Class \ A_.£l:^^ Book ' W c ._ Copyright N" COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. THE LIBRARY OF HOME ECONOMICS A COMPLETE HOME-STUDY COURSE ON THE NEW PROFESSION OF HOME-MAKING AND ART OF RIGHT LIVING; THE PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF THE MOST RECENT ADVANCES IN THE ARTS AND SCIENCES TO HOME AND HEALTH PREPARED BY TEACHERS OF RECOGNIZED AUTHORITY FOR HOME-MAKERS, MOTHERS, TEACHERS, PHYSICIANS, NURSES, DIETITIANS, PROFESSIONAL HOUSE MANAGERS, AND ALL INTERESTED IN HOME, HEALTH, ECONOMY AND CHILDREN TWELVE VOLUMES NEARLY THREE THOUSAND PAGES, ONE THOUSAND ILLUSTRATIONS TESTED BY USE IN CORRESPONDENCE INSTRUCTION REVISED AND SUPPLEMENTED CHICAGO AMERICAN SCHOOL OF HOME ECONOMICS 1907 I LIBRARY of CONQflESS OntOwDj Received r- V "^^ 7. ( 7a. -7(00 OQPY ■. Copyright, 1907 BY Home Economics Association Entered at Stationers' Hall, London /!// Rights Reserved. AUTHORS ISABEL BEVIER, Ph. M. Professor of Household Science, University of Illinois. Author U. S. Government Bullelins, " Development of the Home Economics Movement in America," etc. ALICE PELOUBET NORTON, M. A. Assistant Professor of Home Economics, School of Education, Uni- versity of Chicago ; Director of the Chautauqua School of Domestic Science. S. MARIA ELLIOTT Instructor in Home Economics, Simmons College; Formerly Instruc- tor School of Housekeeping, Boston. ANNA BARROWS Director Chautauqua School of Cookery ; Lecturer Teachers' College, Columbia University, and Simmons College ; formerly Editor "Ameri- can Kitchen Magazine;" Author " Home Science Cook Book." ALFRED CLEVELAND COTTON, A. M., M. D. Professor Diseases of Children, Rush Medical College, University of Chicago ; Visiting Physician Presbyterian Hospital, Chicago; Author of " Diseases of Children." BERTHA M. TERRILL, A. B. Professor in Home Economics in Hartford School of Pedagogy; Author of U. S. Government Bulletins. KATE HEINTZ WATSON Formerly Instructor in Domestic Economy, Lewis Institute; Lecturer University of Chicago. MARION FOSTER WASHBURNE Editor "The Mothers' Maga^iner' Lecturer Chicago Free be] Asso- ciation ; Author " Everyday Essays," " Family Secrets," etc. MARGARET E. DODD Graduate Massachusetts Institute of Technology ; Teacher of Science, Woodward Institute. AMY ELIZABETH POPE With the Panama Canal Commission ; Formerly Instructor in Practical and Theoretical Nursing, Training School for Nurses, Presbyterian Hospital, New York City. MAURICE LE BOSQUET, S. B. Director American School of Home Economics ; Member American Public Health .Association and American Chemical Society. CONTRIBUTORS AND EDITORS ELLEN H. RICHARDS Author " Cost of Food," " Cost of Living," " Cost of Shelter," " Food Materials and Their Adulteration," etc., etc.; Chairman Lake Placid Conference on Home Economics. MARY HINMAN ABEL Author of U. S. Government Bulletins, " Practical Sanitary and Econ- omic Cooking," "Safe Food," etc. THOMAS D. WOOD, M. D. Professor of Physical Education, Columbia University. H. M. LUFKIN, M. D. Professor of Physical Diagnosis and Clinical Medicine, University of Minnesota. OTTO FOLIN, Ph. D. Special Investigator, McLean Hospital, Waverly, Mass. T. MITCHELL PRUDDEN, M. D., LL. D. Author "Dust and Its Dangers " "The Story of the Bacteria," "Drink- ing Water and Ice Supplies," etc. FRANK CHOUTEAU BROWN Architect, Boston, Mass.; Author of "The Five Orders of Architec- ture," " Letters and Lettering." MRS. MELVIL DEWEY • Secretary Lake Placid Conference on Home Economics. HELEN LOUISE JOHNSON Professor of Home Economics, James.Millikan University, Decatur. FRANK W. ALLIN, M. D. Instructor Rush Medical College, University of Chicago. MANAGING EDITOR MAURICE LE BOSQUET, S. B. Director American School of Home Economics. BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE AMERICAN SCHOOL OF HOME ECONOMICS MRS. ARTHUR COURTENAY NEVILLE President of the Board. MISS MARIA PARLOA Founder of the first Cooking School in Boston; Author of "Home Economics," " Young Housekeeper," U. S. Government Bulletins, etc. MRS. MARY HINMAN ABEL Co-worker in the " New England Kitchen," and the " Rumford Food Laboratory;" Author of U. S. Government Bulletins, " Practical Sanitary and Economic Cooking," etc. MISS ALICE RAVENHILL Special Commissioner sent by the British Government to report on the Schools of Home Economics in the United States; Fellow of the Royal Sanitary Institute, London. MRS. ELLEN M. HENROTIN Honorary President General Federation of Woman's Clubs. MRS. FREDERIC W. SCHOFF President National Congress of Mothers. MRS. LINDA HULL EARNED Past President National Household Economics Association ; Author of " Hostess of To-day." MRS. WALTER McNAB MILLER Chairman of the Pure Food Committee of the General Federation of Woman's Clubs. MRS. J. A. KIMBERLY Vice President of National Household Economics Association. MRS. JOHN HOODLESS Government Superintendent of Domestic Science for the province of Ontario ; Founder Ontario Normal School of Domestic Science, now the MacDonald Institute. Textiles and Clothing BY KATE HEINTZ WATSON GRADUATE ARMOUR INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY FORMERLY INSTRUCTOR IN DOMESTIC ART LEWIS INSTITUTE LECTURER UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO CHICAGO AMERICAN SCHOOL OF HOME ECONOMICS 1907 TT5I5 COPYRIOHT r.lOC), 1907, BY HOME ECONOMICS ASSOCIATION 7- \n^<^^ CONTENTS Primitive Methods ...... 3 Weaving ........ 14 Fibers ......... 29 Cotton ........ 29 Wool . . . . . . . -37 Flax ' 43 Silk 53 Modern Methods ...... 59 Weaving ........ 69 Weaves ........ 72 Bleaching and Dyeing ...... 78 Printing . . . . . . . . . 81 Finishing ........ 83 Cotton Goods ....... 85 Linens ......... 86 Woolens and Worsteds ..... 88 Silks ......... 90 Names of Fabrics ...... 94 Bibliography on Textiles ..... 103 Hand Sewing ....... 107 Ornamental Stitches . . . . . .114 Hems . . . . . . . 123 Tucks and Seams . . . . . . .128 Plackets ........ 135 Sewing on Bands ...... 138 Fastenings ....... 141 P.\TCHING . . . . . . . .149 Darning ........ 155 Mitering Embroidery, Joining Lace . . . 158 Machine Sewing . . . . . . 162 iii iv CONTENTS Dressmaking ....... 167 Patterns . . . . . . . . 171 Making Seven-Gored Skirt . . . . .172 Making Shirt Waists . . . . ^ . 182 Lined Waist ....... 186 Sleeves ........ 194 Collars ........ 198 Seamless Yokes ...... 200 Pressing ........ 201 Construction and Ornament in Dress . . ' 203 Ornament of Textiles ..... 212 Color ........ 214 Children's Clothes ...... 216 Care of Clothing ...... 219 Cleaning ........ 221 Repairing ........ 225 Bibliograpiiv on Sewing and Dressmaking . . 229 References : History of Costume; Ornament and Design ........ 234 Program for Supplemental Study . . . 236 Index ......... 241 Spinning "TIIK TIIRKAD OF LIFK" . with the Distaff and Spindle. From a Painting. TEXTILES AND CLOTHING SPINNING and weaving are among the earliest arts. In the twisting of fibers, hairs, grasses, and sinews by rolHng them between the thumb and fingers, palms of the hands, or pahns and naked thigh, we have the original of the spinning wheel" and the steam-driven cotton spindle ; in the roughest plaiting we have the first hint of the finest woven cloth. The need of securing things or otherwise strengthening them then led to binding, fastening, and sewing. The wattle- work hut with its roof of interlaced boughs, the skins sewn by fine needles with entrails or sinews, the matted twigs, grasses, and rushes are all the crude beginnings of an art which tells of the settled life of to-day. Nothing is definitely known of the origin of these arts; all is conjecture. They doubtless had their be- ginning long before mention is made of them in his- tory, but these crafts — spinning and weaving — modi- fied and complicated by inventions and, in modern times transferred largely from man to machine, were distinctively woman's employment. The very primitive type of spinning, where no spindle was used, was to fasten the strands of goats' hair or wool to a stone which was twirled round until Origin of Textile Arts Primitive Methods ITALIAN WOMAN SPINNING FLAX Spindle and Distaff. From Hull House Museum. (In This Series of Pictures Spinners and Weavers Are in Native Costume.) the RUSSIAN SPINNING Flax Held on Frame, Leaving- Both Hands Free to Manage th^ Thread and Spindle. From Hull House Museum. 6 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Spinning with the Spindle Spindle Whorl the yarn was sufificiently twisted when it was wound upon the stone and the process repeated over and over. The next method of twisting yarn was with the spindle, a straight stick eight to twelve inches long on which the thread was wound after twisting. At first it had a cleft or split in the top in which the thread was fixed ; later a hook of bone was added to the upper end. The spindle is yet used by the North American Indians, the Italians, and in the Orient. The bunch of wool or flax fibers is held in the left hand ; with the right hand the fibers are drawn out several inches and the end fastened securely in the slit or hook on the top of the spindle. A whirling motion is given to the spindle on the thigh or any convenient part of the body ; the spindle is then dropped, twisting the yarn, which is wound on the upper part of the spindle. Another bunch of fibers is drawn out, the spindle is given another twirl, the yarn is wound on the spindle, and so on. A spindle containing a quantity of yarn was found to rotate more easily, steadily and continue longer than an empty one, hence the next improvement was the addition of a zvhorl at the bottom of the spindle. These whorls are discs of wood, stone, clay, or metal which keep the spindle steady and promote its rota- tion. The process in effect is precisely the same as the spinning done by our grandmothers, only the spin- ning wheel did the twisting and reduced the time required for the operation. SPINNING WITH CRUDE WHEEL. AND DISTAFF Distaff Thrust Into the Belt. COLONIAL. FLAX WHEEL Worked by a Foot Tredcjle; Distaff on the Frame of the Wheel; "Fliers" on the Spindle, Continuous in Action; Capacity Seven Times That of Hand Spindle. DUTCH WHEEL Spinner Sits in Front of the Wheel — ^Spinning Flax at Hull House. 12 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Distaff Later the distaff was used for holding the bunch of wool, flax, or other fibers. It was a short stick on one end of which was loosely wound the raw material. The other end of the distaff was held in the hand, under the arm or thrust in the girdle of the spinner. Birth of Christ 1500 AD. ■y- y /'////' y/^ — \,yy/^ '4 ^ '^/ "f- t p Time during which the hand spindle wis the only form of spindle known. Spinning wheel also known. Steam has been applied to spiantng. Wheel Spinning Graphic Diagram Showing Time During which Different Methods of Spinning Has Been Used. When held thus, one hand was left free for drawing out the fibers. On the small spinning wheel the distaff was placed in the end of the wheel bench in front of the "fillers" ; this left both hands free to manage the spindle and to draw out the threads of the fibers. The flax spinning wheel, worked by means of a treadle, was invented in the early part of the sixteenth SYRIAN SPINNING Spinner Sits on the Floor, Wheel Turned by a Crank; Spindle Held in Place by Two Mutton Joints Which Contain Enough Oil for Lubrication. At Hull House. H TEXTILES AND CLOTHING century and was a great improvement upon the dis- taff and spindle. This it will be seen was a compara- tively modern invention. The rude wheel used by the natives of Japan and India may have been the progenitor of the European wheel, as about this time intercourse between the East and Europe increased. These wheels were used for spinning flax, wool, and afterwards cotton, until Hargreaves' invention super- seded it. WEAVING Someone has said that "weaving is the climax of textile industry." It is an art practiced by all savage PUEBLO WOMAN WORKING HEDDLE IN WEAVING A BELT tribes and doubtless was known before the dawn of history. The art is but a development of mat-making and basketry, using threads formed or made by spin- ning in place of coarser filaments. In the beginning of the art the warp threads were stretched between convenient objects on the ground A NAVAJO BELT WEAVER WEAVING 17 or from horizontal supports. At first the woof or fining- threads were woven back and forth between the warp threads as in darning. An improvement was the device called the "heald" or "heddle," by means of which alternate warp threads could be drawn away from the others, making an opening through which the filling thread could be passed quickly. One form I 1 ' 1 ■ ;i I; 1 j ! '1' ''>! in The Heddle PRIMITIVE HEDDLES of the heddle was simply a straight stick having loops of cord or sinew through which certain of the warp tlireads were run. Another form was a slotted frame having openings or "eyes" in the slats. This was carved from one piece of wood or other material or made from many. Alternate warp threads passed through the eyes and the slots. By raising or lower- nig the heddle .frame, an opening was formed through which the filling thread, wound on a rude shuttle, was thrown. The next movement of the heddle frame NAVAJO LOOM One of the Eailiest Types of Looms. At Hull House. WEAVING 19 crossed the threads over the filhng and made a new opening for the return of the shuttle. At first the filling thread was wound on a stick making a primi- tive bobbin. Later the shuttle to hold the bobbin was devised. SIMPLE COLONIAL LOOM Before the "reed ' was invented, the filling threads were drawn evenly into place by means of a rude comb and driven home by sword-shaped piece of wood or "batten." The reed accomplished all this at one time. It is probable that the European looms w^ere de- lived from those of India as they seem to be made on the same principle. From crude beginnings, the hand loom of our grandmothers' time developed. A loom The Reed WEAVINCj 23 has been defined as a mechanism which aflfects the following necessary movements : I. The lifting- of the healds to form an opening, Definition . , , , , , of a Loom or shed, or race for the shuttle to pass through. DIAGRAM OF A HAND LOOM ^— Warp Beam; 5— Cloth Beam; /7Z?— Lees Rods; //—Harness, r— Treddle. 2. The throwing of the weft or filling by means of a shuttle. 3. The beating up of the weft left in the shed by the shuttle to the cloth already formed. This thread may be adjusted by means of the batten, needle, comb, or any separate device like the reed. 4 & 5. The winding up or taking up of the cloth as it is woven and the letting off of the warp as the cloth is taken up. SWEDISH HAND LOOM Norwegian Woman Weaving Linen at Hull House. WEAVING 25 No essential changes have been made since our grandmothers made cloth a hundred years ago. The "harnesses" move part of the warp now up, now down, and the shuttle carries the weft from side to side to be driven home by the reeds to the woven cloth. Our grandmothers did all the work with swift movements DIAGRAM OF THE WORKING PARTS OF A LOOM. S'— Suttle for carrying the woof; Ji — Reed for beating up the woof; //—Frame holding heddles, with pullies (P) making the harness ; T'— Treddles for moving the harness. of hands and feet. The modern weaver has her loom harnessed to the electric dynamo and moves her fin- gers only to keep the threads in order. If she wishes to weave a pattern in the cloth, no longer does she pick up threads of warp now here, now there, accord- ing to the designs. It is all worked out for her on the loom. Each thread with almost human intelli- gence settles automatically into its appointed place, and the weaver is only a machine tender. WEAVING 2.7 No textiles of primitive people were ever w^oven in Primitive , r r Fabrics "pieces" or "bolts" of yards and yards in length to be cut into garments. The cloth was made of the size and shape to serve the particular purpose for which it was designed. The mat, robe, or blanket had tribal outlines and proportions and was made according to the materials and the use of common forms that pre- vailed among the tribes. The designs were always conventional and sometimes monotonous. The decora- tion never interfered with its use. "The first beauty of the savage woman was uniformity which belonged to the texture and shape of the product." The uni- formity in textile, basketry, or pottery, after acquiring a family trait, was never lost sight of. Their designs were suggested by the natural objects with which they^ were familiar. World's Crop. United States. Texas. PRODUCTION OF COTTON largest producer, followed by Georgia, Alabama, and ]\Iississippi. The remainder of the world supply comes chiefly from India, Egypt, Russia, and Brazil. The Hindoos were the first ancient people to make exten- sive use of the cotton fiber. Not until the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1794 did the cotton begin to reach its present importance. Only 29 Fibers FIBERS Both the animal and vegetable kingdoms furnish the materials for clothing as well as for all the textiles used in the home. The fleece of sheep, the hair of the goat and camel, silk, furs, and skins are the chief animal products. The principal vegetable fibers are cotton, flax, 'ramie, jute, and hemp. Cotton linen, wool, and silk have heretofore formed chief the foundation of all textiles and are the principal fibers used for clothing materials. Ramie or China grass and pineapple fibers are sometimes used as adulterants in the manufacture of silk. When woven alone, they give soft silky textiles of great strength and beauty. COTTON Cotton is now our chief vegetable fiber, the yearly crop being over six billion pounds, of which the United States raises three-fourths. Texas is the 30 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Native Home Sea Island Cotton Upland Cotton four or five pounds of the fiber could be separated by hand from the seed by a week's labor. The modern saw gins turn out over five thousand pounds daily. Cotton is the white downy co/ering of the seed of several species of cotton plant. It is a native of many parts of the world, being found by Columbus growing in the West Indies and on the main land, by Cortez in Mexico, and Pizarro in Peru. The value of cotton depends upon the strength, and evenness of the fiber. In ordinary cotton the individual fiber is about an inch in length. The sea island cot- ton grown chiefly on the islands off the coast of Georgia, Carolina, and Florida is the most valu- able variety, having a fine fiber, one and one-half to two inches in length. Some of the Egyptian cotton be- longs to this species. Sea island cotton is used chiefly for fine laces, thread and knit goods and for the finest lawns and muslins. The short fiber or upland cotton is the most common and useful variety. It is grown in Georgia, North and South Carolina and Alabama. Texas cotton is similar to upland, but sometimes is harsh with shorter fiber. Gulf cotton occupies a position between upland and sea island cotton. The Brazilian and Peruvian cotton yields a long staple and is sometimes used to adulterate silk and COTTON FIBER ATTACHED TO SEED UPLAND COTTON PLANT WITH FULLY DEVELOPED BOLES From Bulletin No. 31, Georgia Experiment Station. COTTON BOLE FULLY DEVEL- OPED From Year Book of the Department of Agriculture, 1903. I30LE OPENED, COTTON READY FOK TICKING Year Book of 1903. Nankin Cotton 34 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING other fibers. Some varieties of this cotton are harsh and wooly and are prized for use in mixing with wool. The Nankin cotton grown in China and India and in the southwestern part of Louisiana is characterized by its yellow color. It is used in weaving cloth of various kinds in the "fireside industries" which have become popular in the United States and England. COTTON FIBERS A .4— Unripe Fibers; i? i?— Half-ripe Fibers ; CC— Ripe Fibers. Very fine yarn can be spun from cotton because of the spiral character of the fibers. This twist of the fibers is peculiar to cotton, being present in no other animal or vegetable fiber. On account of this twist, cotton cloths are much more elastic in character than those woven from linen, the fibers of which are stiff and straight. After the removal of the seed, no other fiber is so free from impurities — 5 per cent is the loss sustained COTTON 35 by cleaning and bleaching. In its natural condition, cotton will not dye readily because of a waxy sub- stance on the surface of the fibers. This must be removed by washing. Cotton should be picked only when it is fully ripe when the pods are fully burst and the fibers expanded. The unripe fiber is glassy, does not attain its full Picking and Ginning COTTON BALES Strength and resists the dye. After picking, the cotton is sent to the ginning factory to have the seed removed. It is then pressed into bales by hydraulic presses, five hundred pounds being the standard bale in the United States. Purified bleached cotton is nearly pure cellulose. It resists the action of alkalis well, but is harmed by hot, strong acids, or if acid is allowed to dry on the fabric. It is not harmed by high temperature, and so may be ironed with a hot iron. Physical Character- istics WOOL. FIBER AND SUBSTITUTES 1. South American Wool; 2, Noil from the Same; 3, Tangled Waste; 4, Waste Combed Out; 5, Lap Waste; 6, Shoddy. V/OOL 37 WOOL Wool is the most important animal fiber. Strictly speaking the name applies only to the hairy covering of sheep, but the hair of certain goats and of camels is generally classified under the same terms. The wool fiber is distinguished by its scale-like surface which gives it its felting and spinning properties. Hair Character of Fiber MICROSCOPIC APPEARANCE OF WOOL FIBERS as distinguished from wool has little or no scaly struc- ture being in general a smooth filament with no felting properties and spinning only with great difficulty. Fur is the undergrowth found on most fur-bearing animals and has in a modified way the scaly structure and felt- ing properties of wool. The great value of wool as a fiber lies in the fact that it is strong, elastic, soft, very susceptible to dye stuffs and being woven, furnishes a great number of Value for Clothing 38 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Quality Of Wool air spaces, rendering clothing made from it very warm and light. Climate, breed, and food influence the quality of the wool. Where the pasturage is barren and rocky, the wool is apt to be coarse. Varieties of Sheep MERINO RAMS The Variety of Sheep Giving the Finest Wool. There are supposed to be about thirty distinct varie- ties of sheep, nearly half of which are natives of Asia, one-third of Africa, and only four coming from Eu- rope, and two from America. Wool is divided into two general classes — long and short staple, according WOOL 39 to the average length of fiber. The long fiber wool is commonly carded, combed and spun into ivorstcd yarn. The short fiber is usually carded and spun into woolen yarn. The short fiber obtained in combing long staple wool is called "noil." It is used for woolens. Alpaca, Vicuna and Llama wools are obtained from animals which are native to the mountains of Peru Goat Wools ANGORA GOATS and Chile. The Angora goat, originally from Asia Minor, furnishes the mohair of commerce. This fiber does not resemble the hairs of common goats in any respect. It is a very beautiful fiber of silky luster, which constitutes its chief value. Fur Sorting Wool 40 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING The fur of beavers and rabbits can be and is used in manufacture, either spun into yarn or made into felt. The fibers of both animals enter largely into the manufacture of felt hats. The fleece of sheep after being sheared is divided into different parts or sorted, according to to the qual- Scouring Wool WOOL FIBERS a— Medium Wool; *— Camel's Hair; c— Diseased Fiber ; (^— Meriuo Wool ; e — Mohair. ity