Hodden Gray tartan

[Pleater]

The chestnut sort of colour I saw in some photos reminded me of the fleeces from Herdwick rams - they are a coarse wool sheep and the shepherds colour the rams using a red pigment - red ochre I think.

The natural colour is grey, which changes with the age of the beastie growing it - I think from dark to light.

I have some somewhere - but far too thick for weaving.

The red colour is very difficult to remove - it still comes through the process of cleaning and spinning - along with the smell of he sheep - so whenever the yarn is washed the water is tinged red and the air is - also tinged.

P.S.It is the same pigment used mixed with linseed oil to treat canvas sails and make them that dark reddish brown, and it was used to paint brickwork, particularly inside where it was important for hygene that the bricks are not absorbant - traditional dairy/farm buildings for instance.