I am working on a 19th century English sampler with silk embroidery on
a wool ground.  The sampler is in good/fair condition, but there is
extensive dye bleed into the wool ground, mostly from the green and
dark pink silk embroidery threads.  Testing has shown that the dye is
still fugitive on the green silk thread, but so far none of the
aqueous solutions tested moves the dye on the wool.

I am considering trying to raise the pH slightly to see if that helps
to release the dye, but I am not sure how much I can raise the pH
without damaging the fibers.  Unfortunately the dye bleed has likely
been there a long time (40 years?), but I would still like to try a
few more things before giving up.  Has anyone had success with
removing dye bleed on wool?

Thanks,

Kate Sahmel
Andrew W. Mellon Fellow in Costume and Textiles Conservation
Philadelphia Museum of Art
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