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Aging


Gutterpunk13

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I Just made a hemp Coat and now i dont like it because its too bright and neat for my tastes is there and easyway to maybe age it up and darken the material? its made out of hemp canvas and has i think a cotton lining but im not shure. i know i dont want to tear it up as i spent alot of mony on this one, but if i dont wear it then it dosent matter. Ill have pictures of it as soon as i can.

Much Respect

John

:lol:

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We discussed this one a few times in the past. If you do a search, you should be able to find some suggestions. My crewman Palmetto has soaked his clothes in saltwater. I'm not sure what else he has done to them. But they certainly look "Hollywood" dirty.

I suggest wearing them and never washing them. Roll around in the gutter. Smear blackpowder residue all over them. Rub some tar into them. You get the idea.

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Best way to age something like that is make a big pot of tea.... use whatever cheap BLACK tea you can find..... if you make it hot tea, let it cool, then soak the clothing in it, check it every half hour, when it is as dark as you want it... hang dry it.... If you preshrunk the material, you can throw it in the dryer on low heat...

I've done this many times with great success...

Truly,

D. Lasseter

Captain, The Lucy

Propria Virtute Audax --- In Hoc Signo Vinces

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Ni Feidir An Dubh A Chur Ina Bhan Air

"If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me." Deuteronomy 32:41

Envy and its evil twin - It crept in bed with slander - Idiots they gave advice - But Sloth it gave no answer - Anger kills the human soul - With butter tales of Lust - While Pavlov's Dogs keep chewin' - On the legs they never trust... The Seven Deadly Sins

http://www.colonialnavy.org

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It should...

Truly,

D. Lasseter

Captain, The Lucy

Propria Virtute Audax --- In Hoc Signo Vinces

LasseterSignatureNew.gif

Ni Feidir An Dubh A Chur Ina Bhan Air

"If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me." Deuteronomy 32:41

Envy and its evil twin - It crept in bed with slander - Idiots they gave advice - But Sloth it gave no answer - Anger kills the human soul - With butter tales of Lust - While Pavlov's Dogs keep chewin' - On the legs they never trust... The Seven Deadly Sins

http://www.colonialnavy.org

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It is your call.. DO you have a scrap of material left from making it?

If so, do a test with that to make sure that's what you're looking for....

Truly,

D. Lasseter

Captain, The Lucy

Propria Virtute Audax --- In Hoc Signo Vinces

LasseterSignatureNew.gif

Ni Feidir An Dubh A Chur Ina Bhan Air

"If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me." Deuteronomy 32:41

Envy and its evil twin - It crept in bed with slander - Idiots they gave advice - But Sloth it gave no answer - Anger kills the human soul - With butter tales of Lust - While Pavlov's Dogs keep chewin' - On the legs they never trust... The Seven Deadly Sins

http://www.colonialnavy.org

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Should i risk it?

:lol:

risk it?

Think about this for a second... You're trying to figure out a way to make this thing look old and dirty and less shiney. Not keep it in pretty pristine condition. How much risk is that? It will either work perfectly and come out evenly dark. It will work sort of and come out patchy or not work at all eliciting no change at all. Sounds to me like theres nothing to lose.

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or it could take all the dye out.

Who knows..

:D

Nope thats bleach. I don't even know where you would find "tea" that was so basic it would bleach you fabric. Black tea has a pH around 6 (roughly half that of bleach and neutral is 7)

Alternatively if it's the water you're worried about, you're pretty much screwed for wearing and washing let alone weathering.

So, I vote giver a try.

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tea straining works qite well .....if it's cool tea it will darken and dull down the colours without effecting the chemical dyes used in the original fabric ........i have done it many times from theatre costumes .... and perhaps some strong coffee dipped along the cuffs and in the armpits and along the collar ....will give some appearance of wear and tear and body soils :D:D

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I once had to age a hunting frock since my portrayal was based during a specific historical setting. Went outside when it was raining and crawled around in the wet soil for a bit. Came out quite nice!

Depending on what type of soil you have around, rub it in selective spots for aging. Better yet, try some yardwork (although green grass stains may not work).

I've heard that the movie industry uses peat moss or potting soil for aging effects. Once ate some greasy fried chicken and wore my buckskins, they make a good napkin.

Other garments were "aged" naturally on primitive treks (good heavens, ever sit by a fire for three days?). The stench was horrific, had to shower twice and my clothes reeked so bad from smoke and sweat I could smell them across the room. Hand washed with castile soap to remove most of the stains. :D

Yours, &c.

