"This book is a review and explanationof some of the techniques available to commercial dyers in the Medieval period in Europe, to 1600. This is based on contemporary accounts and practical experimentation in recreating coloured fabrics using the surviving recipies."--Back cover

A Heritage of Colour explores the techniques that can be used to create a wealth of colours from 50 plants, including many that have been in constant use as dyes for over 2000 years. Inspired by the colours on textile fragments from the Iron Age and by the achievements of early dyers, the author describes some of the dyes and methods of the past and considers how they can be adapted for use by today's dyers. The book covers all the basics of natural dyeing and explains in detail how to experiment with local plants, wherever you may live, to produce a wide range of beautiful, rich colours on textile fibres. A Heritage of Colour also includes sections on dyeing with fungi, contact printing on cloth and dyeing multi-coloured fibres and fabrics. The emphasis throughout is on environmentally-friendly methods and on the thrill of personal discovery through practical experience. Follow Jenny's blog on http://www.jennydean.co.uk/

The perfect dyebook for historical reenactors. Get authentic, bright colors on wool, cotton, linen, and silk. Contains - Discussion of 48 historical dyestuffs - Thirty-six natural dye recipes, tested by the author - Results of the author's lightfastness tests - Recipes for scouring fibers - Updated recipes for mordanting before or after dyeing - Safety advice - Discussion of 24 chemicals used in dyeing (What is the difference between "potash" and "pearl ash"?) - Conversions between traditional "English" and metric units - Index of dyestuffs by common names and by scientific names - Annotated bibliography of over 50 sources for further study - Fun facts (The Romans used walnut husks as a hair dye. "Alizarin", a pigment found in madder root, is named after the Persian word for madder dye, "al lizari".) 22 black and white illustrations, by the late C. Ellen Young

A clear and accessibly written guide to the medieval cloth-making trade in England.

This latest title in the highly successful Ancient Textiles series is the first substantial monograph-length historiography of early medieval embroideries and their context within the British Isles. The book brings together and analyses for the first time all 43 embroideries believed to have been made in the British Isles and Ireland in the early medieval period. New research carried out on those embroideries that are accessible today, involving the collection of technical data, stitch analysis, observations of condition and wear-marks and microscopic photography supplements a survey of existing published and archival sources. The research has been used to write, for the first time, the ‘story’ of embroidery, including what we can learn of its producers, their techniques, and the material functions and metaphorical meanings of embroidery within early medieval Anglo-Saxon society. The author presents embroideries as evidence for the evolution of embroidery production in Anglo-Saxon society, from a community-based activity based on the extended family, to organized workshops in urban settings employing standardized skill levels and as evidence of changing material use: from small amounts of fibers produced locally for specific projects to large batches brought in from a distance and stored until needed. She demonstrate that embroideries were not simply used decoratively but to incorporate and enact different meanings within different parts of society: for example, the newly arrived Germanic settlers of the fifth century used embroidery to maintain links with their homelands and to create tribal ties and obligations. As such, the results inform discussion of embroidery contexts, use and deposition, and the significance of this form of material culture within society as well as an evaluation of the status of embroiderers within early medieval society. The results contribute significantly to our understanding of production systems in Anglo-Saxon England and Ireland.