of the wool, the best wool coming from the sides of the animal. As it comes from the sheep, the wool contains many substances besides the wool fiber which must be re- moved before dyeing or spinning. This cleansing is called scouring. Before scouring, the wool is usually dusted by machines to remove all loose dirt. The scouring must be done b}' the mildest means possible in order to preserve the natural fluffiness and bril- liancy of the fiber. The chief impurity is the wool WOOL 41 grease or "yolk" which is secreted by the skin glands to lubricate the fiber and prevent it from matting. In the scouring of wool, soap is the principal agent. Soft soap made from caustic potash is generally used Scouring Agents ONE METHOD OF WOOL SORTING 1 — The Best Grade ; 2 — Lowest Grade ; 3 — Fair ; -1 — Medium Grade. as it is less harmful than ordinary hard soda soap. Potassium carbonate — "pearl ash" — is often used in connection with the soap. If the water for scouring is hard, it is softened with pearl ash. The temperature 42 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING of wash water is never allowed to go above 120^ F. The scoured wool weighs from a little over a half to one-third or less of the weight of the fleece. Wool has the remarkable property of absorbing up to 30 per cent or more of its weight of water and yet not feel perceptibly damp to the touch. This is called WOOL SORTING "hydroscopic moisture." To this property wool owes its superiority as a textile for underclothing. The thoroughly cleansed fiber is made up chiefly of the chemical substance keratin, being similar in com- position to horn and feathers. In burning it gives oflf a characteristic disagreeable odor. It is a substance very weakly acid in its nature, for which reason it combines readily with many dyes. Wool resists the action of acids very well, but is much harmed by the alkalis, being dissolved completely by a warm solution of caustic soda. High temperature harms wool. FLAX 43 FLAX Next to wool and cotton, flax is used most largely in our textile manufactures. The linen fiber consists of the bast cells of certain spe- cies of flax grown in Eu- rope, Africa, and the Uni- ted States. All bast fibers are obtained near the out- er surface of the plant stems. The pith and woody tissues are of no ' value. The flax plant is an annual and to ob- tain the best fibers it must be gathered before it is fully ripe. To obtain seed from which the best quality of lin- seed oil can be made it is usually necessary to sacrifice the quality of the fibers to some extent. flax Unlike cotton, flax is contaminated by impurities from which it must be freed before it can be woven into cloth. The first process to which the freshly pulled flax is submitted is that of "rippling" or the removal of the seed capsules. Retting, next in order, is the most important operation. This is done to remove the substances which bind the bast fibers to each other and to remove the fiber from the central Treatment of Flax FLAX 45 woody portion of the stem. This consists of steeping the stalks in water. (i) Cold water retting, either running or stagnant water. (2) Dew retting. (3) Warm water retting. RETTING TANK y4— Inlet; 5— Undisturbed Water; C— Bundles of Flax. Cold water retting in running water is practiced in Belgium. Retting in stagnant water is the method usually employed in Ireland and Russia. The retting in stagnant water is more rapidly done, but there is danger of over-retting on account of the organic mat- ter retained in the water which favors fermentation. In this case the fiber is weakened. In dew retting, the flax is spread on the field and exposed to the action of the weather for several weeks Retting FLAX 47 without any previous steeping. This method of retting is practiced in Germany and Russia. Warm water retting and cliemical retting have met with Hmited success. When the ret- ting is complete, the flax is set up in sheaves to dry. The next operations con- sist of "break- ing," "scutch- ing," and "hackHng" and are now done by machinery. fibers of flax Breaking removes the woody center from the retted and dried flax by being passed through a series of fluted rollers. The particles of woody matter adher- ing to the fibers are detached by scutching. Hackling or combing still further separates the fibers into their finest filaments — "line" and "tow." The "flax line" is the long and valuable fiber ; the tow, the short coarse tangled fiber which is spun and used for weaving coarse linen. \Mien freed from all impurities the' chief physical characteristics of flax are its snowy whiteness, silky luster and great tenacity. The individual fibers may Hackling Character- istics of Linen FI>AX A, Unthrashcd Straw; B, Rotted; C, Cleane'd or Scutched; D, Hackled or Dressed. (Photograph of C. R. Dodge). HACKLING FLAX BY HAND The "Tow" Is Seen at the Left and a Bunch of "Flax line" on the Bench. (Photograph of C. R. Dodge, Special Agent U. S. Department of Agriculture. Kamie 50 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING be from ten to twelve inches in length ; they are much greater in diameter than cotton. It is less pliant and elastic than cotton and bleaches and dyes less readily, Linen cloth is a better conductor of heat than cotton and clothmg made from it is cooler. When pure, it is, like cotton, nearly pure cellulose. Besides the linen, there is a great number of bast fibers fit for textile purposes, some superior, some in- ferior. India alone has over three hundred plants that are fiber yielding. One-third of these furnish useful fibers for cordage and fabrics. The next in importance to linen is ramie or rhea, and China grass. China grass comes from a dififerent plant but is about the same as ramie. The staple is longer and finer than linen. The great strength of yarn made from it is due to length of the staple. The variety and great value of the ramie fibers has long been recognized, but difficulties attending the separation and degumming of the fibers have pre- vented its employment in the manufactures to any great extent. The native Chinese split and scrape the plant stems, steeping them in water. The common retting process used for flax is not effective on account of the large amount of gummy matter, and although easy to bleach it is difficult to dye in full bright shades without injuring the luster of the fibers. Jute Jute and hemp belong to the lower order of bast Hemp fibers. The fiber is large and is unfit for any but the JUTE GROWING IN LOUISIANA From Culture of Hemp and Jute. Report of U. S. Department of Agriculture. .•/'''•■-.".v'ff/l''' ■ SILK S3 coarsest kind of fabrics. Jute is mainly cultivated in Bengal. The fiber is separated from the plant by retting, beating, etc. Olona, the textile fiber of Hawaii, is found to have oiona promising qualities. This plant resembles ramie and belongs to the nettle family also, but it is without the troublesome resin of the ramie. The fiber is fine, light, strong, and durable. The Philippines are rich in fiber producing plants. The manila hemp is the most prominent, of which coarse cloth is woven, besides the valuable cordage. The sisal hemp, pineapple, yucca, and a number of fiber plants growing in the southern part of the United States are worthy of note. These fiber industries are conducted in a rude way, the fiber being cleaned by hand, except the pineapple. SILK The silk fiber is the most perfect as well as the most beautiful of all fibers. It is nearly faultless, fine and continuous, often measuring from looo to 4000 feet long, without a scale, joint, or a blemish, though not of the same diameter or fineness throughout its entire length, as it becomes finer as the interior of the cocoon is approached. Silk differs from all other vegetable or animal fibers by being devoid of all cellular structure. Southern Europe leads in the silk worm culture — where Italy, southern France, and Turkey, with China and India. Several species of moths, natives of India, China, and Japan, produce the wild silk. The most 54 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING important of the "wild silks" are the Tussah. Silk plush and the coarser varieties of buff colored fabrics are made of this silk. While manufacturers do not favor the wild silk, the coarse uneven weave and soft- ness make it a favorite with artists and it is being used for interior decoration as well as for clothing. Silk The silk of commerce begins with an tgg no bigger than a mustard seed, out of which comes a diminutive caterpillar, which is kept in a frame and fed upon mulberry leaves. When the caterpillars are full grown, they climb upon twigs placed for them and begin to spin or make the cocoon. The silk comes from two little orifices in the head in the form of a glutinous gum which hardens into a fine elastic fiber. With a motion of the head somewhat like the figure eight, the silk worm throws this thread around the body from head to tail until at last it is entirely enveloped. The body grows smaller and the thread" grows finer until at last it has spun out most of the substance of the body and the task is done. If left to itself, when the time came, the moth would eat its way out of the cocoon and ruin the fiber. A few of the best cocoons are saved for a new supply of caterpillars ; the remainder are baked at a low heat which destroys the worm but preserves the silk. This now becomes the cocoon of commerce. Reeling Next the cocoons go to the reelers who wind the ^^^^ filaments into the silk varn that makes the raw ma- SILK 55 terial of our mills. The cocoons are thrown into warm water mixed with soap in order to dissolve the g'um. The outer or coarser coverinc: is brushed off down to SILK:-CATERPILLAR, COCOON, CHRYSALIS, MOTH the real silk and the end of the thread found. Four or five cocoons are wound together, the sticky fibers clinging to each other as they pass through the various guides and are wound as a single thread on the reels. 56 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Organize and Tram Boiling Off Loading Silk The silk is dried and tied into hanks or skeins. As the thread unwinds from the cocoon, it becomes smaller, so other threads must be added. At the mill the raw silk goes to the "throwste-" who twists the silk threads ready for the loom. These threads are of two kinds — "organize" or warp and "tram" or filling. The warp runs the long way of woven fabric or parallel with the selvage and it musi be strong, elastic, and not easily parted by rubbing. To prepare the warp, two threads of raw silk are slightly twisted. Twnst is always put into yarn of any kind to increase its strength. These threads are united and twisted together and this makes a strong thread capable of withstanding any reasonable strain in the loom and it will not roughen. For the woof or tram which is carried across the w^oven cloth on the shuttle, the thread should be as loose and fluffy as possible. Several threads are put together, subjected to only a very slight twist — just enough to hold the threads together so they will lie evenly in the finished fabric. After the yarn leaves the spinners it is again run off on reels to be taken to the dye house. First the yarn is boiled off in soapy water to remove the remaining gum. Now the silk takes on its luster. Before it was dull like cotton. The silk is now finer and harder and is known as "souple." The silk fiber has a remarkable property of absorb- ing certain metallic salts, still retaining much of its SILK 57 luster. This process is known as "loading" or "weight- ing," and gives increased body and weight to the silk. Silk without weighting is known as "pure dye," of which there is little made, as such goods take too much silk. REELING SILK For the weighting of white or light colored silk goods, tin crystals (stanous chloride) are used and for dark shades and black, iron salts and tannin. By this means the original weight of the fiber may be increased three or four hundred per cent. This result is not attained, how^ever, except through the weakenmg of the fiber. 58 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Action of Common Salt Artificial Silk Character- istics of Silk Common salt has a very curious action on weighted silk. It slowly weakens the fiber. A silk dress may be ruined by being splashed with salt water at the. sea- shore. Most often holes appear after a dress comes back from the cleaners ; these he may not be to blame for, as salt is abimdant in nearly all the bodily secre- tions, — tears, perspiration, urine. Artificial silk is made by dissolving cellulose ob- tained from cotton. It is lacking in strength and water spoils all kinds manufactured at present. Silk, like wool, has the property of absorbing con- siderable moisture without becoming perceptibly damp. Like wool and all the animal fibers, it is harmed by alkalis. The important physical properties of silk are its beautiful luster, strength, elasticity and the readi- ness with which it takes dyes. Silk combines well with other fibers, animal and vegetable. A comparison of the relative value of textile fibers may be seen from the following approximate prices : Cotton — $.07 to $.14 per pound; loss in cleaning and bleaching 5 per cent. Flax — $.12 to $.30 per pound; loss in cleaning and bleaching about 20 per cent. Wool — $.15 to $.30 per pound; loss in scouring 20 to 60 per cent. Raw Silk — $7.00 to $to.oo per pound ; loss in "boiling off" about 30 per cent which is made up and much more bv "loading." MODERN METHODS All the complex processes and machinery of the textile industry are but developments of the old-time methods of the home. Brief outlines only will be given here for the processes are most intricate in detail. SPINNING The spinning of cotton yarn (thread) is typical of all the fibers. The stages may be divided into — 1. Opening and picking. 2. Carding. 3. Combing. 4. Drawing. 5. Spinning. The picking and carding have for their object the removal of all foreign substances with as little damage to the fiber as possible. The foreign substances in cotton are sand, dirt, pieces of leaves, seed, husk, etc., which have become mixed with the fiber during the process of growing, ginning and transportation. The cotton bales are opened and thrown into the automatic feeder which carries up a layer of cotton on a spiked apron from which it is removed by a rapidly revolving "doffer" underneath which is a screen which catches some of the dirt. It is next fed between rolls in front of a rapidly revolving blunt-edged knife which throws out more of the dirt through a screen. There is a suction of air through the screen wdiich helps remove the foreign substances. The cotton passes 59 Picking and Carding Cleaning 6o TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Card In? Combing: through several of such machines, being formed into a soft web or "lap" which is wound into a roll. The carding machine further cleans the fibers and lays them in a general parallel position. From this machine the web is formed into "sliver," a loose rope COTTON OPENER AND PICKER The cotton from the bale is thrown into A, carried by the spiked aprons ^ and C evened by E, removed irom llie apron by F (some of the dirt falls through the screen into box C) is beaten by the revolving " knife," A' P. more dirt being removed through screen yV, then goea through the flue Clo the uej^t machine. of cotton fiber about two inches in diameter. This is received in circular cans. The combing is omitted for short fiber cotton, but is used in worsted spinning and with long staple cotton to remove the short fibers. Cotton to be used for SPINNING 61 making yarn suitable for hosiery, underwear, sewing thread, lace, and for very fine cotton fabrics is carded. In drawing, from six to sixteen "slivers" are run together and the fibers drawn out in several stages until the soft rope is about an eighth of an inch in diameter, called "roving." This tends to get rid of any unevenness and makes the fibers all parallel. From this machine the roving is wound on a bobbin ready for the spinning frame. COTTON CARD The roll of webbing A is beaten and transferred to the cylinder ////, carded b^ the spiked belt E, removed by the "doffer" and formed into a "sliver" which runs into the can M, The spinning frame may have a hundred spindles or more, each one of which is drawing out its supply of "roving" to the required size of yarn and giving it the twist necessary to bind the fibers together. The yarn to be used for the warp is given a harder twist so that it may be strong enough to stand the strain in weaving. The yarn for filling is usually left soft. Spinning: RECEIVING THE "SLIVER" AT THE BACK OF THE DRAW- ING FRAME. O 3 H p O O Pk O M z; z; WEAVING 69 The yarn for warp is now usually given a coating or "sizing" of starch and gums so that the thread may not become unwound and break during weaving. The process of spinning is much the same for flax and for wool, although somewhat differently con- structed machines must be used. Flax is usually spun wet. WEAVING The modern power driven loom is a wonderful piece of machinery. The principle of its operation is essen- tially the same as the hand loom, but it is almost per- fectly automatic in its action, a man or woman being able to tend from ten to fifteen looms weaving plain cotton goods. The yarn coming from the spinning frame is some- times dyed before weaving. The warp is formed by winding as many threads as the width of the fabric is to contain on a slowly revolving drum, called a "beam," in the same relative position in which they are to ap- pear in the finished cloth. From its position on the beam at the back of the loom, each thread is brought through its particular loop or eye with the heddle, then passes through its own slot in the reed, and down to the roller or "cloth beam" that is to take up the woven cloth. This is called "drawing in the warp." If there is a piece of cloth coming from the loom, the work is very simple, for the ends of the new warp are tied to the ends remaining from the warp that has been woven out. Modern Loom Warping 70 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING. The Harness Jacquard Loom The shuttle with its bobbin, containing the yarn of the fining, is much the same as is used in the hand looms, except for form and size, which varies accord- ing to the requirements and size of the warp, being used. At first only one shuttle was used, but in 1760 Robert Kay invented a mechanism by which several shuttles containing different grades or colors of yarn might be used. Each throw of the shuttle across the width of the goods is called a "pick." In making a cloth with plain weave, that is, with every thread interlacing with every other, as in darn- ing, only two harnesses are required, but the modern loom may have up to about twenty-four harnesses so that an infinite variety of weaves may be obtained. Various cams and levers move the harness frame and so raise or lower the threads required for the design. The Jacquard loom is arranged on a different prin- ciple. In this loom, all kinds of fancy weaves may be obtained as in table linen, tapestries and carpets. Each warp thread is supplied with a separate hook and by means of perforated card the desired threads are raised or depressed at each throw of the shuttle. The cards are worked out by the designer. A set of a thousand or more cards may be required to produce the desired design. Jacquard looms are sometimes to be seen at fairs and expositions weaving handkerchiefs with some picture design. JACQUARD HAND LOOM "Weaving Ingrain Carpet at Hull House. WEAVES The great variety of weaves found in the textiles of to-day are modifications of a few fundamental weaves invented in the earliest times. The chief fundamental weaves are : (i) Plain weave. * (2) Twills. (3) Sateen. To which may be added the derivatives — (4) Rib weave. (5) Basket weave. These do not include the many fancy weaves, too DIAGEAM OF FANCY KNIT GOODS numerous to classify, and the open work weaves, made in the Leno loom, in which some of the threads are crossed. Knit goods are made by the interlooping of a single thread, by hand or on circular knitting ma- 72 WEAVES 73 chines and lace by an analog-oiis process, using several systems of threads. Felt is made up of matted fibers of fur and wool and has no thread structure. jj 1 Ei.ci m: Plawin Twill mm C&^simere Twill ^a^teen WEAVE DIAGRAMS The plain weave is the most common, nearly all light weight goods being thus woven. In plain weav- ing, each thread of both warp and filling passes alter- nately over and under the threads at right angles. This makes a comparatively open cloth, requiring the Plain Weave 74 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING smallest amount of yarn for the surface covered. This weave is used in nearly all cotton goods, as in muslins, sheetings, calicoes, ginghams, and thin woolen goods. Even in the plain weave variety is obtained by having a SECTIONS OF WE.4.VES a— Plain weave; *— Prunella twill; c— Cassimere twill; rf— Swans- dowu twill. some of the threads larger than others, either in warp or filling or both, thus producing- stripes and checked effects. Twills After the plain weave the twill is the most common, being much used for dress goods, suitings, etc.. as well as some of the thicker cottons. In this weave the intersections of the threads produce characteristic lines diagonally across the fabric, most often at an angle of 45°, The twill may be hardly visible or very WEAVES 75 pronounced. The simplest twills are the so-called "doeskin" and "prunella." In the doeskin the filling threads pass over one and under two of the warp threads and in the prunella twill over two and under one. The most common twill is the cassimere twill in which both the warp and filling run over two and under two of the threads at right angles. Double CloirK DIAGRAM OF EIB AND BASKET WEAVE AND DOUBLE CLOTH A twill made by running both warp and filling under one and over three threads is called -a swansdown twill and the reverse is known as the crow weave. In these the diagonal twilled effect is much more marked. Various twills are often combined with each other and with plain weave, making a great variety of texture. Numerous uneven twills are made, two over and three under, etc., etc. Uneven TwiUs 76 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Sateen Weave Rib and Basket Weaves In the sateen weave, nearly all of either the warp or the filling threads are on the surface, the object being to produce a smooth surface fabric like sateen. With TEXTILE DESIGN A — On cross-section paper ; B — Graphic diagram. this weave it is possible to use a cotton warp and silk filling, having most of the silk appear on the surface of the fabric. The rib and basket weaves are derivatives of the plain weave, two or more threads replacing the single WEAVES 77 strand. In the rib weave, either the warp or the fill- ing threads run double or more, thus making a corded effect. In the basket weave, both warp and filling are run double or treble, giving a coarse texture. This weave is sometimes called the panama weave. In the thicker fabrics like men's suitings and over- Double coatmgs, there may be a double series of warp threads, only one series appearing on the face of the goods, and in the still thicker fabrics, there may be a double set of both warp and filling threads, making double cloth, the two sides of which may be entirely different in color and design. In weaving plush, velvet and velveteen, loops are velvet made in the filling or warp threads which are after- wards cut, producing the pile. Madder Sleach Singeing and Shearing BLEACHING, DYEING, PRINTING, FINISHING When the cloth comes from the loom it is by no means ready for the market. Nearly all kinds are washed and pressed and in some classes of goods the finishing process is very elaborate. BLEACHING AND DYEING The fiber may be dyed in a