Splendor Solis (British Library Harley 3469, fol. 32v), 1582
I am a lazy, lazy Laurel and seamstress. For years, all of my linen fabric and garb has been thrown in the washer on high, dried on hot, and that was that. Mystery holes and fraying seams? Meh, that’s the price of linen.
Until I started reading more about historical methods of clothing and fabric treatment, I really thought that my middling to mediocre results with linen were because I couldn’t afford the super-nice linen better re-enactors use. Until I got some better linen, and it acted just like the cheap stuff I buy at Pennsic. So, what was the problem? I started Googling around, which led to Academia.edu which led to more academic articles and primary sources on fabric treatment.
And then I stumbled on a little article on the blog In Dem Jahren Christi titled A Washing Guide for Linen. In this guide, Maria (one of the two blog hosts) lays out a step by step guide that involves soaking the linen for several hours in a lukewarm tub of water, washing gently in warm water, and then hanging it dry. Maria and Peter mangle their fabric at the end.
This article tossed around in the depths of my mental deep storage for years, until I had the opportunity to make Coronation clothing for Abran and Anya of Atlantia. They purchased a beautiful deep blue linen, and just for fun, I decided to try out IDJC’s method. I made a few adjustments, as follows:
A Laundress on the Beach, The Decameron, Manuscript 5070. 1432. Arsenal, Paris
Step One: I unfolded the fabric and shook it out of its shipping creases. I filled my bathtub with lukewarm water (about room temperature, or “when I stick my hand in, I don’t feel much different from the air”), and gently folded the fabric in. The biggest trick is making sure you make soft folds and not sharp creases - you want the pile to be loose, not compact.
Step Two: I let the fabric soak overnight. Maria recommends 4-5 hours, but I may have started watching a program, forgotten, and then remembered after I got up the next morning.
The purpose of the long soak is to let the fibers of the linen absorb absolutely as much water as they can. This strengthens the fibers, and prepares them for washing, so they are less likely to break in future washes. Remember that linen is a plant fiber, and like most plants, it needs a bit of care.
Step Three: I took the soaked fabric out of the tub and transferred it to my washer. Then I washed it on a warm cycle with regular detergent (no special additives and NO SOFTENERS).
Step Four: I pulled the washed fabric out and hung it up in my bathroom to dry. I left the bathroom fan on to speed the process along, but ten yards of fabric ended up taking a full day to dry. This would go faster with more space or, ideally, an outdoor clothesline.
Step Five: Once the fabric was completely dry, I used a steam iron set on the linen setting and a glass fabric smoother to iron out any remaining wrinkles. I have a short video on how to use a linen smoother below:
You’ll notice that the sample piece of fabric I use for the smoothing demo in that video still has visible creases from drying, even though it as ironed with a hot steam iron. Those shadow creases are really hard to get out, and in lower quality linen they could be permanently visible.
After you’ve turned this pre-treated linen into a garment, you’ll want to continue washing it in cold or warm water and hanging it dry. Tumble dryers are very damaging to plant fibers especially, and eventually they will cause the garment to wear out much faster than they would otherwise. This means that your garment will feel “crispy,” but that crispiness does go away as the garment is worn.
Some of my hardcore medieval living history friends tell me that linen prepared in this way hangs and drapes differently than modernly-prepped and cleaned linen. I haven’t worn mine enough yet to make a proper study of it, but if you do try this, please let me know your results!