Before leaving, Ali showed me the process of refreshing a very large vat of indigo. Also, we tested out the bullet steamer which I setup for them to use. The process would be much more efficient than the process of steaming their fabrics with an iron because they would be able to wrap a number of things up and do them at the same time.
Basically you wrap the fabric (in a drop cloth) around some kind of pipe with a hole drilled in an inch from the top. I like to use a hollow pole like pvc pipe so that you can wrap the fabric with string inside and around so it does not slide off.
We bought 8-10 inch duct and I cut a wire for hanging the pole. The wire goes through that hole and hangs on cuts on the sides of the duct. The fabric should not touch the sides of the duct or be touching the water. We got a connector for the duct and put it on the bottom so that there is a rim. This rim will be easy to set on a pot that should have about an inch or two of water in it. You can use a hot plate or whatever will work to heat the water. I have heard of people using an electric kettle. Last step is to cover the duct with a towel for collecting moisture and then a lid on top. Steaming takes about an hour.