loose or unspun state, as is customary with wool ; after it has been spun and is in the form of yarn, as in the case of silk and linen ; and when it has been woven to form cloth, as is most commonly the case with cotton. The bleaching of cotton involves a number of steps, the most thorough process being called the "madder bleach," in which the cloth is (i) wet out, (2) boiled with lime water, (3) rinsed, (4) treated with acid, (5) rinsed, (6) boiled with soap and alkali, (7) rinsed, (8) treated with bleaching powder solution, (9) rinsed, (10) treated with acid, (11) finally rinsed again. All this is done by machines and hundreds of yards go through the process at a time. The product is a pure white cloth suitable for dyeing light shades and for white goods. When cloth is to be dyed a dark shade the treatment is less elaborate. If the cloth is to be printed for calicoes, before bleaching it is singed by passing through gas fiames or over a red hot plate and then sheared in a shearing machine constructed somewhat on the principle of the 78 DYEINC 79 lawn mower, the cloth being run close to the rapidly revolving knives. Although cotton is usually dyed in the piece, it may be dyed in the form of yarn, as for ginghams, and sometimes before being woven, in the loose state. Cotton is more difficult to dye than wool or silk. Although there are now what are called "direct" cotton colors, the usual process is to first treat the cotton goods with a "mordant" — various salts of aluminum, chromium, iron, tin and copper, fixing these on the fiber by means of tannin or alkali. The mordanted cloth is then entered into the dye bath and boiled for an hour or longer, until the desired shade is obtained or the dye bath exhausted. The salts of aluminum are used as mordants for the lighter shades, the salts of chromium for the medium shades, and iron for the dark shades. In general, chromium mordants give the fastest dyes. The discovery of the so-called aniline dyes has greatly increased the variety of colors available. Al- though some of the first aniline dyes to be made were not fast to washing or to light and they thus received a bad reputation, they are now to be obtained which compare favorably in fastness with the natural dye stufifs such as cochineal, madder, etc., provided suf- ficient time and care are given to dyeing. The chief trouble is that in the endeavor to furnish cheap goods, processes are hurried and results are unsatisfactory. Mordant Colors Aniline Dyes TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Home Dyeing Natural Dyestuffs Dyeing Woolen and Silk Home dyeing is practically confined to the use of direct aniline colors. These are put up in small quan- tities and sold in many places. Directions for their use are given on the packages. The chief precautions are to have the goods perfectly clean and thoroughly wet before entering into the dye bath (this is by no means as easy as one might think), and to keep the goods in motion while dyeing so as to prevent un- evenness of shade. Wool and silk dyes cannot be used for cotton and linen, nor the reverse. Of course cloth already colored cannot be dyed a lighter shade of the same color and the original shade must be very light to enable one to change the color, say from red to blue, etc. The original color always modifies that of the dye somewhat and it is best to experiment first with a small portion of the dye and cloth. Rather dark shades are apt to be most successful. Indigo for blue, madder for Turkey red, logwood with fustic for black, cutch or gambia for browns on cotton are about all the natural dyestuffs which are used to any extent commercially at the present time. The artificial product alizerin, the active principle of madder, has about superseded the natural dyestuff, and artificial indigo is gaining on the natural product. Linen is bleached and dyed in much the same man- ner as cotton, although the process is more difficult. The process of bleaching weakens linen more than cotton. Woolen and silk may be dyed directly with a great variety of dyes without the addition of a mordant, PRINTING • 8i although they are often mordanted. Both must be well washed or scoured before dyeing. When white or delicate shades on woolen or silk are desired they are bleached. The bleaching is usually done with sul- phurous acid gas, the cloth or yarn being exposed in a damp condition to the fumes of burning sulplur. Were it not for the expense, hydrogen peroxide would be the ideal bleaching agent for the animal fibers. PRINTING A great variety of colored designs are produced on the loom by using different colored warp and filling yarns and different weaves, but in all these the designs are easily made only in somewhat rectangular patterns. Print goods have doubtless evolved from the deco- ration of fabrics with the brush. Block printing was Block and first used, the design being engraved in relief on blocks pAnVing of wood. These are dipped in the colored paste, spread thinly, and applied to successive portions of the cloth by hand. These blocks are now replaced in the printing machine by engraved copper rolls, the design being such that it is repeated once or a number of times in each revolution of the cylinder. There is a printing roll for each color of the design. Sometimes both the background and the design are printed on the cloth, but the more common process is for the design only to be printed on the cloth which may be dyed afterwards. In the paste of the printed design there 82 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Fixing the Print Warp Printing is some chemical which prevents the portions printed from taking the dye, consequently these remain white or a different color. This is called the "resist" process. Another process is to first dye the cloth and then print on some chemical which, when the calico is steamed, discharges the color. This is called the "discharge" process. Sometimes this weakens the goods in the places where the color has been discharged. The color paste used for printing contains both the dye and the mordant. After the calico has been printed it is steamed to develop and fix the color, washed, sometimes very slightly bleached, to clear the whites, and usually given a sizing of starch or gum, and then pressed and dried by passing over slowly revolving, steam-heated drums. In general print goods are not so fast to washing and to light as those that have been dyed in the regu- lar way, although the better grades are reasonably fast. Prints are sometimes made in imitation of the more costly gingham or other goods in which the color design is made in the weaving. It is easy to detect the imitation as the design of printed fabrics does not penetrate to the' back of the cloth. Sometimes the warps are printed before the cloth is woven, thus giving very pretty indefinite designs, especially in silk. FINISHING 83 FINISHING The finishing of woolen and worsted goods has much to do with their appearance. No cloth comes from the loom in a perfect condition, therefore inspection is the first process. Loose threads and knots are carefully cut off by the "burler" and imperfections in the weav- ing rectified by the "menders." The goods may now be singed and sheared. Woolens, and sometimes worsteds, are next "fulled" or felted by being run round and round in a machine while moistened with soap. The friction of the cloth on itself produces some heat which, with the mois- ture and soap, causes the goods to shrink in length and width while increasing m thickness. During this proc- ess, "flocks" are often added, especially for smooth finished woolen goods. These flocks are fine fibers of wool obtained from the shearing machine or made by cutting up old woolen cloth. They are felted with the fibers of the goods and add weight and firmness. After the fulling, the goods is washed to remove the soap, dyed, if desired, and often "speck dyed" with a special dye which colors the bits of burs, remaining in the cloth, but not the wool. The next process i^ the "gigging" which raises the nap. The cloth is run close to rapidly revolving "teazels" and also may be run through a napping machine. It may be sheared again and then steamed and pressed. This is but a brief outline ; there are generally more processes. Woolen cloth coming from the loom may be so iJurling and Mending Fulling Flocks Raising the Nap 84 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING treated in the finishing room as to produce fabrics entirely different in appearance. One of the chief ob- jects of the finishing is to give to the cloth as fine an appearance as possible to attract the buyer. Much of the fine finish disappears through wear, especially with inferior goods made from poor materials. The wear- ing quality of the goods is primarily dependent upon the strength and quality of the fibers of which it is made, so that the yarn of the filling and the warp should be examined when selecting materials. In gen- eral, hard twisted varn will give the better wearing cloth. FABRICS The present day shops offer such a great variety of fabrics that only a few of the most important can be mentioned here. COTTON GOODS Cotton is cool and heavy, is a non-conductor of heat, crushes easily, but like all vegetable fibers it may be laundered without injury to the fibers. Cotton does not take the darker dyes as well as animal fibers and for this reason it does not combine satisfactorily with wool. As an adulterant it wears shabby and loses its brightness. It is only when cotton does not pretend to be anything else that it is our most useful and dur- able textile. The readiness with which cotton takes the lighter dyes and improved methods of ginning, spinning, and weaving have made cotton goods supe- rior to any other for summer use. Muslin, calico, and gingham must always head the Muslin list of cotton goods. Muslin is coarse and fine, bleached, unbleached, and half bleached, twilled or plain weave. Under the head of muslin brought to a high degree of perfection in weave and finish will be found dimity, mull, Indian lawn, organdie, Swiss, and Madras, and a host of others equally beautiful. Mad- ras muslin has a thin, transparent ground with a heav- ily raised pattern woven of a soft, thick thread unlike the ground work. Waste is used for the pattern. Or- gandie muslin is soft, opaque, white, or colored, with 85 86 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING raised dots of pattern and plain weave. Dimity has a fine cord running with the selvage. Gingham is a smooth, close cotton usually woven in checks or stripes. The yarn is dyed before being- woven, making the cloth alike on both sides, and the weave is either plain or twilled. Ginghams are also woven of silk and cotton mixed or of silk and ramie. Cretonne, chintz, dress linings, crape, velveteen, and lace are made of cotton. Flannelette, whicli is woven to imitate flannel, is soft and light and is preferred by many who find woolen irritating. It does not shrink as woolen does and is made in beautiful, soft colors and the best grades do not fade. For nightdresses, underwear, and sheets, during cold weather this inexpensive fabric is unequaled. Among the heavier cotton fabrics may be mentioned denim and ticking which are now printed in beautiful designs and colors and used for interior decoration as well as for clothing and bedding. The great variety of fibers, the many different ways of preparing each for manufacture, the differences in the preparatory processes in spinning, weaving, or in any of the later processes of finishing produce the varied appearance of the finished product in cotton as in other fabrics. LINENS Linen is one of the oldest textiles ; it was used by the early Egyptians for the priests' garments and for LINENS 87 the wrappings of mummies. Many housekeepers think that there is no material for sheets and pillow cases comparable to linen, but it is not an ideal dressing for beds, for in spite of its heavier body, it wrinkles and musses much more readily than good cotton. For table service, however, for the toilet, and for minor ornamental purposes linen has no equal. Its smooth- ness of texture, its brilliancy which laundering in- creases, its wearing qualities, its exquisite freshness, make it the one fabric fit for the table. Table linen is woven plain and figured, checked and ^f^]® diapered. In the figured or damask cloth the patterns stand out distinctly. This is due to the play of light and shade on the horizontal and vertical lines. In some lights the pattern is scarcely noticeable. When buy- ing a cloth, let it be between the observer and the light, for in this position the pattern will show to the best advantage. There is a certain amount of shade on all horizontal lines or of shadow cast by them, while the vertical lines are illuminated, thus although the warp and woof threads are of the same color, the pattern seems to stand out from the background. Linen should not be adulterated. It should be for use and not for show, for use brightens and whitens it. Linen adulterated with cotton becomes fuzzy through wear because of the much shorter cotton fibers. The tendency can often be seen by rolling the goods between the thumb and fingers. 88 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING standard Goods Tweeds Crash of different widths and quality furnishes tea towels, "huck," damask and other weaves come in vari- ous widths and may be purchased by the yard. Russia crash is best for kitchen towels. WOOLENS AND WORSTEDS The many grades of wool with the great variety of weaves and finish make an almost infinite variety of woolen and worsted fabrics. New goods are con- stantly being put upon the market, or old goods with new names. Standard goods, such as serges, cashmere, Henrietta cloth, and covert cloth, are always to be found in the shops. These are all twilled goods. The serges are woven of combed wool and are harsh, tough, springy, worsted fabrics of me- dium and heavy weight, with a distinct twill, rather smooth surface, and plainer back. There are also loosely woven serges. Cashmere and Henrietta cloth have a fine, irregular twill — the finest made. They are woven with silk, wool, and cotton warp, but the latter gives an inferior textile. Tweeds and homespuns are names given to coarse cloth of which the wool is spun by hand and woven on hand looms. These goods vary according to the lo- cality in which they are made. The wool is mixed without regard to color, the yarn being spun and twisted in the most primitive manner, giving the cloth an uneven, unfinished appearance. These are among the best wearing cloths on the market and are espe- WOOLENS AND WORSTEDS 89 daily suitable for suits that will receive hard wear. Scotland and Ireland are famous for their tweeds and homespuns and what are known as the "cottage indus- tries" have been recently revived in those countries as the products of their hand looms have become de- servedly popular abroad. The "Harris Tweeds," made on the Island of Lewis Harris Tweeds and Harris, north of Scotland, are in the old style by the "crofters." After weaving the goods are "waulked" — milled or felted — with the bare feet, ac- companied by singing the waulking song and beating time with the feet. The dyeing is done in pots in the old-fashioned way and until recently the dyestuflfs were obtained from mosses, lichens, heather, broom, and other plants. Now, however, some of the best aniline dyes are being used. A peculiar characteristic of the Harris tweed is the peat smoke smell caused by the fabi ic being woven in the crofters' cottages, where there is always a strong odor of peat "reek" from the peat which is burned for fuel. The ordinary so-called Harris tweeds sold in this country are made on the southern border of Scotland, in factories, and are but imitations of the real Harris tweeds. The light colored tweeds — natural color of wool — come from the island of St. Kilda. This island stands out in mid ocean, barren and wild, devoid of plants or shrubs of any kind for making dyes. The crofters content themselves without dyestufifs. The industry 90 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING is maintained by nobility to help the islanders and the fabrics are fashionable and high priced. Covert cloth is a twilled woven cloth of great beauty and dural^lity. It is rather heavy, of hard finish and is used for jackets and winter suits. To this list of woolen goods may be added the crape cloth with crinkled, rough surface, nun's veiling, flannel which is woven in a variety of ways, broadcloth, wool canvas, and poplins. This list includes only a few of the fab- rics manufactured, but these are always to be found on the market, are always good in color and are the best of all wool textiles for wear. Mohair Mohair is a material made from the hair of the angora goat, woven with silk, wool, worsted, or cotton warp. It is a dust-shedding material, does not shrink, and bears hard wear well. Alpaca, on account of its Alpaca softness, elasticity, and exemption from shaggy defects, combines admirably with cotton in the manufacture of fine goods, which attains almost the glossy brightness of silk. The yarn is used for weaving alpaca linings and light coatings for warm climates. SILKS Many silks can be washed without injury to the fi- bers, but they cannot be boiled without destroying the luster. Silks may be had in various widths and end- less variety of weaves. Many are reversible. Loading Silks are adulterated with cotton and ramie fibers. The chemicals used in "loading'' or "dynamiting" to give the weight lost by cleaning or removing the gum SILKS 91 from the raw silk give to the cheaper grades the stiff, harsh feeHng and cause the sphtting and cracking of the silk, hence the quality of the fiber should be con- sidered when selecting a silk, not the weight. Taffeta is often heavily loaded. Foulard and surah are twilled silks. Corded silks are woven with a cord running from selvage to selv- age. To this class belong the grosgrains, Ottoman, faille Francaise — a silk resembling grosgrain, but softer and brighter. Irish poplins and bengalines have wool for the filling instead of silk. Great improvement has been made in the manufac- wash Silks ture of wash silks. They are fine in color and have a glossy surface. Pongee is a beautiful, durable silk in different shades of natural color. It is woven in dif- ferent widths. This silk is especially valuable for un- derwear. The first cost is greater, but it outwears muslin or linen. It is also used for children's gar- ments and for outside wraps. For many purposes, no better textile can be found. Crepe de Chine is an incomparable textile possess- ing as much softness as strength. It is always supple, never creases, launders well, and comes in the most beautiful soft shades as well as in black and dark colors. Satin is distinguished by its glossy, lustrous surface, obtained in the weaving. Piled fabrics are rich, thick materials made of silk, piied wool, mohair, and cotton, comprising the velvets, vel- veteens, plushes, corduroys, and wilton and velvet car- 92 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Velvet "Velveteen pets. The soft, raised pile is first woven in loops — Brussels carpet is a good example — and the loops are cut. The back of the goods is plain. Velvet has always and justly been regarded as the most beautiful of textiles. No matter how fashions change in regard to other materials, velvet never loses its vogue. For robes and cloaks, for mantles and jack- ets, for hats and bonnets, for trimming and decoration, velvet has been popular for a greater period than the life of any living mortal, but never before has it been so cheap, so varied and so beautiful as it is now. One can in the passing throng of pedestrians on any crowded street see the use and abuse of this noble material. There is scarcely an article of dress into whose composition it does not enter and it is worn upon all occasions. Many things have brought about this result. The tendency of fashion is towards the decorative and picturesque and in these qualities vel- vet excels all other fabrics. Silk waste and thread are cheaper than ever before so that velvet costs much less than formerly. The men behind the looms have evolved more designs and novelties in the making of velvet than has ever been known and colors beautiful in themselves are seemingly enhanced when applied to velvet. All that has been said in favor of velvet applies equally as well to the best velveteen, — in fact it is a textile of even greater value and beauty than velvet. The best grades are not cheap, but they wear better FABRICS 93 than silk velvet, are fine and silky, excellent in color and sheen, launder well, and do not press-mark as does silk velvet. Velveteen takes the dye so beautifully and finishes so well that it has taken rank with our best standard fabrics. It is made entirely of cotton. It varies in width but is always wider than velvet. A knowledge of the various widths of textiles is im- Y&hiUia °' portant in buying. Transparent fabrics are usually wider than heavier goods made of the same fiber. Muslin is wider than calico or ordinary print, and thin silk fabrics such as mull and chiffon are wider than velvet. In wool dress goods various distinct widths are known as single — thirty and thirty-six inches — double fold (forty-five and fifty-four inches), etc. Silk, vel- vet, and velveteen are single width. The velvet ranges from eighteen to twenty-four inches in width and vel- veteen twenty-seven. Bodice linings vary from thirty- five to thirty-eight inches ; skirt linings come in both single and double fold. Household linen including bedding varies in width from one yard to two and one-fourth and two and one- haif yards for sheeting and from thirty-eight to fifty- four inches for pillow case muslin. Table linen is woven in both square and circular cloths of various sizes, and napkins vary in width from the small sizes to a yard square. No fixed widths can be given for any textile as width often changes with the weave. 