan
survives contact with reality’.
As natural dyes can differ from batch
to batch, I wasn’t able to achieve the
colours I’d wanted using fustic and/
or oak galls as I’d originally proposed.
After swatching some other substances,
N
otes
The second lot was dyed by the same
procedure, but achieved a paler colour
as the bath was partially exhausted.
The skeins were rinsed, dried, and then
wound up for knitting.
* The blue pigment in woad isn’t water
soluble, and requires a chemical reaction
(oxidation-reduction) to go into solution
for use as a dye. The traditional method
makes use of the rich chemical stew found
in stale urine. While fascinating, this method
isn’t terribly appealing as most recipes
recommend ‘maturing’ large quantities for up
to two weeks.
of a colour changing attachment. The
body panels are knitted in three colours
(medium, pale and natural). I used the
purl side for a more complex textured
fabric. The collar is knit in 2x2 rib in two
pieces, seamed at centre back.
The assembled garment was washed
and blocked. At this point all of the
panels change shape, the stitches
and patterns relax into place and the
garment takes form.
I settled upon two that seemed to
get closest to producing the colours
I wanted.
I made up two dye baths. The first
used alum and chlorophyllin to give
greens and teals. The second used
pomegranates and iron liquor for grey.
After the last dye bath, the garment was
dried and washed before final blocking.
the pattern for future.
In addition to the changes
to the dye recipes, I also
made some slight alterations to from
the original design sketch. Specifically, I
wasn’t able to get the line I wanted on
the collar, so I simplified to a standard
shawl collar and added a vintage horn
toggle. I also found (after blocking) that
the cuffs were a bit too tight, so I had
to steek and sew on some wider ones.
I think the sleeve ends could probably
have more tolerance, and would amend
Creating this first garment, as a one off
piece, probably took around 7-8 days
of work, over several weeks (with lots
of drying time). Producing additional
garments would be faster, taking maybe
4-5 days or less with a linker. I wouldn’t
suggest doing this sort of thing as a
standard retail item, but would make
to measure for custom orders. I’m also
considering how to adapt or mimic
some of the techniques for factory
production, which would be more
suitable for retail.
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