Dyeing

Before the end of the 19th century dyeing was carried out using natural materials such as bark, berries, seaweed, lichens and even insects.

The old order books of Johnstons contain many references to the following dyestuffs: logwood for black, quercitron for yellow, sandalwood, madder and cochineal for red, ground redwood for brown, indigo and woad for blue, lacs from India for scarlet. However, natural materials for dyeing were not fast to light or abrasion and their inconsistent qualities made it impossible for the dyer to reproduce precisely the same colour every time.

The chemicals used today were developed as long ago as 1856 with the introduction of 'Perkins Mauve' the first of the aniline dyes. It was not until the early years of the 20th century that these dyes came into general use, enabling the dyer to produce an infinite palette of fast colours.

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