94 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Fustian Damask NAMES OF FABRICS Textiles usually take their names from the country, city, port, or province from whence they originated ; from the names of the makers ; and methods of weav- ing, dyeing, ornamentation, etc. The fixing of locali- ties, methods, etc., is oftentimes guesswork. The tex- tiles of to-day bearing the same name as those of the middle ages have nothing in common. Buckram was originally made in and called from Bokkara. In the middle ages it was costly, fine, and beautiful, used for church vestments, veils for covering lecterns, cathe- dral flags, and in the i6th century for the lining of vel- vet gowns. The coarse, heavy, plain-woven linen or cotton material known as buckram today is used for stiffening, etc. Fustian, a kind of corduroy or velveteen, was orig- inally woven at Fustat on the Nile. The warp was stout linen, the woof of cotton so twilled and cut that it gave a low thick pile. Chaucer's knight in the four- teenth century wore fustian. In the fifteenth century Naples was famous for the weaving of fustians. A cloth made in France at a town called Mustre- villiers was known as "mustyrd devells.'' China is supposed to be the first country to weave patterned silks. India, Persia, Syria, and Byzantine Greece followed. Those were known as "diaspron" or diaper, a name given them at Constantinople. In the twelfth century, the city of Damascus, long famed FABRICS 95 for her beautiful textiles, outstripped all other places for beauty of design and gave the Damascen or da- mask, so we have in modern times all fabrics whether of silk, cotton, wool, or linen, curiously woven and designed, known as damask, and diaper, which means pattern, is almost forgotten, or only a part of the elab- orate design on damask. Bandekin, a costly cloth, took its name from Bagdad. Dorneck an inferior damask woven of silk, wool, linen, thread and gold, was made in Flanders at the city of Dorneck. From the Asiatic city Mosul came the muslin used MusUn then as it is now throughout the world. So skilled were its weavers that the threads were of hair-like fineness. This was known as the invisible muslin, the weaving of which has become a lost art. To this beau- tiful cloth were given many fanciful and poetic names. It was woven with strips of gold and silver. Calico derives its name from the city of Calicut in caiics India. The city is scarcely known to-day; it was the first Indian city visited by Europeans. Iji the thirteenth century Arras was famous for its areste or tapestry, "the noblest of the weaving arts" ; in it there is nothing mechanical. Mechanical weaving repeats the pattern on the cloth within comparatively narrow limits and the number of colors is in most cases limited to four or five. Silks and cottons are distinguished through their colors and shades. Tarsus was a purple silk. Other cities gave their name to various shades, according as 96 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING they were dyed at Antioch, Alexandria, or at Naples. Watered or moire silk takes its pame from the finish. From "canabis," the Latin name for hemp or flax, we have the word "canvas" to mean any text jre woven of hempen thread. To this list of fabrics might be added many others of cotton, linen, wool, and silk with new names, closely resembling the old materials, having greater or less merit. The following lists of fabrics and terms may be help- ful for reference : Art linen — With round, hard twisted threads. "Albert cloth" — Named for England's prince, is a reversible all-wool material each side of different colors and so finished that no lining is required. It is used chiefly for overcoats and better known as "golf cloth," "plaid back," etc. Armure — A cloth woven in miniature imitation of feudal metal armor plates, heraldic devices, diamonds, birdseye, and seeded effects. Astrakhan — A woolen or silk material with a long and closely curled pile in imitation of the fur from which it_is named. Backed-cloth worsteds or other fabrics which are woven with an extra layer of warp or other filling underneath the face, usually for increased weight and bulk. Batiste — The French word for lawn, fine white cotton or linen fabric. Sometimes printed. Batting or padding, cotton or wool prepared in sheets for quilting or interlining. Beaver — Similar to Kersey, but with a longer nap, soft, thick nap inside. Bedford cord — A closely woven woolen or cotton cloth having a raised corded surface similar to pique, used for women's suits. Bonde — A. loosely woven fabric with a curly, hairy surface, usually made with a jersey or stockinet body. FABRICS 97 Bourette — An effect of weaving produced by fancy yarns showing in lumps at intervals over the face of the cloth ; used for women's and children's suits. Beverteen — A heavy cotton cloth used for men's hunting garments. Broadcloth — A fine woolen cloth with a glossy finished surface, the better grades being woven with a twilled back. It takes its name from its width. It is used for men's and women's wear. Buckram — A coarse, heavy, plain-woven linen or cotton ma- terial used for stiffening. Buckskin — A stout doe skin with a more defined twill. Butternut — The coarse brown twilled homespun cloth woven of wool prior to the Civil War — colored brown with dye from the butternut or walnut tree ; used for men's wear and for decorative purposes. Cambric — Fine white linen, also made in cotton in imitation. Camel's hair — A beautiful, soft, silky fabric, usually woven like cheviot of hair of camel and goat. Canvas — A linen, cotton, silk, or wool cloth of different weaves and widths, used for many purposes — clothing, as a background for embroidery, hangings, spreads, etc. Canton flannel — A stout, twilled cotton cloth with a nap on one or both sides, used for clothing and decorative pur- poses. Cassimere — A general term for all-wool fabrics woven either plain or twilled, coarse or fine, of woolen yarn. The pat- tern is always woven plain and distinct and the cloth is never napped. Castor Beaver — A heavy, milled, face-finished, all-wool cloth lighter in weight than ordinary beaver. Chinchilla — A thick, heavy, double woven fabric with a long napped surface curled up into little tufs in imitation of chinchilla fur ; used for coats. Clan Tartan — The plaids of the various highland clans of Scotland. Clay — A name given to serges, worsteds, and diagonals woven after a process of J. & P. Clay of Haddersfield, Eng- land. Coating — Those woolen and worsted fabrics most especially adapted to men's dress and overcoats. 98 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Corduroy — A thick cotton pile material, corded or ribbed on the surface; used for men's, women's, and children's wear. Corkscrew-worsted goods — So-called from its fancied re- semblance to the twists of the corkscrew. Cotton worsted — All cotton or part cotton worsted-wove cloth. Cottonade — Stout cotton cloth in imitation of woolen or worsted cloth ; used for men's trousers. Covert — A twill-woven cloth sometimes with full face, some- times sheared to imitate whipcord. Crape cloth — A stout worsted fabric with surface in imitation of silk crape, used for dress coats. Crash — A strong, coarse linen cloth of different widths, used for towels, suits, table linen, hangings, bed spreads; in fact, there is no end to the uses to which this textile can be adapted. Cravenette — Cloths treated and finished before weaving by an improved process which renders them rainproof. A secret process owned by the Cravenette Company and by Priestly & Company of England and the United States. Crepe — A light weight silk, silk and wool, or all wool or cot- ton cloth of irregular weave. Diagonal — A worsted cloth with prominent diagonal ridges. Doeskin — A compact twilled woolen, soft and pliable. Drap D'Alma — A fine, close, flat-ribbed, twilled fabric of wool or silk and wool, finished on but one side. Drap D'Ete — A fine, light worsted fabric woven in longitudi- nal cords. Drilling — General term for various twilled cotton stuffs used for lining, men's wear, and general purposes. Empress cloth — A heavy dress goods with napped or corded surface, named for the Empress Eugenia ; sometimes called Electrol cloth or Beretz. Etamine — A light woolen cloth similar to batiste and n-.:n's cloth, used for women's and children's wear. Faille Francaise — A soft, lustrous silk of wider cord than grosgrain, but narrower than ottoman. Farmer satin — A lining of cotton chain or warp and wool filling, finished with high lustre, also called Italian cloth. Flannel — A soft, light weight woolen fabric of which the yarn is but lightly twisted, plain weave or twilled ; used for clothing, etc. FABRICS 99 Flannelette — A half cotton or all cotton flannel-like fabric. Frieze — A thick, shaggy, heavy nap woolen overcoat cloth. Gingham was first manufactured in Gonghamp in France and was known as Madras gingham. Seersucker gingham was originally a thin linen fabric made in the East Indies. Zephyr gingham is a soft fine variety of Scotch and French ginghams, are superior qualities, heavier in weight. Fur Beaver — A long napped cloth imitation fur. Grass cloth — A fine, smooth, linen woven in checks of blue and white, red and white, etc., used for dish towels; also a thin dress material of ramie and cotton, etc. jrenadine — A thick silk gauze, either plain with a solid design or pattern upon it or combined in stripes with other weaves, as satin, moire, etc. Grosgrain — A close-woven, finely ribbed or corded silk with but little lustre. Haircloth — A cloth woven of horse hair, from which it takes its name, for weft with cotton or linen warp; used for facings, linings, furniture cover, etc. Holland — A stout, plain-woven, unbleached, linen cloth used for linings, window shades, etc. Homespun — A cloth woven on hand looms or made in imita- tion of such cloth for both men's and women's wear. Hop-sacking — A plain woven canvas dress fabric of wool. Huchaback — A corruption of huckster-back, meaning orig- inally pedler's ware — Toweling made of all linen, linen and cotton, cotton and wool, either by the yard or as separate towels ; the part wool buck always separate towels. Irish linen — Full bleached, fine, plain woven linen used for shirts, collars, cuffs, etc., of dififerent widths. Jersey cloth — Woolen stockinette. Kaikai — A thin Japanese silk. Kersey — A heavy, closely woven cloth with a smooth face and glossy finish. Kerseymere — A fine, twilled, woolen cloth of peculiar tex- ture, one thread of warp and two of woof being always above. Khaki — A light, yellow-brown colored cotton cloth used for army service in hot countries. Ladies' cloth — A fine, wide, wool flannel, slightly napped, similar to broadcloth. LOFC. lOo TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Lusterine — A thin, twilled, cotton lining finished with high lustre in imitation of silk. Marseilles — A sort of figured pique, used for women's and children's clothes and for men's coats. Matelasse — A silk and wool or all wool brocade, usually for coats. Melton — A stout woolen cloth, fulled, sheared, and finished without a nap ; like Kersey, but without a gloss. Merino — A thin woolen fabric made of the fine wool of the marion sheep, generally used for women's and children's wear, vestings, and underclothing. Mohair — A shiny fabric of great durability, made from the wool of the Angora goat ; used for both men's and women's clothing. Moire — The water effect produced on silk, moreen, and like fabrics. The finest watered silks are known as Moire Antique. Moreen is a woolen or mixed fabric to which the same process has been applied. Moleskin — A medium heavy twilled cotton cloth, napped in- side ; used for men's wear and ornamental purposes. Muslin — A cotton fabric of various classes and names ; bleached and unbleached, half bleached, cambric, book mus- lin, long cloth, mull, organdie, lawns, etc. ; used for all purposes. Nankeen — A peculiar fabric of a pale dull yellow or orange color, woven out of the fibrous tissue which lies between the outer and sap-wood of a tree or shrub that grows in the East Indies and especially in China. The name is de- rived from the city of Nankin. An imitation is made out of cotton, colored with Annato. The genuine nankeen is never more than eighteen or twenty inches wide and is used for light summer clothing. Overcoating — Fabrics woven especially for overcoats — covert, kersey, melton, beaver, frieze, vicuna, whipcord, cheviot, chinchilla, etc., made of both wool and worsted. Pique— A heavy cotton cloth having a surface that is corded or having a raised lozenge pattern; used for women's and children's suits, men's vests, etc. Prunella — Lasting cloth. Sateen— A close twilled cotton fabric, soft and glossy, used for lining. FABRICS ' lot Satin — A silk fabric having a high lustre on its face. Satinet — A cheap clothing material similar to cassimere, made with a cotton warp and a filling of short, inferior, shoddy wool which is mixed with enough long wool to enable it to be spun and woven in a way to bring that filling to the surface of the cloth ; afterwards fulled, sheared, and the pattern printed on the face. Serge — A lining of cotton or linen warp and a wool or mohair filling, woven three-leaf twill. Serge — A fine, diagonal, twilled, worsted — both all worsted and with a worsted warp and woolen filling; used for men's and women's suits. Shetlands — Very shaggy overcoatings, named from the Shet- land pony, the coat of which it is supposed to imitate in appearance. Shoddy — Waste thrown off in spinning — shredded rags, and bits of cloth manipulated into new cloth. Sicilian — A mohair fabric. Silesia — A light, close-woven, fine twilled cotton fabric used for dress linings, etc. Stockinet — A plain, elastic texture made on a knitting frame, used for underwear, etc. Surah — A twilled silk similar to serge; first made in Surat, India. Tricot — A double-twill cloth having both a warp and filling effect. Tweed — Much like homespun in appearance, both being either twilled or plain. They are made from rough worsted yarn spun at home. In tweed the yarn is harder twisted, giving a more distinct twill. It is generally more compact, less rough, and better finished than homespun. Uniform cloth — Cloth suitable for uniforms, usually a stout, fulled, woolen cloth, similar to kersey. Venetian — A cloth milled and cropped bare in finish. Vicuna — A soft twilled cloth similar to cheviot, made of the Andes vicuna, hence its name. Whipcord — A worsted cloth having a small, prominent twill. Yacht cloth — A flannel heavier than ordinary serge or flan- nel. 102 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Cord — The general term is applied to any fabric in which the lines run in the same direction as the selvage. Count — In spinning, the number given to any thread or yarn, except silk, to indicate its relative fineness, based on the number of yards required to weigh one pound. Felt — A cloth of wool, hair, fur, etc., not woven, but felted together ; used for hats, slippers, boot tops, etc. Flock — Finely divided woolen waste used in finishing cheap woolens. Kemps — Fibers of hair like structure that sometimes come in wool, always in goat hair. They do not take the dye. Mercerized — A term applied to cotton fabrics of which the yarn is chemically treated with a strong solution of caustic soda, giving the appearance of silk, more or less permanent; named after Mercer, discoverer of the process. Mill ends — Trade term referring to short lengths, seconds, damaged pieces, etc., of cloth, embroideries, etc., that ac- cumulate in mills and shops and are usually sold at a nominal price. Narrow cloth — Trade term for fabrics less than 29 inches wide. Wider cloths are called broad cloths. Oil-boiled — Trade term for colors so treated to insure per- manence. Oiled silk — The plain silk boiled in oil. Silk boiled in oil and dried, becoming translucent and waterproof; used as a perspiration guard. Pepper-and-salt — A black and white or grayish mixture, ef- fected in weaving. Rubber cloth — Usually cotton sheeting or drilling with a coating of rubber on one side ; used as protective cloth for various purposes. Shepherd check — Tiny checks, usually black and white. Twilled— Woven in such a manner as to produce lines or ribs diagonally or across the surface of the fabric. Woolens — Name of faorics of carded wool, usually soft woven. Worsteds — Fabrics made of combed wool, usually hard woven. The combing is the process of arranging the fibers of wool, mohair, cotton, linen, into a parallel con- dition, preparatory to spinning into a smooth, even and regular yarn. The perfected application of the combing principle. BIBLIOGRAPHY ON TEXTILES Historical and Art Arts and Crafts Essays $i.oo Morris, Crane, et al. Postage .10 Colonial Days in Old New England 1.25 Alice Morse Earle. Postage ,12 The Primitive Family 1.25 Starcke. Postage .12 Man Before Metals 1-75 Joly. Postage .14 Origin of Inventions i-50 Mason. Postage .16 Woman's Share in Primitive Culture 1.75 Mason. Postage .16 Textiles— The Lesser Arts i-OO William Morris. Postage .10 Industrial Evolution of the United States 1.25 Carroll D. Wright. Postage .16 Technical Books Through a special arrangement with the American School of Correspondence we are able to lend or sell to our students some of their textile books, which are technical though simple. Price 50 cents per part, postage 4c. Textile Chemistry and Dyeing. 4 Parts. Part I. Textile Fibers. Part II. Bleaching. Part III. Mordants and Natural Dyes. Part IV. Artificial DyestufYs. Cotton Fiber. Cotton Spinning. 5 Parts. Weaving. 3 Parts. 103 104 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Textile Design. 5 Parts. Woolen and Worsted Spinning. 4 Parts. Woolen and Worsted Finishing. 4 Parts. Textile Fibers $3-50 Mathews. Postage .16 Textile Fabrics go Rock. Postage .08 Dyeing of Textile Fabrics 1.75 Hummell. Postage .12 Bleaching and Calico Printing 4.00 Duerr. Postage .14 Note. — Books may be ordered through the School or may be borrowed by members for one week. Send postage with request. U. S. Government Publication Free of the Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. : Flax for Seed and Fiber, Farmers' Bulletin No. 27. Cotton Seed and Its Products, Farmers' Bulletin No. 36. Raising Sheep, Farmers' Bulletin No. 96. The Angora Goat, Farmers' Bulletin No. 137. Silk Worm Culture, Farmers' Bulletin No. 165. Essential Steps in Securing an Early Crop of Cotton, Farmers' Bulletin No. 217. The Cotton Seed Industry, Reprint No. 239. The Hemp Industry in U. S., Reprint No. 254. Improvement of Cotton by Seed Selection, Reprint No. 279. The Growing of Long-Staple Upland Cotton, Reprint No. 314. Principal Commercial Plant Fibers, Reprint No. 321. BIBLIOGRAPHY ON TEXTILES 105 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D. C. Send coin or money order, — stamps not accepted : Sheep and Wool, Report No. 66, Office of the Secretary. Price 5c. The Cotton Plant : Its History, Botany, Chemistry, Ene- mies, and Uses. Bulletin No. 32- Office of Experi- ment Stations. Price 6oc. Cotton Culture in Egypt. Bulletin No. 42. Price 5c. OFFICE OF FIBER INVESTIGATIONS. Uncultivated Bast Fibers. Report No. 6. Price loc. Cultivation of Ramie. Report No. 7. Price loc. Culture of Hemp and Jute. Report No. 8. Price loc. Fax Culture for Seed and Fiber. Report No. 10. Price IOC. TEST QUESTIONS The following questions constitute the "written reci- tation" which the regular members of the A. S. H. E. answer in writing and send in for the correction and comment of the instructor. They are intended to emphasize and fix in the memory the most important points in the lesson. TEXTILES AND CLOTHING PART I Read Carefully. Place your name and address on the first sheet of the test. Use a light grade of paper and write on one side of the sheet only. Leave space between the answers for the notes of the instructor. Answer every question fully. Read the lesson paper a number of times before attempting to answer the questions. 1. Give a brief outline of the craft of spinning, primitive and modern. 2. Outline the same for weaving. 3. Describe the hand loom. 4. Describe the cotton fiber. What kinds are there ? 5. Who invented the cotton gin and how did this in- vention affect the cotton industry ? 6. Give the chief characteristics of wool. Name the wool and fur bearing animals. How does wool differ from hair? 7. Trace briefly the prepartion of wool from the fleece to the finished product. 8. Describe flax and outline the method for the preparation of the fibers. What is the name of the manufactured product of flax? 9. Name some other bast fibers and their products ? 10. How do the textile fibers compare in the raw state in condition and price? 11. Give a brief description of silk from the egg to the woven cloth. TEXTILES AND CLOTHING 12. (a) What is the chief constituent of the vege- table fibers? (b) How does their affinity for dyestufifs compare with wool and silk? (c) How do the alkalies affect wool ? 13. Describe the principal weaves and give examples of each. 14. (a) How are cotton and flax bleached? (b) What is a mordant? (c) How should mate- rial be prepared for dyeing? (d) State what you know about old time methods of dyeing. 15. How are print goods made? Name some print- ed fabrics. 16. Define woolens and worsteds. 17. Describe the finishing of woolen and worsted cloths. 18. What is noil; shoddy; felt; flocks? 19. With what dress goods have you had experience, and with what results? 20. What factors determine the use of fabrics? 21. Of what value is the study of textiles? What have you gained by the study of this lesson? Note. — After completing the test sign your full name. K.MIJKOIDEHEI) INITIALS Jf and L — Sewed on initials; B — Satin stitch in wreath of feather stitches; C— Outline and seed work; D — Chain and French luots; H— Cross stitch; /.—Chain; H — At the rifjht, and the cross stitch H are made over canvas and the canvas threads drawn, TEXTILES AND CLOTHING PART II HAND SEWING Good sewing, good pressing, well finished ends and corners, lightness of touch which holds the work without apparently touching it, thus giving to the fin- ished garment a fresh look — all these are important considerations. The sewing done on wool, silk, and dresses of all kinds differs from that on underwear and white work. Muslin underwear requires frequent washing and iron- ing, hence the first essential is durability ; close, small stitches, all raw edges carefully turned and stitched securely. Seams that are to come close to the body should lie perfectly flat. A round seam would wear out sooner by coming into frequent contact with the washboard and iron, besides irritating the skin. In dressmaking, unless the stitching is used for orna- mental purposes, it should never show on the outside. Periods of beautiful and dignified costume have been periods of fine needlework — one art leading to and helping on the production of the other. Stitches may be divided into plain and ornamental. The plain stitches are the (i) basting, (2) running, (3) the running and back stitch, (4) half back stitch, (5) back stitch, (6) overhand or whipping stitch, (7) overcast, (8) hemming, and (9) blind or slip stitch. 107 Kinds of Sewing Plain Stitches io8 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Ornamental Stitches Basting Tucking The ornamental stitches most frequently used are (i) outline, (2) chain, (3) cat or herringbone, (4) blanket or loop, (5) feather, coral or briar, (6) hem- stitching-, (7) French knots, (8) button hole, and (9) cross stitch. Excepting the cross stitch, these are all variations of the plain and button hole stitches, ' The plain stitches may be used for ornamental pur- poses. The basting stitch is known as Queen Anne darned work. The back stitch, known as "seed work," is used in embroidering letters and monograms. The overhand stitch is used as an ornamental stitch for joining selvages and in hemming. The chain stitch, besides being ornamental, makes one of the best darning stitches, reproducing the stitch in knitting. The cat stitch is also useful in binding down open seams for flannel hems, patching, etc. (i) Basting proper is used only in the preparation of work to hold the stufif and lining, or any two or more parts of the work together while it is being stitched, none being left in the finished garment. It is also used as a guide for sewing, feather stitching, etc. The slanting basting stitch or "tacking" is used in dressmaking for holding linings. The needle is pointed towards the worker. Even basting is used for holding several thicknesses of cloth and if the garment is to be fitted, the stitches should be placed rather close. Un- even basting is used for hems and seams to be machine stitched. Several short stitches with one long one are STITCHES AND THEIR USES 109 used to baste crape and wiry fabrics, for this method holds them better than stitches of equal length. All basting should be fastened at start with a knot or knot and back stitch and finished with two or three back stitches. The length of thread may be broken or BASTING STITCHES a — Even; .