What's used as a dyestuff is not the windsuckingly expensive spice. The dye is the dried flowers from which the saffron has already been removed. It's available in ethnic groceries locally, about $1.50 or $2.00 for enough to dye a fairly full shirt. I suspect that would make enough to dye 8 yards of wool between $10 and $20.

I have a shirt actually dyed with real saffron flowers in my closet. It's a bright, not unattractive yellow, I'd have called it "canary yellow", but mustard would be a reasonable match. The problem with saffron as a dye is it's not very fast. My shirt has been washed three or four times, now, and is noticeably paler than a couple of small items that haven't been washed. Of course, to be "in period", I really shouldn't be washing it every time it gets sweaty.

Will Pratt