Mike

Try these for starters- "A General History of the Pyrates" edited by Manuel Schonhorn, "Captured by Pirates" by John Richard Stephens, and "The Buccaneers of America" by Alexander Exquemelin.

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Yah.... camping in yer garb does a great job of aging it......

Tea also works.... but if your going for a real "grungy" look..... after tea staining...... thinned down india ink splashed onto the wet cloth.... will gunk it up realy quickly....... (if you get it to dark..... splash more water on it....."Quickly") You just work as everything is very "moist"..... it will lighten up a little when it dries......

Then there is sandpaper.... but that is for "wear"...............

Or soaking it in water, and hanging it out in the sun (just be sure that it is "formed" (like how it would be worn) right......) then it fades.......

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I've heard that the movie industry uses peat moss or potting soil for aging effects.

I wish I knew what they used on The Patriot. I was there for filming in my Rev War kit. Every morning, we'd go to make-up, where they "weathered" us with this tray of mirky, grimey water. It really filled in the cracks of the skin to give them a dirty look. Then they took a big white bucket full of some dirty powder, and a feather duster, and dusted us all down. It was great stuff, whatever it was, because we looked like we have been on campaign for weeks.

As for tea, and coffee, yep, it works. Duh on me for forgetting that. As I recall, the British Army used to make khaki colored clothes by doing just that.

My Home on the Web

The Pirate Brethren Gallery

Dreams are the glue that holds reality together.

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Just after the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor (12-7-41 fer you youngsters) The Navy had a lack of khaki uniforms. Everyone had tropical whites--makin them way too visible, especially if the Japanese invaded. They needed drab combat uniforms--fast!

Then they started dyin' all the whites usin big vats of Navy Coffee. Probably a Marine idea--they have this affinity fer coffee.

That drip coffee they sell at Starschmucks is dark and thick enough--maybe that would work--

Never give up--Never surrender!

Remember -- A good friend will come and bail you out of jail...BUT a true friend will be sitting next to you saying, "Damn...that was fun!"

Live while yer alive--an' when yore dead be done with it!

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Best way to get your kit truly grubby is to work a gun crew a few times!

Most of my kit has got that authenticly dirty texture as a result of sitting around campfires for a couple of seasons.

The method traditionaly used by film wardrobe departments to distress costumes is to put them in a tumble dryer with a few large rocks. (Mind you, the dryer is not much good for anything else afterwards.

I have had some experience of the tricks used by film wardrobe departments, another common one is a mixture of fine blending powder (Usually used as makeup, you could try powder paint or fullers earth) and vasaline. Think about where costume meets greesy flesh. around the cuffs, pockets, button holes etc. Also use sandpaper to simulate wear. again, think about where you would rub against things, elbows, forearms and so on. If you make any holes in the fabric, be sure to darn them, as would have happend in the 18th century.

One word of warning about tea. If you make the tea too strong, and are trying to stain something white like a shirt, it will die the fabric pink! I know, it happend to me. ;)

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I've had hemp shirts and since it is a natural fiber, it will break down and soften quite a bit just through normal washings. I imagine yours is a neutral color to begin with - correct? If you add real Borax to the wash - it may help quite a bit. As for aging - the teastaining method is suposed to be the most reliable *after commercial dyes* _Looking forward to those pics! :ph34r:

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Can anyone tell me where I can find a good PLAIN great coat for my costume? All I can find are over adorned velvet crap.

Lazarus- check out these guys. Great quality, decent prices. The oil cloth coat is great on a stormy deck.

http://www.flyingcanoetraders.com/content/...alogue.asp?ID=4

Hawkyns

:o

Cannon add dignity to what otherwise would be merely an ugly brawl

I do what I do for my own reasons.

I do not require anyone to follow me.

I do not require society's approval for my actions or beliefs.

if I am to be judged, let me be judged in the pure light of history, not the harsh glare of modern trends.

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  • 7 months later...
  I've heard that the movie industry uses peat moss or potting soil for aging effects.

It's called Fuller's Earth and I believe you can find some herehttp://www.cineshoppe.com/fullers1.htm. It's usually dusted or spread over clothing, sometimes rubbed in, to achieve a dirty look.

Hector


"I being shot through the left cheek, the bullet striking away great part of my upper jaw, and several teeth which dropt down the deck where I fell... I was forced to write what I would say to prevent the loss of blood, and because of the pain I suffered by speaking."~ Woodes Rogers

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