^—Uneven: c — For wiry fabrics; d — Tacking; UNDERSET PATCH, RIGHT SIDE, EDGE TURNED AND HEMMED TO PATCH WRONG SIDE OF PATCH, CAT STITCHED 152 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Onset Patch WEONG SIDE OF PATCH IN TABLE CLOTH— RAW EDGE OVERCAST workmanlike and does not wear well. Keep the cor- ners square and bem down well. The object of press- ing is to keep both garment and patch flat and even. Flannel patches should be cat-stitched on the right side. No flannel edges should ever be inturned. The onset patch is used on lined garments and lin- ings. The patch should be rectangular and larger than LINEN PATCH ; CROSS STITCH INITIAL 154 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING the worn place. Fold the four edges on the wrong side of the patch, place the patch with its wrong side on the right side of the garment directly over the center of the hole. This will bring the folded edges of the RIGHT SIDE OF FLANNEL PATCH Edge cat stitched but not turned, back cat stitched in the same way. patch between the two pieces of cloth and both right sides towards the worker. Do not baste, but pin care- fully. After the garment has been folded back until there are two folded edges side by side, overhand the DARNING 155 seam with even slanting stitches. See that the corners are well sewed, that warp and woof threads run in the same direction, that pattern and stripes match. The worn part of the garment under the patch is cut away, leaving one-fourth of an inch on the three sides. Cut the corners diagonally and turn back the edge quarter of an inch, overcast and press. If this patch is sewed on a lining, the worn part is not cut away. If this patch is used to repair skirts near the band, only three sides are oversewed, the upper edge should be gathered into the band. A large patch is less conspicuous than a small one. An orkset patch may be used for the seats of trousers by shaping the patch like the pieces on the seats of bicycle trousers and stitching on the machine. Heavy cloth will need no inturned edges. The same precau- tions are necessary regarding warp and woof, pattern, etc. DARNING Darning is usually done with a running stitch, with or without a piece of net or cloth underset. Thread for darning should be as near as possible the size of the threads in the garment. Whenever it can be done, a warp thread of the garment should be used. No sew- ing silk is fine enough to use without separating the thread and using one of the strands. Never use the thread as it is, as it is too hard twisted. Cotton and linen thread of the finest quality, untwisted, should be used for darning stockings and underwear. Linen may Patch for Trowsera Thread for Darning 156 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Bias Darn Darning a Three Cornered Tear be darned with linen or mercerized cotton. Cotton is preferable. A long slender needle with a large eye should be used. Darning should never be commenced with a knot, nor finished with a back stitch. A bias or diagonal cut and a three-cornered tear are the most dif^cult to repair. If the place is badly pulled and frayed, a piece of the same material should be basted on the wrong side of the material and darned in even stitches. Always darning parallel with the warp threads and the woof threads. In the diagonal tear, as the threads are cut diagonally, to prevent draw- ing apart, the darning threads must cross each other. The stitches around any darn should not end in a stifT even line ; this makes a hard edge which does not wear and is unsightly, and uncomfortable if on under- wear. The three-cornered tear may be darned in two ways. Begin by darning diagonally through the center, darn- ing back and forth towards the end of the tear until one-half has been finished; then begin at the center and work in the opposite direction. At the corner, the stitches should form the shape of a fan. The other method, which is the stronger, is done by darn- ing a square in the angle, first with the warp threads, then with the woof threads and finishing each end across the tear. Stocking darning may be done on the right side. Begin by picking up the stitches and drawing the DARNING 157 edges together. This should always be done in any kind of stocking darning, but not so close as to make a wrinkle. In knees and heels of stockings, or knitted under- STOCKINET DARNING OVER NET Interlaced Stitches aud Chain Stitches. wear, a piece of net large enough to extend beyond the thin part should be basted carefully ; then darn down the outer edges of the net and finally the hole or thin place. This makes a strong, neat piece of mending. If the hole i« large, the net may be covered with the 158 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING chain stitch, thus imitating the knitting stitch. This should be done on the right side of the garment. If the hole is to be filled in with the interlaced stitches, draw the edges together, darn beyond the thin places lengthwise of the knitted garment, making each line of stitches longer until the center of the hole is reached, then decrease in the same manner, making a diamond in shape. Darn across the hole in the same way, taking up every alternate stitch as in weaving. Leave a tiny loop at the end of each row of darning, so that the threads will not draw. Machine Darning, satisfactory for. some purposes, may be done quickly on a double thread sewing machine. It is best done in an embroidery ring, first drawing the edges together. Loosen the tension on the presser foot, use fine thread with light tension. Sew back and forth, first along the warp threads and then at right angles along the woof threads. The machine will be sewing backwards part of the time, but if the pressure is Hght, there will be no difficulty. For large holes, paper may be placed underneath. MITERING EMBROIDERY OR LACE The mitering of lace or embroidery is often neces- sary in making collars and in finishing corners. Be- fore applying, plan carefully and select a scallop or portion of the embroidery which will produce the best efifects when finished. This can be accomplished by folding the embroidery over at various portions of the MITERING AND JOINING EMBROIDERY A — Finished with a stitched seam ; B — Edge hemmed down and cloth cut away underneath ; C— Joined with lapped seam. i6o TEXTILES AND CLOTHING pattern until a suitable point is found. Fold over at right angles and mark along the line to be mitered. The triangle may now be cut, but an extra width must always be allowed for the seam, as there is frequently a slight unevenness and one side may have to be held a little full or stretched to make a perfect match. The mitered seam is over-sewed. After the corner is properly made, cut away the cloth of the embroidery, allowing only enough for an inturned seam on the edge. This seam may be stitched on the machine on both edges, or oversewed to the goods, or the embroidery may be securely sewed on the plain part, after which, the underlying cloth may be cut away. This will make an almost perfect corner. Lace may be matched and mitered in a similar way. MATCHING AND JOINING LACE In joining lace, avoid a seam if possible. Select por- tions of the design that will match, placing one pat- tern of the same design over the other. Cut away a portion of the thick part of the pattern underneath and hem the edges and inner part of the design down with fine thread. Smyrna or Torchon lace is more difficult to hem or join when very open or very fine. A small, felled seam is better than lapping and trying to match the pattern. Embroidery can be matched in the same way. Never let two heavy designs lap over each other. The one MATCHING AND MIT ERIN G i6i INSERTION WITH MITRED CORNER, TAPED AND FACED; EMBROIDERY ROLLED WHIPPED AND GATHERED on the wrong side should be cut out and the edge sewed securely to. the upper part of the design. The plain material above the embroidery can be joined by a lapped seam, turning first the right side and then the wrong side and hemming on both sides of the seam. Types of Machines Care of the Machine MACHINE SEWING The sewing machine has taken away much of the drudgery of home sewing, but its use does not lessen the need of skill in hand work. No machine can finish ends of belts, collars, sew on trimming, fastenings, and like work and the finish has much to do with the gen- eral appearance of a garment. All the prominent makes of sewing machines were invented in the decade following Howe's patent in 1846. The two chief types of machines are the lock stitch, using double thread, and the chain or loop stitch, using a single thread. Whatever the make of machine it should be run in accordance with the rules accom- panying it. The worker should familiarize herself with the directions for setting and threading the needle, winding the bobbin, regulating the tension and the stitch and all other technicalities of the particular ma- chine she has to operate. Agencies of the various machines usually have skilled workers to give instruc- tion to beginners. While it is not always an economy of time to use the attachments for hemming, tucking, etc., unless much work is to be done, it is worth while to know how to use them if desired. As much or more skill is required for neat machine work as for hand sewing. Results will not be satisfactory without careful basting. The machine should be kept well oiled, free from dust and gum and it should be run evenly. In case it becomes "gummed" a drop of kerosene on the parts 162 MACHINE SEWING 163 that have been oiled will cut the gum. Remove the shuttle and run the machine rapidly for a moment, then wipe off all the kerosene and oil the machine carefully wath good machine oil — only the best should be used. A machine should always be wiped thoroughly before any work is placed upon it. As in hand sewing, needles and thread should be Needles selected with care. A blunt or bent needle should Thread never be used, it should have a fine sharp point and the eye should be sufficiently large to carry the thread easily. The needle and thread should be suitable for the material to be sewed. Glazed thread should never be used in a machine. The best quality of thread and silk should be purchased but only enough for imme- diate use, as it loses strength with age, chiefly because of the action of the dyes and chemicals. Even white thread may become "tender" from the chemicals used in bleaching it. Sewing silk and cotton should be kept in a closed box to exclude the light and air. For sewing cotton or linen the best cotton thread should be used. Woolen, silk, and velvet should be stitched with the best machine silk. The thread should match the material in color. Cotton thread fades or loses its brightness when exposed to the light, there- fore for stitching that will show it is always better to use silk. The thread on the bobbin should be wound evenly and carefully to insure an even stitch and the tension of both threads should be equal, otherwise the stitch will not be perfect. As a lock stitch machine 1 64 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Fastening Threads Bias Side Next Feed requires two threads while in hand sewing only one is used, the two need not be as coarse as the single thread. For ordinary home sewing, underwear, thin gowns and the like, No. 70 to No. 100 will be found satisfactory Finer thread may be used when the ma- terials demand it, but no coarser than No. 50 should be used in the machine and this only with the coarsest material. Much time may be saved in fastening the threads at the ends of tucks, hems on sheets, towels, etc., by careful manipulation of the machine. For example, on sheets begin to stitch along the hem at the selvage, or if the end of the hem is over-sewed, begin an inch from the edge and stitch the hem towards the selvage, then lift the presser-foot so as to turn the work, and retrace the bit of stitching, continuing across the whole hem. When the end is reached, release the presser- foot, turn the work, and stitch back for an inch or more in the same line, as was done at the beginning of the hem. By this method the threads are fastened much more easily and quickly than by drawing them through on to the wrong side and tying or sewing them by hand and, of course, it is more satisfactory than the "shop" way of cutting tl^em off short. Tucks or seams may be fastened in the same way. If fine thread is used the double stitching at the ends is hardly noticeable. When stitching a seam having one bias and one straight side, let the bias side come next to the feed, Gathers MACHINE SEWING 165 that is, on the underside. This is especially impor- tant in thin materials. If the material is very sheer, strips of soft paper — newspaper will answer for or- dinary purposes — should be sewed in the seam. This will insure a seam free from puckers and when fin- ished the paper can be pulled away easily. In sewing gathers on a band they should also come stitching next the "feed," as it takes up the side next to it a little faster than the upper side. When the bias, or cross-way side of the seam, or gathers are next to the "feed" the material runs along smoothly, but if the straight side is towards it there is apt to be a pucker. Stitching can be done more easily on the right of the presser foot with the bulk of the material lying to the left. The tendency of the "feed" or teeth is to crowd the work off the edge as well as forward and the stitching may be guided better on the right side All straight seams should be stretched to the full extent of their straight edge in stitching, as the work passes under the presser foot . When a large amount of machine sewing is to be done — such as household linen, sheets, pillow cases and underwear — it is a good plan to do all the basting and hand work first and keep the machine stitching for a rainy or a damp day, as the thread is then less apt to break. A current of air or a breeze from an open window on a dry day will often cause the thread to snap. For the same reason the machine should never stand near the fire or radiator. TEXTILES AND CLOTHING PART II Read Carefully. This test consists of two parts, — an- swers to the questions and the making of models. Both should be sent to the School for inspection and correction. All models should be made about 4 by 6 inches so that they may be put into the envelope provided without being folded. Two series of models are given; either or both may be made. 1. What instruction have you ever had in sewing? (b) Has the subject any educational value? 2. What are the common basting stitches, and for what are they used? 3. Can you make the running stitch properly? How is it done? 4. For what purpose may the cat stitch be used? 5. Hems and Seams : Describe the different kinds for thick and thin materials, including those for flannel and state when they should be used. 6. Describe three kinds of plackets. 7. How are gathers made, and how sewed into a band? 8. What can you say of fastenings? 9. With what sewing machine are you most famil- iar, and what are its peculiarities ? 10. What stitches or methods described in this les- son are new to you? Note: After completing the answers, sign your full TEXTILES AND CLOTHING MODELS. FIRST SERIES I. Stitches. On a piece of cotton about 4 by 6 inches, make with colored thread (i) a line of even basting stitches, (2) uneven basting stitches, (3) tacking, (4) running, (5) back stitch, (6) running and back, (7) half back. With embroidery silk make a row each of (i) cat stitch, (2) single feather, (3) double feather, (4) chain, (5) rows of French knots with border of outline stitch. Make your initial in one corner, using any stitch preferred. Overcast one long edge of the model, double overcast the opposite side, finish one end with plain loop or blanket stitch, and the other end with some fancy loop stitch. Fasten all threads as described in the text. II. Seams and Hems, (a) Join two pieces of fine cotton with a French seam at the long edge, about 2 by 53/2 inches, with warp running lengthwise, (b) Cut a piece of muslin on a true bias and attach the bias edge to a with a felled seam, (c) Trim the model and hem all sides so that the finished model may measure 4 by 6 inches. III. Darning and Patching, (a) In gingham or figures cotton, make an underset patch of a square hole, matching the goods, (b) Darn a three-cornered tear. IV. Fastenings. The proper distance from the edge of folded goods make (a) button hole, one end rounded and the other finished with a bar tack, (b) Under it make a partly fin- TEXTILES AND CLOTHING ished, barred buttonhole. (c) Below this make an eyelet hole, (d) below the eyelet hole a loop, and sew on an eye. On a second piece of folded goods opposite the first buttonhole, (a) sew a four-hole button, corresponding in size to the buttonnole. (b) Opposite the second buttonhole sew on a two- hole button; (c) below, sew on two hooks cor- responding in position to the loop and eye. Make the two parts of the model so that the corresponding fastenings will join, V. Apron. Using fine muslin, make a doll's apron, gathering into band at top. Above hem at the bottom, make two clusters of tucks of three each. MODELS. SECOND SERIES. FOR EXPERIENCED WORKERS I. Rolled Hem ; Hem Stitching. Make a doll's apron of fine muslin, attach top to band with rolled, whipped gathers. Make two clusters of tucks of three each at the bottom and hem stitch the bottom hem. n. Sleeve Placket. ]\Iake a taped sleeve placket as shown in the illustration HI. Make a Slot Seam, using dress goods and finish with an arrow head, (b) Make a large cloak buttonhole. IV". Mitre Embroidery and finish as shown in the illustration, (b) Match and join the same. V. Embroidery: Make something small and use- ful—a doily, stock, collar — illustrating some style of embroidery, or make a model of the first series which will afford you the most new experience. MAKING MEXICAN DRAWN-\VO TEXTILES AND CLOTHING PART III DRESSMAKING The greatest obstacle to home sewing of any kind is the faikire to provide suitable materials with which to do the work. To do good work — to make attractive gowns — ^the simple tools which the work requires must be provided. First, there should be needles and pins of the best quality and make. They should be fine and well pointed. The needle should be .suitable to the material to be sewn and sufficiently large to carry the thread easily. A blunt or bent needle should never be used. Long or milliner's needles are preferred by many for basting. A good supply of thread should be kept on hand — not too great a quantity, but the stock should be added to as it is used. There should be both silk and col- ored cotton, also twist, for button holes, loops and arrow heads and knitting silk to sew on and finish feather bone. Two pairs of scissors are required — one with long, sharp blades, and a pair of medium sizes for snipping machine stitches. Among the other necessary articles are a tape meas- ure, cake of wax, pencils or tailor's chalk, tracing wheel, emery, lap board. Good Tools Necessary Thread ScissorG i68 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Cutting Table Canvas, scrim, or any like material should be kept in the sewing room, as these are invaluable for fac- ings, linings of collars, cuffs, etc. Hooks, eyes, but- tons, tape, linings, featherbone and shields are requis- ites not to be forgotten. Tapes Tape is constantly needed. Linen tape is thinner and makes a neater finish for some purposes than cot- ton tape. The bias tape or binding now kept by the larger stores is very useful for bmding curved edges and for other purposes. If a regular cutting table is not available, the din- ing room table should be used. Skirts, bodices, ruf- fles, and bias bands should be cut on firm, even, and making of any kind too much stress cannot be laid large surfaces. If cut upon the floor or bed and pressed on a coarse crash towel, the garment will have the undesirable home-made look. A good pressing board should be provided and if possible a sleeve board. In the process of garment upon constant and careful pressing. The ironing board should have for its outside cover a Uncly woven, perfectly smooth cloth, tightly stretched, free from wrinkles, and securely tacked. Where there is gas, a small, portable stove should be kept near the sewing table with a medium-sized flat iron. Lacking gas, one of the single burner oil stoves may be used. An electric flat iron is especially con- venient. BustForm A bust form is a qfreat convenience in fitting and Pressing: Board TADDE]) ];rST ] nl;.M ^From DreSBmaking li-tu-Ilatf, Butterick Co.) 169 170 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING almost a necessity for one who does much home dress- ing. These may be purchased at department stores. Some kinds are adjustable, but it is always best to make a carefully fitted lining for it and pad out to the correct shape and size. The pattern should be one that extends well over the hips and heavy unbleached muslin may be used. After padding firmly, the front opening should be oversewed. Special care should be taken with shoulders and neck and the neck band should be carefully adjusted on the figure. A padded sleeve lining is also very useful in mak- ing sleeves. Dressmaking never should be begun until each needed article required for the work has been pur- chased. The sewing room should be in order; the machine well oiled and wiped before any work is un- dertaken. Skill ^^ ^^^^ finished garment is to be perfect, careful at- Ta^sle tention must be given to every detail of the cutting and making up. To possess mechanical skill alone is not sufficient. A successful garment depends not only upon the dexterity with which the worker manipulates the actual tools of her craft, but upon all her faculties and her power of applying them. She must have a comprehension of the laws of beauty in dress, con- struction, ornament, color, selection, economy. The artisan knows the technical part only, and looks upon each dress — each piece of lace and velvet — as so much material to be snipped and cut and sewed, copying from the fashion plate, making gown after gown alike. The artist, on the other hand, makes the gown PATTERNS 171 to suit the individual wearer, considering each dress no matter how simple — and the simpler, the more art- istic — as a creation designed to suit the woman for whom it was planned. People who study economy from principle will never adopt anything extreme in weave, or color, or make. These extreme fashions are never lasting; they are too conspicuous and are vulgarized by bad copies, while a thing which is known to be good and beautiful once will remain so for all time. Those who are beginners in the art of dressmaking should select plain designs until skill is acquired. The making up and finishing of new fabrics and new or untried meth- ods are problems that often dismay even the most experienced dressmaker. PATTERNS The makers of good and reliable patterns are many, selection Always buy patterns of firms that make proportion °^ Patterns of figure as well as fashion a study. These patterns state length of skirt, waist and hip measure and quan- tity of material required in all widths. Buy a skirt pattern with correct hip size, as it is much more diffi- cult to change this than to alter the dimensions of a waist. Adjust the pattern to the figure for which the garment is to be cut and see that it is right in all of its proportions. Always follow the notches indicated in the seams of the pattern, and thus avoid putting wrong pieces together. Be sure that the pattern is 172 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING placed correctly upon the material with the straight grain or warp threads of the goods running directly on a line with the straight perforations indicated in the pattern. Lay the entire pattern upon the cloth. This gives an idea just where every piece is to come out. What the All patterns give one-half of the bodice and the Gives skirt, from center of back to center of front. The plain waist pattern consists of back, curved side piece, under arm piece (sometimes these two pieces are in one) front, upper and under sleeve, collar or neck band. Some patterns allow for seams — others do not. Skirt patterns give only one-half of the front gore. The seam edges of front gore are marked by one notch near the waist line. The front or straight edge of the iirst side gore has one notch, and two on the back edge of side gore. All the gores may be dis- tinguished from the edges of the back gores by the lesser