Warring States Survival Guide
Chapter 142 - 92: Mastery of Dyeing Techniques

Chapter 142: Chapter 92: Mastery of Dyeing Techniques

"This is a treasure!"

Ah Man stroked a piece of pale blue cotton cloth, feeling it was soft yet smooth to the touch. Turning it toward the sunlight, she saw a silvery gleam ripple across the fabric’s surface, as if starlight had been woven into it, giving it a hint of brocade’s splendor. Even she, widely experienced as she was, couldn’t help but exclaim, "How did you do this? Is this really dyed?"

"Of course it’s dyed, just casually dyed," Harano replied modestly. The "pulp immersion process" was too complicated to explain in a few sentences, and she definitely wouldn’t understand. So he could only be humble about it.

Ningning also looked amazed as she examined a piece of bean-green cotton cloth, stroking the smooth surface and marveling at its incredibly fine feel. Then, seeing the neatly patterned Matsuba leaf motifs, she asked in surprise, "Master, was this dyed too?"

It was really beautiful. She had never seen such attractive, supple cloth before. The colors were bright, completely unlike the dull and dirty-looking fabric she’d known. At a glance, it almost seemed to glow. The patterns on the cloth were also exquisite, uniform in shape, with clear and delicate edges, just like they were woven in—truly exceptional.

She liked it at first sight and even wanted to buy it, thinking it would make a lovely kosode. Even though the color and pattern suited men more, she still wanted to get some.

Harano glanced over and smiled. "Of course. First, dye the base color, then use tie-dye overlays, and finally apply more paste to create these uniform patterns."

Tie-dyeing techniques existed in this era; in Japan it was called "shibori," usually using raw silk to bind up fabric for secondary dye baths, producing patterns as certain parts absorbed dye and others did not.

Depending on the binding technique, the length of time soaking, and the tightness of the ties, the patterns would vary. For example, the famous "kanoko shibori" could produce spots on the fabric like a fawn’s natural markings, very popular and considered top-tier luxury fabric.

Since tie-dye technology was already around, of course he had to put it to use. But he improved on it, using the "printed paste chemical tie-dye method"—first applying paste through carved woodblocks, so that when the cloth was dyed a second time, only the non-pasted areas would react chemically, creating dyed patterns. The result was more stable than traditional binding tie-dye, and the pattern edges were clearer—original tie-dyeing’s results were unpredictable even for the dyer, and the patterns were often fuzzy and bled, with a high waste rate for any attempt at high quality.

All of these were the results of Harano’s half a year’s efforts. He’d experimented repeatedly in the workshop, barely managing to master forest dyes and sulphur dyeing techniques, then racking his brain to recall modern printing and dyeing methods, further enhancing current-era techniques, and finally running small-scale tests to produce these samples.

Now he could dye red, yellow, blue, green, and black—a full five colors—and thanks to his process, the color palette for each was both wide and stable.

For example, for red, by adjusting immersion time and using different ingredients and additives, he could get silver-red, watery red, scarlet, crimson, and purple-red shades.

Similarly for yellow, using about the same process with various ingredients and additives, he could produce goose yellow, chrysanthemum yellow, apricot yellow, golden yellow, ochre, tea brown, and more.

Other colors were similar, each able to offer a range of vivid, fast shades that would not fade, even after many washes. He also recalled the old TV drama "Great Dye Workshop" from years before and managed to recreate the coating technique, making the rough-feeling cottons of this era smooth and silk-like, even giving them a light sheen like coarse silk—though it was mostly for looks. After a few washes, the color wouldn’t fade, but the smooth, silky feel would completely disappear, reverting to normal cotton texture.

But in the Japan Middle Ages, he figured this was good enough. It would easily put all current dye workshops and dyers to shame. He’d also calculated the costs; despite being a bit more complex, the better use of materials actually made his costs much lower than competitors. Even selling at the same price, he could make a fortune. If he lowered prices slightly, he could bankrupt all the others.

Once he had a monopoly, he’d be able to charge whatever he liked. Becoming the king of dyeing was just around the corner!

Seeing the first group of "customers" respond so enthusiastically to these samples only boosted his confidence. He brought out all the better test samples from his recent dye batches for their opinions, wanting to know which colors and patterns were most popular—even though he’d wasted much more fabric in failed tests, burning through five or six hundred copper coins over half a year—no small cost.

This array of brightly colored, variously patterned cloth made the extroverted Ah Man and Ningning even more excited. They touched here and there, seemingly unable to get enough.

The quieter Yayoi and Aki were also drawn to the vibrant fabrics and beautiful patterns. After all, it seemed all girls had a weakness for these. Ningning, overjoyed, started thinking: she should master this craft too. Then one day, she could open her own workshop, helping the Kinoshita family prosper—she’d caught the right moment, with Oda Nobunaga promoting "free trade." In the future, even she could start a workshop.

Ah Man was even more delighted. She wasn’t that interested in pretty clothes herself, but with her sharp eye and experience she could already see the copper coins rolling in. She clenched her fists in anticipation and turned to Harano expectantly: "These fabrics will definitely fetch high prices. Let’s get to work!"