Tricky. I have not had much experience with embroidery on wool which  
does indeed limit the pH possibilities as far as treatment. You do not  
mention whether pH tests were carried out on samples of thread to  
determine at which (approx.) pH the dye runs. This is vital to know.

Have you though of using a vaccuum table? Some do not like the  
appearance of the finished result as the embroidery tends to stand up  
too much from the fabric (strong suction on the fabric).

I have had the experience of threads on a yellowed and lightly soiled  
1940s cotton sampler that tests showed ran in neutral detergents,  
acidic and alkaline solutions and just a little in water alone. I was  
sharing a workshop with a paper conservator and saw how paper was  
nearly always dried between blotters that were sandwiched between  
thick woollen felt then topped with a piece of multiplex wood with  
weights on top of the whole lot. This was to maximise contact of the  
blotters with the paper object to pick any migrating colouring matter  
and to ensure that it dried perfectly flat.

Not having a vaccuum table at hand, I decided to 'wash' the sampler in  
water with added CMC to prevent soil deposition, rinse thoroughly then  
dry it using the paper object method (overnight). Fantastic result.  
The embroidery was not flattened at all and there were no haloes of  
dye on the sampler, only on the blotter, and then not so much. The  
weighting system retained the shape of the sampler beautifully as  
well. While not as clean as it could be, it looked refreshed and very  
natural, if that is the right word. Pinning out and applying weighted  
glass plates always leave their marks on cellulose based samplers.  
Pinning out wool would be a very delicate operation in any case due to  
its stretchiness.

This drying method also saved a lot of time (pinning, adjusting  
pinning as it dries, hovering with hair dryer in hand), which, despite  
what many of my old colleagues may still think, is an important  
consideration, even more so in private practice. This notion became  
even more important during my experience of working 18 years in the  
Netherlands where many owners of samplers were outraged at the cost of  
treating 'a bit of old rag' or 'something that didn't cost me  
anything'. End of short rant.

Hope this helps in some way.

Jennifer Barnett

ex-textile conservator/lecturer
now translator Dutch-Eng and editor/proof-reader

'Tournebise'
La Goutte, rte de Dancé
FR -  Bully 42260
tel  +33 4 7765 2011
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On 23 Jun 2010, at 20:53, Kate Sahmel wrote:

> 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
> [log in to unmask]
> 215-684-7578