number of notches. This is true of all skirt pat- terns. If the patterns are studied carefully, all skirt cutting becomes very easy. The object of goring a garment is to take out un- necessary fullness at the top ; reducing the weight, making the garment less clumsy, and giving a nicety of finish which could not be done in heavy material if all the goods were left to fit into a band. Skirts may be lined or unlined, gored or full. SEVEN-GORED SKIRT The style may vary with the fashion, but a well- fitting skirt should hang even around the bottom edge, SKIRT MAKING 173 should fit easily around the hips without being strained or defining the figure too closely, or "ride up" when sitting, ■ should flare slightly from hips to the bottom of the skirt, should ,not fall in between the feet, the back should fall well behind the figure. For heavy goods, as little material as possible consistent with the prevailing style should be used. PLAN OF SKIRT MAKING Shortening or lengthening of pattern if neces- sary. Placing of goods. Pinning on of pattern so there is no waste. Cutting. Removing and care of patterns. Pinning, basting, or tacking of skirt to lining. Joining of seams, fitting. Stitching. Pressing. Finishing of seams and placket hole. Making and putting on waist-band. Marking length and finishing the bottom. Fastenings, loops, braids, hooks and eyes. To lengthen or shorten a skirt pattern, measure the Lengthening figure and regulate the length of the patterns by mak- Pauernl^"'"*^ ing a fold in each gore two-thirds of the way from the top of the pattern if too long. This is for the simplest skirt pattern. The shape of the skirt may re- quire two folds, one two-thirds from the top and a small fold near the bottom to preserve the outline. If too short pin the pattern on the material, cut 174 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Testing: Patterns Cloth Patterns around the top of gore and on each side two-thirds of the distance from the top of gore. Unpin and draw the pattern down to the bottom and cut the required length. Except for wash material, do not turn a gored skirt up at the bottom to form a wide hem, as the full- ness made by turning is hard to dispose of neatly and the right curve at the bottom of the skirt may be lost. Another way to lengthen the pattern is to cut it in two, two-thirds the distance from the top. See that all pleats or tucks are exactly the same width and at the exact distance from the top or bottom of the gore, also that all seams are of the right length. A shorter skirt must be proportionately narrower. It is well to test the skirt and waist patterns by using inexpensive materials, such as calico, gingham, or cheap lining. Cut, baste, fit, and make this as care- fully as if it were the best cloth or silk. If the skirt and waist are satisfactory, the pattern will do duty for several seasons. The plain waist pattern is the foundation for any waist and many changes can be made easily w^ith a well-fitting skirt and plain waist pattern as a basis. As paper patterns soon wear out, after a waist and skirt have been perfectly fitted, it is a good plan to cut an exact pattern of cambric, both skirt and waist, tracing seams and notching the parts. This will en- able the home dressmaker to cut and make all ordi- nary dresses with little trouble and with but one try- ing on. It is ahvays well to try on once, as materials differ in texture and a slight change may be neces- sary. PLACING PATTERNS At the left, on plain or symmetrical designs ; at the rij^ht, on figured or napped goods, a — Half of front gore ; b — Second gore; c — Third gore; d — Hack gore; ^— Front waist: /—Under arm piece; ^— Side back; h — Back ; i — Outside sleeve ; >— Under sleeve ; c' d' — Piecing of gores c, d. 176 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Placing Patterns Pinning: Patterns Cutting Out If the material is plain, has no nap, or if the de- sign is perfectly symmetrical, the gores may be al- ternated, the top of one gore coming opposite the bot- tom of the next. The half pattern of the front gore is always laid on a Icngthivisc fold of the goods. If the goods is wide, the other gores may be cut double with the cloth folded lengthwise. With narrow goods, the cloth may be folded end to end after the middle gore has been cut out, and the other gores cut double. Care should be taken that the line of holes in the middle of the gores runs exactly in a line with the warp of the material, i. e., parallel to the selvage. If the goods has a figure, the design should run up- wards. Any nap should run downward, except with velvet or velveteen, in which it should run upwards. With such goods, the gores if cut double must be placed on a lengthwise fold, with the lengths running the same way. If the goods is narrow, the gores may have to be cut single, reversing the pattern (turning it over) so that both pieces may not be for the same side. Pin the middle of the pattern to the goods and smooth towards each end, pinning securely at top and bottom. Avoid too many pins and pin carefully, oth- erwise the pattern will be displaced. After the pattern is securely pinned, cut out the gores, using long, sharp shears. Care should be taken not to lift the material from the table, not to have jagged, uneven edges, as both time and material will SKIRT MAKING ^77 be wasted in straightening thcni. Open the shears as wide as possible, taking a long sweep of the mate- rial, and do not allow the points of the shears to come together. Mark all notches with basting thread, tailor's chalk, or notch the goods if it does not ravel. The back gores should be cut in the same way. They are usually wider than the front gores and may require piecing, which should be done along the warp threads. Now remove the pattern, pin carefully all pieces to- gether and fold as little as possible. The trinity — pin, haste, press — should be written in large letters in every sewing room, for much of the beauty of the gown de- pends upon these three. To join the skirt, pin the side gores to the front gores, beginning at the top, with pins running across the seams, then begin at the top of the skirt and baste downward, allowing all unevenness to come out at the bottom. Baste straight and evenly, taking one stitch at a time. Several stitches should never be taken at once on thick or piled goods, as the side next to the sewer is apt to be fuller in that case. Wlien all seams are basted, try on the skirt and make all changes neces- sary before stitching. Both the outside skirt and any under or "drop" skirt should be fitted as carefully as a waist. If the skirt is to be lined the lining should be made and fitted first, then ripped and the outside carefully basted on the lining, being well stretched over the lin- ing, care being taken to have the warp of the outside Joining' the Skirt Lined Skirt 178 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Stitching Skirts Finishing: Seams Stiffening Flacke'j and the lining run the same way. This will prevent the lining from drawing the goods. A stitch of medium length should be used on all seams whether white goods or cloth. If the stitch is too long, the seam will "gap" and will show the thread ; if too short, the seam is apt to draw. The line of stitch- ing must be absolutely parallel inside or outside of the basting or the curve will be ruined. Use silk or the best cotton for stitching skirts and be sure that the needle is not too coarse. After stitching, all bastings along the seams should be taken out by cutting the thread in several places. Never pull a basting the length of the skirt. The seams should be opened and pressed according to directions. The seams may be finished with a taflfeta binding, over- cast, stitched flat or notched, as the case demands. If stiffening is used at the bottom of a lined skirt it should be fitted to each lining gore separately and se- curely stitched. A light weight canvas should be stitched to a heavy cloth skirt at the bottom, if sev- eral rows of stitching or braid are to finish the bottom of the skirt. The placket may be finished before the two back gores are pinned to the front, if preferred. If done be- fore joining the gores the placket can be pressed bet- ter and the front is not so liable to be crushed. On the left side of the skirt sew an underlap of sufficient length to extend well below the end of the opening. Face the rigth side of the opening with a piece of the goods, SKIRT MAKING 179 or tape not too wide, hem or cat-stitch to the skirt, and finish with hooks and eyes, loops, or any fastening that will secure the placket. The skirt is now ready for the band, which should be narrow. Always cut parallel with the selvage and the length of the underlap longer than the waist meas- ure, allowing for turning at the ends. The band should never be thick and clumsy and not too tight. Try on the skirt and fit the band carefully, marking the seam with pins, a line of basting, or chalk. Hold the skirt easy on the band and baste with small stitches, then stitch on the machine. If the skirt is too tight around the hips the plaits will fall apart at the back. If the skirt is stretched on the band the seams will not fall in a straight line. After the band is securely stitched and finished with hooks and eyes adjust the length by turning under at the bottom and pinning, after which baste all around and try on again to make sure that the length is correct. A gored outside garment should be finished with a true bias or a fitted facing, carefully stitched on. It is possible to finish the bottom of a simple house dress or thin skirt with a hem if the fullness made by turn- ing is disposed of in gathers or fine pleats. A bias fac- ing, however, is always preferable. If of heavy or lined goods the finish should be velveteen or braid the same color as the skirt. These bindings come in dififerent widths and grades. Braids should always be shrunken by wetting and drying thoroughly ; one wetting is Putting on Band Finishing the Bottom i8o' TEXTILES AND CLOTHING no enough. Velveteen should be applied loosely, so as not to shrink or draw after it becomes damp on the skirt. Applying The right side of the velveteen should be carefully Binding basted with small, even stitches to the edge of the facing. It may be hemmed to the facing or machine stitched just inside the basting, which need not be removed. It is then turned, allowing a very narrow portion to show below the edge, and basted with close stitches, pressed, hemmed down to the facing by hand, or cat stitched without turning the edge. Be careful not to let the stitches show on the right side, nor let the binding twist or pucker. The joining of the vel- veteen should be near the seam in the back. Another method is to cut off the bottom edge of the skirt a quarter of an inch from the turning line; apply the wrong side of the velveteen to the right side of the skirt, baste (Carefully close to the edge and stitch on the machine through velveteen, cloth, and lining (or facing) just inside the basting which is left in. The bottom of the raw edge is turned up, basted close to the edge allowing the velveteen to show a very little. The upper edge of the velveteen is secured as before by turning and hemming or catstitched with- out turning. The illustration shows this method of applying the velveteen which is first stitched to the lining and turned with the edge. This make a firm, rather stiff finish. Braid Braid is stitched on to the bottom of a skirt with SKIRT MAKING i8i a narrow edge showing, or it may be applied like the velveteen, with a doubled edge at the bottom. The doubled edge will wear better. Skirts that are to be washed and therefore which are very likely to shrink must be finished at the bot- tom with a wide hem — at least six inches — the full- ness made by turning being disposed of carefully in pleats or gathers. Finish of Wash Skirts APPLYING VELVETEEN BINDING l82 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Trace Seams Baste Lavishly Altering Waist Patterns If desired, the bias seam down the back of the skirt may have a narrow woven tape or selvage of thin goods stitched in with the seam. This strengthens the seam and prevents dragging. The skirt when finished should always be longer in front than in the back. All cloth dresses demand every detail of finish to make them complete and able to stand hard usage, but simple house dresses and thin summer dresses do not require such careful finish. SHIRT WAISTS, In planning a waist the same rules should be ob- served in placing patterns, etc., as described for skirts, except that the lines and seams should be traced with a tracing wheel or marked carefully. In making a waist of any kind care must be taken to cut all the pieces the proper way of the material. The difficulty of putting garments together after they have been cut properly is due to undue haste, lack of care in details and insufficient pressing. The ap- parently simple act of basting is really of primal im- portance, particularly in the making of a waist. One need never be afraid of basting too much or too care- fully. Economize cloth and time in cutting, but use basting lavishly. The waist pattern may be made shorter by laying folds across both back and front. The fold across the back should, be two inches above the waist line and across the front two inches below the arm's eye (in the back). Securely pin or baste the folds in the pattern. SHIRT WAISTS 183 If the pattern is of nearly the correct size it may be only necessar>' to make the waist shorter and smaller. The neck and arm's eye will seldom need altering. The sleeves may be shortened in the same way by lay- ing folds in the pattern, above and below the elbow. PLAN FOR MAKING A SHIRT WAIST After the waist is cut, remove and care for the patterns. Make the sleeves, cuffs and collar band first. Make box plait on right or left side as liked by the wearer and hem on the other side or face. Baste shoulders and under-arm seams. Try on the waist, making all changes necessary by enlarging or taking up seams. Pin for neck band and mark for seams. Fit sleeves and mark places for seams. Arrange fullness and place tape at back of waist line. If the pattern is for a plain, one-seam sleeve with the Making cuff opening at the end of the seam, hem each side sieeve of the opening one or two inches from the bottom, gather the bottom between the notches, lay the gath- ers, baste the right side of the sleeve band or cuff to the wrong side of the sleeve, stitch and press, fold in a hem on all edges of the cuff, fold the cuff over on the wrong side of the sleeve, baste, oversew the ends of the cuff, press and stitch the cuff close to all edges. After thus attaching the cuff, baste and stitch the long seam of the sleeve and gather at the top between notches. The cuff is usually cut in the direction of the warp of the goods. i84 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING The sleeve described is the simplest that can be made. If the sleeve is to open at the back and finished with a tape, with a placket, strap or fancy lap, the seam in the sleeve is stitched first and the cuff afterward ad- justed. PLAIN SLEEVE WITH CUFF, SHOWING GENERAL METHODS OF SEWING ON BANDS The box plait is made if desired and the under arm and shoulder seams basted when the shirt waist is ready to try on. ]\Iake any change in the seams neces- sary. The neck band is put on in the same way as the cuffs, sleeves sewed in, fullness arranged at the back and a tape placed at the waist line. Three hooks or other fastenings should always be placed at the back to attach to corresponding fastenings in the skirt band. The bottom edge of the waist may be finished by over- casting-. SHIRT WAISTS 185 If it is desired to have the fulhiess cut away at the Bottom waist Hne in front, determine the length, allowing suffi- ^>°ish cient for a blouse, gather the waist at the bottom and sew the fullness on to a band. Sometimes this band is carried entirely around the waist. The fit of the collar or neck band is very important nt of in any kind of a waist. Both the front and the back *^°"" may be cut higher than the pattern, as it is easy to cut off in adjusting and more goods cannot be added. To the unskilled the simplest garment is sufficiently difficult. It is wiser to make two or three perfectly plain garments before attempting to make an elaborate one. After the pattern has been tested, fitted and all nec- essary changes made, cut a pattern from the fitted waist of cambric or cheap nezv muslin and mark or trace all seams. (Never use old, worn-out sheets from which to cut a pattern.) After this permanent pattern has been made, do not change a single line. If a plaited or tucked waist is to be made, all plait- Tucked ing and tucking should be done first, after which the same order of making is to be followed for a plain waist. No waist should draw or strain across the bust. This is especially important in tucked or pleated waists. To guard against this tendency, a graduated tuck can p^n be pinned on either side of the front, beginning with waS? nothing at the shoulders and widening at the waist line. This is done before the pattern is cut and will allow for especially full bust. The fold should be on a thread of the goods. i86 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING LINED WAISTS The plain, closely fitted, lined waist, with the curved back and side forms is the most difficult to make and requires the greatest nicety in handling from beginning to finish. The pattern for a bodice of this kind should be of such a shape that in each part the woof threads will TYPICAL BODICE PATTERNS (a) Front. (,!.) Under Arm Piece, (r) Side of Back, (rf) Back. (<-) Collar. (/) Outside bleeve. (s) Inside bleeve. go as straight around the waist as possible. This makes the warp threads perpendicular and will give almost a perfect bias on the current seams in the back. Do not cut the side forms out of any piece that is big enough, without regard to the w^arp and woof threads. If this is done, the threads in each will run dififerently and all ways but the right one. In a well-designed pat- tern the back forms should be nearly as wide at the LINED WAISTS 187 arm'.*' eye as they are at the waist Hne. The swell of bust and shoulders should be accommodated by the back and from forms. When material is to be cut on the bias be careful tO' have a true bias (the diagonal of a square) around the waist and up the front and back seams. PLAN FOR MAKING FITTED, LINED WAIST. Pin pattern to lining, cut out trace seams. Baste all seams on traced lines.- Try on lining. Make changes. Rip lining, baste on outside and cut by fitted lining. Baste seams and try on. Make changes if neces- sary. Mark the turn for hem down the front, face and mark for fastenings. Stitch and finish seams. Put on featherbone. Put on collar ; sew in sleeves. Finish. In making a lined waist, the lining is cut, basted. Finish and fitted before the outside is cut. After fitting, the First ' lining is ripped apart and the outside cut by it. For all firm, heavy materials the lining should be slightly fuller than the outside, that is, the dress goods should be well stretched over the lining, just as in a lined skirt, and basted closely and evenly, the warp and the woof threads of the outside and lining corresponding. In laying the pattern for cutting the lining, just as much attention should be paid to the direction of the threads as in cutting a striped or figured goods. TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Marking: Seams Making Changes In Straight Seams Pinning and Basting All seams should be traced on tlie lining with the tracing wheel, with a slow backward and forward move- ment, making the perforations clear and distinct. Soft spongy goods that cannot be traced may be marked with a line of basting, tailor's chalk or by taking stitches with a pin along the line to be marked and twisting them in the goods. This will make holes that can be seen, but the twisting does not harm the goods. Always trace or mark the waist line, as this is the starting point from which to pin or baste. Bodice seams should never be begun at the top or bottom, but at the marks or notches that show the waist line, working towards the top and bottom. After the lining is cut out, the seams should be based exactly along the traced lines, with seams out, when it is ready to be tried on. If the pattern has been cut or drafted by the correct bust measure, the back seams should never be changed. If possible, make all changes required by letting out or taking in on the straight under-arm seams, leav- ing the curved ones and the darts untouched. Pins should be used plentifully while the fitting is being done, but they should be replaced with regular basting as soon as they are removed. Do not be afraid of taking up fullness in the lining by darts crosswise at the top of the corset or where the fullness naturally falls in front or back. Such darts should be basted, stitched and pressed flat. If the lining is too short, it may be lengthened by letting out the shoulder seams. LINED WAISTS 189 After the lining is fitted, it is ripped apart, the out- side cut, basted to it and the seams are basted, begin- ning at the waist Hne. Never use a long thread in basting and always use short, even stitches, especially where any curved seams are to be stitchced on the ma- chine. This rule must be followed invariably if puck- ering is to be avoided. Outside Cut by Lining WAIST LINING BASTED, SEAMS OUT The pattern at the shoulder seams should be shorter in front than at the back. In joining this seam, pin the two portions so that the ends of the seam meet exact- ly at the neck and arm's eye. In basting, stretch the front piece to fit the back, holding it in or puckering it if need be. Pressing will banish the pucker and give an easy seam that will hug the curve of the shoulder, as in a man's coat. Shoulder Seams igo TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Fitting Fitting of Neck and Sleeves When the waist is on the figure, pull it well down to the waist line, pin the front linings together begin- ning with the neck, then lift the waist a little in front to give fullness and pin to the waist line. Mark for the hem down the front, finish the edge with a well-fitted facing under which is a thin bias strip of canvas in- terlining for buttons or hooks and eyes. Marks showing the position of fastenings should be made at this time. The neck and arm's eye should be fitted by making slashes in the curve — never cut around the curve. For the collar or neck band have a true bias of thin canvas or crinoline and draw it around the neck and pin with the ends out, towards the worker. (Never lap an^' edges of waist, belt or collar when fitting.) Mark on the waist where the lower edge of the neck band touches. Draw the sleeve on the arm, pin and mark where it sets right, seeing that the elbow fullness is in the right place and that it does not twist at the hand. As in the lining, all changes necessary in fitting should, if possible, be made in the straight seams, as it is difficult to preserve the proper lines of the curved ones. The shoulder seams should be the last one to be basted. After all faults are remedied, the seams are careful- ly stitched along the line or basting, the bastings re- moved, the seams pressed and finished. The last seam to be stitched securely should be the one at the shoul- der. By leaving this open, all fullness can be smoothed upwards and any trimming can be let into the seam. ^' 111 BACK OF WAIST, WELL MATCHED 191 192 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Boning Draped Waist Finish of Bottom of Waist Sew in featherbone by cat stitching to the seam, first finishing the ends by button-hoHng. All seams should be stretched well when sewing on bones of any kind. Curved seams should be notched every one or two inches at the curve and bound or overcast. This al- lows them to lie flat. In a draped waist the lining is made separate and not stitched into any seam of the outside except at the shoulder. In fitting the outside the back is pinned on to the lining firmly, then the front and finally at the underarm seams. The seams are then basted, the waist tried on again, alterations made, if necessary, seams stitched and the bottom finished with the lining, as desired. Three eyes or other fastenings should always be sewed at the seams in the waist line at the back to se- cure the skirt to the waist, thus preventing it from sinking below the waist line. The finish of the lower edge of the waist is often a problem. If the waist is to be worn under the. skirt, just how to finish or whether to finish it at all is a question. The first step is to trim the edges evenly. A line of stitching and simple overcast will show less through a close-fitting skirt of light weight material. When binding is used, it should lie perfectly flat, twice stitched and pressed well. If the waist is to be worn outside the skirt, a nar- row bias strip of canvas should be basted on the wrong side, the waist turned up over this as directed for LINED WAISTS 193 sleeve and collar finish. Over this a bias facing of silk may be hemmed or cat-stitched. In spite of careful measuring and all care in cutting, the waist may not fit, owing to some deformity or pecul- iarity of the figure. Such figures require especially careful fitting and the hollow place should be filled out with wadding. This needs to be done with the greatest care and nicetv. MAKING BIAS STRIPS FOR FACINGS Avoid too frequent fittings. The bias portions of the bodice are liable to stretch out of shape and too much handling of the waist takes away the freshness. This is one reason why it is advisable to make the sleeves and collar first in order that the whole waist may be fitted at once and all alterations made to fit both sides. A perfect figure is the exception rather than the rule and the side that is not developed should be well fitted, whether sleeve or bodice. 