Choosing the right dyes and fabrics is integral to your kit making.

 

Fabrics

Fabric should be linen. This can be tested with a ‘bite test’. By nibbling the end of the fabric, you should feel an almost grassy texture to it compared to say your cotton t-shirt. Try not to get linen that is too thin (you don’t want your kit to be see through). Irish linen is very good for kit making.

 

Dyes

When choosing dyes you should approach this with regard to you status and your first set of kit would normally be lower status.

Low status: Pale, earthy colours. Dyeing cost money, something your character could probably not afford.

Mid status: Slightly brighter moving into yellows, oranges etc… Slightly more wealth, but still not too bright in colour.

High status: Very dark striking colours, due to what would have been the price of dyeing material at the time. The very wealthy would have also been able to afford white, as they could afford multiple bleaching of the material.

While you can achieve the colour with a box dye, there are also more authentic ways using traditional methods to achieve this.

The website here shows you the ingredients needed for each cool and what status it would usually represent: Colour Guide

Luckily for use ‘Viking Lady Aine’ has tried these methods and the following website shows the results produced by natural dyeing: Trying Natural Dyes

 

If you require any help, don’t be afraid to get in touch with your Authenticity Team!