The more I explore the topic of hydron blue, the more intrigued I become!!
A lot of small print in these sections of Briefs and Statements Filed with the Committee on Finance of the United States Senate in 1913, but fascinating reading!
As I mentioned in my previous posts, a number of synthetic blue dyes were discovered in the late 1890s to early 1900s as products of coal-tar, including, among others, synthetic indigo and hydron blue. According to the brief submitted by the Cassella Color Co., the patent holder of hydron blue, all of these blue dyes were subjected to a 30% tariff, except for indigo, which was free of tariffs. This made hydron blue prohibitively expensive, even though it was considered superior to indigo and manufacturers wanted to use it for denim garments, as illustrated by the dozens of letters attached to the brief.
Just imagine if indigo had had the same 30% tariff. Hydron blue might have become the dye of choice because of its superior non-fading quality, and jeans might have never become the fashion item that we all love, ironically, for its main flaw -- its tendency to fade!
Knowing this makes me want to find hydron blue denim even more!

#hydronblue #indigo #dyestuff

A few more detail pics of the deadstock vintage European work jacket in my previous post.
This jacket is the European equivalent of an American coverall jacket, but with some differences commonly seen in European workwear. The main difference is the dye used; hydron blue instead of indigo, which gives it its characteristic slightly purplish blue color.
The lower pockets are reinforced on the inside with a beautiful grayish khaki cotton fabric, and on the back with a strip of denim showing the selvedge, my favorite detail on this jacket.
The buttons are fairly large (2 cm in diameter) and made of a kind of plastic (probably bakelite). The rivets are made of steel plated with brass (or copper -- hard to tell due to the rust).
I don't know enough about European vintage to date this jacket. Maybe 50s?? If anyone knows, please enlighten me.
Someday I'd love to re-create pieces of European vintage workwear like this one, using denim dyed with hydron blue. I have no idea where to start looking for this kind of denim, though. There's got to be rolls of deadstock hydron blue denim lying around in an old warehouse somewhere. Any hints would be much appreciated!

#hydronblue #hydronblau #selvedgedenim #indigo #dyestuff #europeanvintage #eurodenim #euroworkwear #sorglos #monteurstolz

Blue denim? Yes!
Indigo? No, ... hydron blue!
Not all blue denim is dyed with indigo! This deadstock vintage European work jacket is made of denim dyed with hydron blue, one of a number of blue synthetic dyestuffs invented in the late 19th to early 20th century, along with synthetic indigo. Hydron blue was a serious competitor as a dye for denim because of its superior fastness properties, meaning that denim dyed with hydron blue doesn't easily fade. As we now all know, however, it was exactly this "disadvantage" of indigo --its tendency to fade-- that would make it the big winner and force all competing blue dyes into oblivion. Hydron blue continued to be used for workwear, though, particularly in Europe.

#hydronblue #hydronblau #selvedgedenim #indigo #dyestuff #eurodenim #euroworkwear #sorglos