194 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Altering Patterns Placing: of Patterns COAT OR TIGHT FITTING SLEEVES If it is necessary to lengthen the sleeve, say two inches, cut the pattern at right angles to the lines in- dicated by the dots, above and below the elbow. The slashing should be done exactly at the same distance apart in the upper and under portions of the sleeve in order to retain the proper shape and size of the top and bottom. Separate the parts, allowing one inch above and one elbow below the elbow. To shorten the sleeve, lap the slashed part or lay a fold in the pattern instead of slashing. In either case, care should be taken that the fold or lap is of even width all the way across, so that the original shape of the sleeve will not be lost. Too much care cannot be taken in arranging the pattern of the sleeve according to the thread of the goods. Especially is this the case in the two-piece or coat sleeve. Generally the top part of the outside seam and the lower part of the same side should be placed at the edge or fold of the goods, so that the two run in the same straight line. In all cases, the foundation sleeve or Hning should be cut and fitted before the outer portion is adjusted. Ample time should be given to the fitting and basting of the sleeve. The "set" of the sleeve is very often unsatisfactory because the cut- ting and original basting was done in a careless man- ner. Remember tha^t greater care is required in sleeve making than in any part of the garment. Each sleeve is complete in itself and one must not deviate from tlie COAT SLEEVES 195 other in size, arrangement or ornament, or general ap- pearance. They should be cut, basted and fitted alike and if the arms differ in size or length the sleeves must be so adjusted as to conceal the inequality. The sleeves should be made at the same time and before the cuff's, then the cuffs, puffs, or whatever spe- cial trimming is to be applied to them should be put on both sleeves at the same time. If the second sleeve is not made or trimmed until after the first is finished, it will be much more difficult to secure exactly the same effect. If it is impossible to complete both sleeves at one time, make the sleeves one day and the cuffs or trimming the next day. In making the coat sleeves the general methods are the same, but each season brings out new styles which the maker will have to understand before proper mak- ing and finishing can be acquired. Always master the simple and standard patterns and the minor changes dictated by fashion — new fancies and effects — will not be difficult to acquire after a little experience has been gained. The lining for both sleeves should be fitted and the outside cut by them. After economical cutting, trace the seams carefully, joining and baste the outside to the lining, basting both uppers before the under sections. Join the under and upper parts by pinning and basting, the outside seam first, be- ginning in the middle of the sleeve and working toward each end. The outside seams should be begun at the the Farts 196 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING notch at the elbow, working toward each end. Where the sleeve calls for gathering the fullness should be dis- tributed between the notches and the two portions of the sleeve should be secured at this point, before or after basting the upper or lower portions of each sleeve. FINISHING OF SEAMS Notched at Curves and Bound or Overcast. Adding: Cuffs Stitch the seams just outside the basting, then re- move the line of basting along the seam and press. Trim ofif all rough edges. The inside seam is opened and notched at the bend of the elbow and an inch or two above and below and bound with silk binding ribbon or evenly overcast with twist or mer- cerized cotton. If an elaborate cuff or trimming is to be added to the sleeve, whether full or plain, it should be made sepa- rately and blind stitched to the faced sleeve. In case COAT SLEEVES 197 the sleeve is gathered the fullness can be put into a narrow band, the exact size of the cuff, the cuff then sewed on the band. In putting the sleeve in the armhole, be sure that both seams are at the same point, that -both have the same amount of fullness at the top, and that the plaits or gathers are equally distributed from front to back. The sleeve should be held next to the worker and should lie easy from seam to seam at the under arm. Baste with close, even stitches or back stitch with coarse cotton or twist the same color as the waist. Stitch in the sleeves on this line of basting, keeping the armholes curved while the stitching is being done. Trim off edges and finish with binding or close over- casting. The most careful binding is clumsy compared to the overcast finish. Turn the seam toward the shoulder and hem to the lining over the shoulders. This will do away w'ith the stand-up look that sleeves some- times have. For the sleeve finished plainly around the wrist, a piece of bias crinoline should be fitted at the hand. To do this, turn the sleeve right side out and slip the crin- oline in the sleeve over the left hand and adjust by moving the fingers until the crinoline shapes itself to the sleeve perfectly, then pin and baste at the top and bottom. In this way the crinoline will be neither too short nor too loose and all wrinkling will be prevented. Turn the sleeve inside out and cut off the crinoline one-fourth of an inch from the edge, keeping a per- Puttingr in Sleeves Finish at Wrist 198 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING fectly true edge, turn the sleeve over the crinoHne, baste the outside part of the sleeve and cat-stitch to the crinoline, then cat-stitch the crinoline to the lining. Remove the lower basting and press, A bias strip of silk sufficiently wide to cover the crinoline is hemmed at the lower edge and to the sleeve lining just above the interlining. Whenever it is possible to do^ so use the cat-stitch. It is a neat finish, easily and quickly done, takes less time than hemming, besides being less bulky. If the bottom of a coat sleeve is to be left open at the back or slashed, an interfacing of light weight can- vas will be necessary. Turn the outside portion of the sleeve over the canvas, care being taken to turn all corners at the slash, and curves, press and stitch, face after the stitching is done. It may be stitched bet- ter if the back seam is left open. Pressing In the coat sleeve, both seams are curved and should Sleeves be pressed on a curved board. A rocking chair in- verted, with the rocker covered with soft cloth, makes a good board on which to press the curved seams of a sleeve. COLLARS The shaped, standing collar is worn with waists of all kinds and is always a popular neck finish. In a close-fitting collar made of heavy material an inter- lining of canvas or crinoline is necessary. The inter- lining should be cut one-fourth of an inch smaller all around if the collar is to be blind stitched to the waist. on Collars COLLARS 199 If it is to be sewed to the neck, in a seam, the Hning should be the same size as the collar at the neck. Baste this interlining to the collar material, cut out the cor- ners of the material, and hem the extended portion to the interlining. The interlining should always be cut bias, whether the outside is bias or straight. Hem the collar lining to the collar. To sew the collar to the neck of the garment, first putting pin, beginning at the back seam and baste towards the end. The lining may be left free at the lower edge and felled over the neck edge after the collar has been stitched to the garment, or the lining may be stitched in the seam, the seam pressed open and a bias facing of silk or light weight material hemmed on over the seam. The beauty of collars and cufifs depends largely upon the exact turning of corners and finish of ends. These should never be left bulky or clumsy. If preferred, the lining and outside of collar may be seamed and turned. Place the right sides of outside and lining together, the interlining next to the lining, stitch around both ends and top of collar, then turn and press. These rules may be followed in making sailor or any lined collars. Collars made of all over embroidery should be faced with tape on the wrong side before the trim- ming is applied to cover the edge of ruffie or lace. The plain or shirt waist pattern will do duty for many garments — corset cover, night dress, dressing jacket, etc. The upper part of the waist will answer for yoke pattern of different shapes. 200 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING SEAMLESS YOKES Pattern To make a pattern for a seamless yoke baste to- gether the shoulder seams of the fitted waist pattern, place the upper part of the pattern on cambric or stifif paper, with the front of waist on straight edge or fold of paper, trace the shape of the neck yoke any desired depth below the neck line. The lower edge can be cut in any shape, the neck either high or low, round or square. This perfectly fitted yoke pattern can be used for a foundation for lace, velvet, ribbon, net, or any thin material. The circular yoke made of lace and rib- bon or bias strips can be made to open in front or back. The strips of inserting and ribbon should be basted on the paper pattern and joined by fancy stitches or over sewed. The parts next the neck will need to be held fuller than the outside curve of the inserting. All yokes to be worn under the gown should be made on a well-fitted lining. Never trust to pinning, basting, or hooking the yoke to the waist. The finish of collar, cuffs, girdle and placket are hall- marks of good dressmaking. Well finished ends and corners, the careful adjustment of fastenings, shields carefully fitted to the arm's eye and caught smoothly to the lining — all these are little things that count for more than money spent in expensive ornament. PRESSING 201 PRESSING The success of the finish of every garment depends upon the pressing, whether the material be heavy or Hght, cotton or wool. Garments are always pressed on the wrong side, when being made. The iron used should neither be too hot nor too heavy and the work should be done on a perfectly smooth, well-covered board. For pressing black or dark cloth, the cover of the board should be dark and free from lint, wihile a perfectly clean light cover should be substituted when white or light goods are to be pressed. The whole face of an iron should never be put down on a seam or any part of a waist, but the side or point should be used, care being taken not to stretch a curved seam. A small rolling pin, a broom stick, a chair rocker, or any rounded stick well covered can be used for pressing curved seams or sleeves. This lessens the danger of marking the seams on the right side. These are only makeshifts ; a regular half round sleeve bound should be obtained if much work is to be done. In pressing, the iron should never be shoved or pushed, as in ironing. Only heavy materials require great strength. It is possible to press too much as well as too little. Whatever the material, pressing is work that requires to be done carefully and slowly. Allow the iron to touch only the center of the seam, the edges of the seam will not then be outlined upon the goods. Piled goods require infinite care. Uncut Fressinff Board Placing: the Iron Wet Pressing 202 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING velvet, crape, etc., should never be pressed with the iron flat on the seam. The seam should be opened carefully and over the rounded surface of the board, covered with very soft cotton flannel into which the pile can sink without being flattened. Run the iron with the pile, or the iron may be placed on the side or flat end and the seams drawn slowly along the edge of the iron the same way the pile runs — only the edge of the iron touching the edge of the seam. Corded seams should be pressed in the same way to avoid flattening the cord. Very heavy cloths and chinchilla should have a small stream of water carried along the seam, followed by the iron ; or the seam may be dampened by a soft cloth — very wet. This is the "wet pressing" used by tailors, which is adapted to the requirements of mate- rials used by them, such as serge, tweeds, etc. Press- ing on the right side under a damp cloth is apt to give marks if the cloth gets too dry or if the iron is too hot, but is necessary on finished wool garments. Silk scorches easily and should be pressed very care- fully, with a cool iron, light in weight. Some light colors fade or change in pressing. Try a piece of the goods before pressing the garment. If the color does not come back when cold or when ex- posed to the light, do not use a hot iron on the garment. CONSTRUCTION AND ORNAMENT FOR DRESS Many of the principles governing architecture and art apply equally as well to art in dress. Both in archi- tecture and dress, construction should be decorated — decoration should never be purposely constructed. It is by the ornament of a building that one can judge more truly of the creative power which the artist has brought to bear upon his work. The general propor- tion may be good, the mouldings accurate, but the in- stant ornament is attempted, the architect or the dress- maker reveals how much of an artist he is. To put ornament in the right place — where it serves a pur- pose — is indeed difficult ; to render that ornament at the same time an added beauty and an expression of the desired unity is far more difficult. All decoration should be planned to enrich — not to assert. All jewelry or ornament should form a note in the general harmony of color — a decorative touch to add beauty and to be subordinated to the object deco- rated. It should serve the purpose of seeming to strengthen the whole or to protect the parts receiving most wear. Ornament is everywhere attempted. We see ornament at every turn — good and bad alike — in our homes, on clothes, linen, and kitchen utensils. Carlyle tells us that "The first want of barbarous man is decoration." We have no record of when this need was felt first. Primitive man after supplying his ac- tual needs, seemed to develop a longing for the beauti- ful, so he ornamented his own body, scratched rude pat- terns on his tools and weapons and gradually devel- 203 Principles of Ornament Purpose of Ornament 204 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Errors in Ornamentation Embroidery oped the artistic sense. This love of ornament dates back to the beginnings of the human race and there are no records of a race or a period devoid of it. We see gowns totally lacking in good results because too much has been attempted. The wearer haS not con- sidered the effect as a whole, but has gratified her lik- ing for a multiplicity of ornaments and color which, perhaps would be good in themselves, if applied sep- arately, but which becomes an incongruous mixture when brought together on one garment. Garments which seem to have required great effort in the making and which appear complex in construc- tion should be avoided, for the effect is not pleasing. The gown should set off the wearer, not the wearer the gown. To avoid committing errors against good taste it is essential first to consider the use of any garment and see if it answers the purpose for which it was designed. If any part appears meaningless, this is a sure indica- tion that it is wanting in grace and beauty. The orna- ment should harmonize with the materials, use, and construction of the object to which it is applied. The color must be massed with effect and detailed with care. There can be no ornamentation equal to that which is worked into the material, such as embroidery. The design should be appropriate in form and color and always conventional. Flowers are used most fre- quently for embroidery and passementerie and the ORNAMENT IN DRESS 205 simple, single flowers are the most effective, such as the daisy, the wild rose, and the flowers of the lily family. These simple flowers are the best because they radiate from a central point, have strong forms and decided proportions, can be most fully expressed in a few stitches requiring the fewest shades of color, and are admirably adapted for amateur workers. Old Indian stuffs, jewelry, and enamels are rich in suggestions of conventionalized flowers. The simple, single flowers are repeated constantly, the daisy ap- pearing to be the favorite in these beautiful ornaments. The most beautiful of all conventional flower work, jewel studded, is found in samples of work of the fif- teenth century. They simple suggest the forms of na- ture. The repetition of the same flower in all its as- pects is more pleasing and less tiresome to the eye than a variety of flowers or figures. We find upon analysis that the simple forms are the basis of all decorative art work. Geometrical designs and arabesques are the most difficult, requiring the most exacting and careful work. Narrow bands, braided, outlined, or chain-stitched in simple designs are effective, easily done, and wear well. Braids and any of these stitches may be combined, making durable and effective 'trimming for sleeves and neck. These simple designs are also appropriate for children's frocks. The French knots are ornamental and dura- ble. All embroidery and passementerie should be rich, close, and continuous. It should not be cut up into Flowers as Ornament Geometrical Designs 206 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING PASSEMENTERIE OF GOOD DESIGN POOR DESIGN, WEAK CONNECTION pieces and sewed on where it does not serve, or appear to serve, a purpose. Passementerie There is very Httle passementerie that is at all suit- able for forming edges, as it is not sufificiently substan- tial, but wdien it can be found firm and of the right shade it is one of the most beautiful ornaments to edge neck and sleeves. It may be allowed to extend beyond ORNAMENT IN DRESS 207 the dress material, so that the flesh tints may show through the design, thus gradually softening the out- line. Often a narrow passementerie can be found with one strong edge and a good border can be made by joining the two. This cannot be done where the pat- tern is united by a band running through the center of the ornament. JOINING NARROW PASSEMENTERIE TO FORM A BORDER A band of velvet or cloth embroidered in outline stitch and French knots of same shade as the garment is a satisfactory edge. Except for yokes, the knots should always be held together with the outline edge. The rich silk braids and passementeries are made of silk wound or woven over cotton and should be used only on dresses which are not intended for bard wear. Such trimmings are, of course, inappropriate on serges and homespuns and soon become shabby if given much rough service. Laces, like all trimmings, have defined limits within which they should be used, though they are often worn indiscriminately. Machine made laces, often good in Bands Use of Laces 208 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Design of Lace Placing of Decorations Simplicity and Harmony The Bow make and design, are now very common, but the best machine-made laces are not cheap in price. Handsome lace should be applied rather plainly, as the pattern is often lost in the gathers. Fine laces are out of harmony with heavy or coarse materials. When lace is desired for flounces that with running patterns which neither advance nor retreat, except in the folds which may be made, will be found most pleasing. Dis- tinct objects, such as baskets, crowns, vases, etc., which suggest weight, are unsuitable patterns for so light a fabric as lace. Attention to details is essential in the placing of these decorations, as in the selection or making of them. The worker should take into consideration the shape and size of the bands or pieces of trimming and should note carefully the chief characteristics of the design and above all the junction of leaves, flowers, arabesques, especially in the finishing of the corners of collars and cuffs. Those at all skillful wath the use of the needle can attain the most beautiful and artistic results if right laws in color and design are adhered to, even by the use of the simplest stitches, for the beauty of dress lies not so much in the richness and variety of material used as upon simplicity and harmony — a fact too often disregarded. Perhaps no ornament is more abused than the bow. In order not to appear intrusive, ribbons require the most delicate handling. The only excuse for a ribbon ORNAMENT IN DRESS 209 as an ornament is when it makes a pretense of tying. When used as a sash where folds or gathers are con- fined, the tone of the ribbon should, in general, vary scarcely from that of the dress. Whatever the ornament used, whether embroidered band, a ribbon, a cord that laces, a diamond pin, or & jeweled buckle, though it may possess great intrinsic value and beauty, it cannot be considered of real worth as an ornament unless it fulfills the most important condition — fitness of place. Although the art of dress admits of innumerable variations, like all other arts it is subject to the three rules of beauty — order, proportion and harmony. Ornaments are appropriate on the hems or edges of garments where it serves the purpose of strengthen- ing and protecting the parts most worn, and not sim^ ply where fancy or fashion dictates. The natural fastenings and fold centers should be along the axis or center of the body. Any jewelry, buckle, brooch, or ornament used to fasten, secure, or strengthen these centers or to hold bands of embroid- ery, collar, or folds together should be sufficiently strong to serve the purpose. There must be a reason for position and the purpose of its use must be ap- parent to satisfy the eye. The eye is unconsciously and irresistibly drawn to these natural centers and demands some object there on which to rest — some substance from which the fold emanate — some reason for their detention. If this ornament at the throat or waist Fitness of Place Natural Centers 210 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING fastening collar or holding folds by a girdle or clasp is omitted, the eye is disappointed. This does not mean that the ornament, jewel, passementerie, or em- 'broidery should always be placed in the axis or central line of the figure — this may be carried too 'far. Slight irregularities often give an effect to hat or gown that is charmingf. PASSEMENTERIE COVERING FACING Trimming: Remember that trimming is not intended to cover up, but to beautify and strengthen. When, for econ- omy's sake, it is used to cover worn places or other de- fects, it must be selected and applied with great care ■ or it will loudly proclaim its mission. Trimming should mean something — whether jewelry or passementerie. Bands that bind nothing, straps, bows, buckles, or pins that confine nothing offend the taste. A girdle should seem, even if it does not, to belt Dress ORNAMENT IN DRESS 211 in fullness ; it has no use on a close-fitting, plain waist. No draperies should be invisibly held ; supply some ap- parent means of confining the gathers. To preserve the lines of the figure there should be unity in the dress. Al tight-fitting skirt below a gathered waist or a full, unity in gathered skirt below a plain waist gives the appearance of two portions of the body instead of the oneness desired. The figure should never be cut across, either above or below the waist-line with contrasting colors, differ- ent shades of the same color, or bands of different tex- ture. Below the waist-line the figure should suggest the elements of strength and these horizontal bands cut the lines of the figure at an angle of opposition, de- stroying the rhythm and grace of the lines. Much experience is required in placing horizontal lines of ornament on a skirt effectively. In general, rows of tucks or ornament should diminish in width from the bottom towards the top. The plain spaces should be greater than those ornamented. When or- nament gives absolute evenness of space division in skirt or waist the effect is apt to be monotonous and unsatisfactory. The natural places of support for garments are the neck, shoulders and waist. Ornamentation which emanates from these centers or when used for bor- ders, if appropriate in design, is usually successful. 212 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Appropriate Designs Advantage of Plain Haterial ORNAMENT OF TEXTILES 111 addition to ornament added to garment, the orna- ment in the textile itself must be considered. Textiles may be beautiful in weave, but spoiled by the design. Quite as important as intrinsic beauty is appropriateness of pattern. How often do we see woven on our curtains, carpets, and garment materials fans, bunches of roses tied with ribbons — ^bows with long, fluttering ends — landscapes, snow scenes, etc. Nothing is beautiful out of its place. A fan suggests coolness and grace of motion, but woven in our tex- tiles it gives the same impression as a butterfly mounted on a pin — something perverted, imprisoned, or robbed of its natural use. Nothing is or ever can be beauti- ful without use — without harmony. Decorations on textiles are not to tell stories. There is a difference between landscape painting and using landscapes as a motive for decorating textiles or pottery. In one case the aim is to annihilate surface by producing the im- pression of distance ; in the other, the object is to glor- ify the surface only. For the woman of limited income it is wiser to se- lect plain material of good texture and weave. Such material is never conspicuous, can be made over, and is always restfvil and may be interesting. Any good textile must impress itself upon the mind by its sug- gestiveness and beauty of color. There is a difference between what may be called artistic and decorative ORNAMENT OF TEXTILES 213 embellishment of textiles. Each has its place in the world of beauty, but one is the poetry, the other the prose of the art. There is a dignity and restfulness in plain material which is never obtained by varied patterns. When a stripe is used to vary the material, the style of the tex- tile is changed, elongated if the stripe is vertical, and widening if it is horizontal. If the main stripe is cut at right angles with a second stripe, the textile appears more complicated and repose is lost. The same is true of checks, but no pattern is more distracting than large plaids, especially when used for waists, because the regularity of the design renders very conspicuous any inequalities in the shoulders or bust, and the great va- riety of colors detracts from the dignity of the dress. With small checks and narrow, self-colored stripes the effect is different, causing the texture to appear only shaded and not destroying the unity. On garment fabrics the ornamentation should be flat, without shadow or relief. The pattern must en- hance and not mar the figure. If flowers, foliage, or other natural objects are used for the designs, they should be conventionalized — not direct copies of na- ture. A figured textile requires more careful planning than plain material. It may be beautiful when used properly, but it will appear hideous if distorted in the making. A conventional fleur-de-lis pattern, or a long dash which appears and disappears when used in long, stripes Conventionalize Designs 214 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING graceful folds, adds to the apparent height. These same figures wrongly used spread out awkwardly or become distorted. Size of The size of the design should be regulated by the ^^^^ material — small patterns being used for close, thick fabrics and larger designs, with more delicate colors, for thin material of open texture. Thick, heavy fab- rics require rich, warm colors and the pattern likewise should be rich and decorative. Velvets, velveteens, and heavy cloths for dresses are beautiful in themselves and should not be marred by patterns or trimmings. Spirals or curved lines running crosswise on textiles distort the natural curves of the figure by making seem- ing undulations where none should be and accentuat- ing the prominence of hips and bust. Such patterns should not be used in folds. COLOR Texture Much is to be considered in choosing colors and it is Color folly to suggest a particular shade for a person without taking into account texture of the textile. Though the color may be good, the weave may destroy what might otherwise have been a success. Not only must color in itself be studied, but quality of color in textiles as well. A shade of red, for ex- ample, in dull silk or lusterless material may be most unbecoming for a woman of a certain type, while it may be worn successfully if made in rich velvet or glossy silk. COLOR 215 Some women maintain that they cannot wear green, but nearly all can dress becomingly in this color if the shade and texture is selected carefully. The same may be said of other colors for the many variations should be taken into consideration. The average woman in selecting materials for gowns or house furnishings is apt to be influenced too much by details, as she would judge the merits of a fine piece of needlework, hence the value of good, broad color schemes fails to appeal to her. The chenille curtain, perhaps, suits her because it is full of complex decoration. After having determined the prevailmg color of a Harmony costume, the details should be in harmony, rather than contrast in contrast with it. Dififerent tones of one color are more satisfactory than striking contrasts, and even strong patches of light and shade of the same color should be avoided, as well as patches of crude and vivid color. The pleasing contrasts found in nature cease to be happy when attempted in textiles. Use few colors, avoid bright shades except in small quantities. All bright colors should be placed near the face, rather than on or near the bottom of skirts or the edge of sleeves. Avoid strong contrasts ; the brighter the color and the greater the contrast with other colors, the louder and cruder will be the effect. "No color harmony is of a high order unless it involve indescribable tints." CHILDREN'S CLOTHES Infants' Clothing: Stockinet XJndergarmenti Plainness, purity, softness of texture rather than elaborate ornament should be the main consideration for infants' clothes. The finest and softest of French and Scotch flannels, French linen, dimity, nainsook, and India silk are always dainty and they should be made up very simply with little trimming, but that of the finest. Hems and seams should be small and neatly done with, perhaps, the daintiest beading inset by hand and feather stitched. Hemstitching is always beautiful, but makes a weak spot w.hich is apt to give out in the con- stant laundering necessary for children's clothes. The skirt and shirt made in one piece, with sleeves to slip into the little outside garment, both to open down the back so that all may be slipped on at the same time without worry to either nurse or baby, will be found a great convenience. Stockinet or webbing, all wool, partly wool, or all cotton, is preferred by may to the plain cloth. The cotton is non-shrinkable, easily made, and finished. This garment fabric has reached such a high degree of perfection that for infants and children of larger growth nothing better can be desired for shirts, skirts, drawers, and tights. It may be had in either light or heavy weight, is easily laundered and elastic, having all the qualities desired in undergarments. Garments made of this material in the manner described give per- 216 Dresses CHILDREN'S CLOTHES 217 feet freedom for all organs, besides evenness of cover- ing for the body and lightness of weight — all important considerations in infants' and children's clothing. There should be the same simplicity in construction and material in the garments of children of larger growth. The design should be smaller, more realistic and the color brighter than for grown people. For children's dresses, the pretty ginghams in small children's checks, chambray, dimity, serge, flannels, cashmere are appropriate and serviceable. In making up these simple materials nothing better can be suggested than the plain, straight waist, fitting easily, to which a full skirt is fastened. The sleeves may be of any fashion to add variety. Such a frock is simple and dignified and has a certain archaic beauty and quaintess that the huge, ugly collars and like orna- ment can never give. With the plain body the grace of the childish form is not lost. The body may be short or long, with the trimming at the bottom or edge of the skirt. The gathers fall in long lines or folds, no element of oppo- sition destroying the rythm and grace of the figure contour, when the trimming is placed at the bottom of the frock instead of several bands dividing the skirt. The waist should always be wider in front than in the back. The discomfort and injury caused by ill fitting garments, graded according to age instead of according to size, thus restricting the expansion of the chest and the play of the lungs, cannot be estimated. 2i8 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING With the proper kind of frock a child can indulge in any game without becoming in the least disordered. Dresses for little girls may have drawers made of the same material, thus permitting them the same freedom as the boys. The life of the child is play. Unfortu- nate is the child whose clothing is too good to play in. Of course there should be frocks for gala occasions. Children are sensitive to color and receive much inno- cent enjoyment from being prettily dressed. A child may be made unhappy and timid by ugly clothes, but plainness need not mean ugliness. There are many artistic and simple patterns now being put on the mar- ket and. many of the ready-made frocks found in the best shops are satisfactory. CARE OF CLOTHING Ruskin says, "Clothes carefully cared for and rightly worn, show a balance of mind and self respect." The freshness of gown or wrap may be preserved by the little attentions bestowed upon it each time it is worn, which take but a few minutes and mean so much in all departments of dress. By carefully brushing and shaking into folds, removing all spots, hanging right side out, picking and pulling straight flowers, bows, and ribbons as soon as removed, adding buttons and taking up dropped stitches when needed, — all these little attentions if given promptly, will keep a wardrobe fresh and in good order. New braid on the bottom of skirts, sponging and pressing, little alterations and ad- dition of new trimming to collar and cuffs, will help to preserve the original freshness of the gown and cause the wearer to appear well dressed. Waists should be turned wrong side out when re- moved and allowed to air near a window. Shields should be cleansed with alcohol and water. Ribbons should be rolled up immediately when taken off and if treated in this way will last much longer and look much daintier. Clothing if moist and dusty and tossed into a dark corner of a closet or trunk can never appear fresh again, and will betray the character of the wearer. It is not the wearing of clothes which tells so sadly upon them, but the manner in which they are cared for. A few garments nicely made, well fitted and properly 219 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Euffled Skirts Packing Away Clothing: Folding Oarmcnts cared for are far preferable to twice the number of inferior quality and make. Skirts of thin material having ruffles around the bot- tom should be hung upside down by loops sewed under the ruffles at the seams. By hanging in the opposite di- rection from which they fall when worn, ruffles regain their freshness. All clothing for the season should be put away in perfect order to be ready for any sudden emergency which may arise. No clothing of any kind should be stored for the season without thorough cleaning and repairing where necessary. Garments that are out- grown should be disposed of, instead of packing them away. Wool garments should be carefully brushed and hung in the sun to remove and destroy any eggs of moths which may be present. They may be hung in tight cotton bags or packed in tight boxes with all openings posted over as a protection against moths. Tailors' boxes which come flat are not expensive and are useful for this. They should be plainly labeled with their contents. To fold, lay all articles on the bed or table and fold on the seams if possible. Particular attention should be given to sleeves and collars. Coat lapels should be turned to lie flat, collars turned up, and the coat folded directly through the center seam. Skirts and coats with bias seams are not improved by hanging as the bias parts are apt to stretch out of shape. CLEANING No clothing should be put away for the night, even, without first removing all steel pins, as the least damp- ness may cause rust spots. Clothes forms and hangers are so inexpensive that every gown and coat should have its own. Skirts should be hung exactly on the form and no part of the band should be allowed to sag. If fancy waists are put in drawers or boxes, they should have the sleeves filled with tissue paper and the collars and bows should be pulled straight. CLEANING Large garments require the greatest care in hand- ling and in order to be done successfully, they should be sent to the professional cleaner. All stains and spots should be removed as soon as possible. Fruit and wine stains may be removed by stretching the fabric over a vessel and pouring boiling water through the cloth from a height of a foot or two. The water must be boiling. Ink stains can be taken out of clothing by dipping the cloth in milk, squeezing the blackened milk into one dish and dipping immediately into clear milk until the stain has disappeared. Then finish by washing the cloth in warm water and in soapy water to remove the fat in the milk. Iron rust may be removed from linen and cotton by using lemon juice and salt. Wet the spot with the juice of a lemon, cover with salt and lay in the sun, Remove Pins Hangers Ink Stains Iron Rust TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Grease Spots Blood Stains Solvents repeating the operation until the stain is removed, then rinse out the lemon and salt thoroughly. This of course cannot be used on colored fabrics^ as it fades the color. Grease is one of the worst foes to garments and the greatest care is needed to remove such spots from delicate fabrics. If not done at once, the dust and grease together often prove ruinous. When the color and fabric will not be injured by it, warm water and soap is the best agent, otherwise absorbents may be used. French chalk or magnesia powdered, placed upon the spot, and allowed to remain for a time will often absorb the grease effectually. If the first appli- cation is not effective, brush off, and apply again until the spot disappears. Where water can be used without injuring the cloth, the chalk or magnesia can be made into a paste and spread over the spot. When dry, brush off with a soft brush. In removing fresh grease spots, blotting paper with a warm iron may often be used effectively. If the heat changes the color of the cloth, the iron should be held above the goods. Blood stains may be removed by making a paste of starch and applying it to the spot. Several applica- tions may be necessary. Only the best and purest benzine, naphtha, gaso- line, and turpentine should be used for cleaning gar- ments. For removing paints from coarse cloth, pure turpentine is useful, while for silks, velvets and wool- ens, benzine, naptha and gasoline are to be preferred. CLEANING 223 The secret of success in the use of any of these cleans- ing agents lies in immersing the garments in large quantities of the hquid. Not less than a gallon should be used for a waist and two gallons will do the work far more satisfactorily. An effort should be made to remove all the worst spots before immersing the whole garment. Those which have not disappeared should then be marked with white thread, colored thread may leave a mark. It is a good plan to enclose the spot with a line of basting. Soak the garment for some time in the liquid, then soap all spots thoroughly and rub gently between the hands until they disappear. Finally wash and rinse the garment in clear liquid and hang in the open air until all odor has passed away. Soap may be used freely with gasoline with good ef- fect. Some professional cleaners use a little of the strongest ammonia in their gasoline tanks. The goods should be shaken well and all folds pulled out straight with the threads of the goods. Velveteen, corduroy, and like piled fabrics can be cleaned successfully if not too much worn, but no amount of cleaning will restore the pile that is worn off. If allowed to stand until the impurities have settled and the clear liquid poured into clean bottles, it may be used for a number of times. This should always be done in the open air. Chloroform may be used for cleaning the most deli- cate silks, though this is rather expensive. Whenever any of these liquids are used to remove spots alone, the spots should be placed upon a soft pad of several thicknesses of old cloth or blotting paper to Cleaning Garments Absorbing Pad 224 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Cleaning Velvet Before Sending to Cleaners absorb the surplus liquid and the spot should be rubbed from the outside towards the center. A hole may be cut in very soft cloth or blotting paper and placed around the spot to absorb the solvent around the stain and prevent the dark ring being formed. The cloth should be rubbed lightly and briskly until it is dry. If thie fabric is light colored, a sponge or a soft piece of light cloth should be used, while for dark fabrics, the cloth used for rubbing the spot should also be dark and free from lint. The rubbing should be done light- ly so as not to wear or injure the texture of the fabric. The blotting paper or cloth underneath should be changed frequently until the spot has entirely disap- peared. Velvet hats and bonnets, after all trimming is re- moved, may be cleaned by repeated dippings in benzine or gasoline. The vessel used should be large enough to hold a sufificient quantity of the liquid tO' completely cover the hat. Of course all dust should be carefully brushed off and all folds ripped and loosened before putting the hat into the liquid. The secret of success lies in having the article entirely free from dust and using a large quantity of the benzine or gasoline. Before sending out garments to be dyed or cleaned, be sure that they are in good condition. All worn places should be mended carefully and all buttons should be removed. Garments that are ripped shouid have all cut threads pulled out and be free from dust. D*ust silk fabrics with a piece of clean flannel and woolen material with a brush or broom. REPAIRING REPAIRING 225 Fabrics are so much cheaper and so much easier to obtain that patching has almost become one of the lost arts. The twentieth century woman feels that her time is too valuable to be spent in mending the old clothes and that she can better afford to buy new. However that may be, no one disputes the utility of mending. Like so many other duties, mending is half done when well begun. A well made garment of good material should not be discarded when slightly worn, for a patch well put in or a neat piece of darning de- tracts in no way from the value of a garment and may even be a work of art. The children's clothes particu- larly should be kept in good order, for they are made uncomfortable by w^earing garments that are out of re- pair, to say nothing of the demoralizing effect upon their characters. Laundering is the great ally to tears and not only doubles the size of tlie hole, but pulls the threads apart so that it is impossible to make the mended place neat and smooth, therefore all clothing should be mended before washing. Stockings and woven underwear are much worn by the rubbing on the washboard and thin places going into the washing frequently come out as holes, so that it is true economy of effort and time to "run" or darn the thin places before they are worn through. It requires much less time and the garments last longer. 226 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Boys' Trowsers Sleeves Table Cloths Lengthening Garments It is a good plan, especially in knees of stockings and knitted underwear, to baste a piece of fine net over a worn or broken place and darn over it. (See Darn- ing.) Thread used for darning should be as near as possible the size of the threads in the garment. Darn- ing cotton, linen, wool, and silk of all shades can be bought, so that the problem of matching is no longer a difficult one. In mending the knees of boys' trousers a round patch should never be used. The seams should be ripped and the piece set in then, if the seams are pressed well, the patch will scarcely be noticeable. When bodices are worn under the arm, rip the seams and set in a new "under arm" piece. A good plan for one whose dresses are apt to wear through quickly is to have the under arm pieces and the adjacent parts of the front made of two thicknesses of the goods ; then, as the outside wears through, the edges can be hemmed down or taken into the seam. When table cloths begin to wear in the middle fold or along the edge of the table, a few inches cut off one end and one side of the cloth will change the fold and the place where it falls over the table and give it a new lease of life. If the hem is turned down once and cat stitched, it will resemble the selvage more than a twice turned hem. In repairing or lengthening garments that have be- come too short, much can be done by adding to the bottom of the skirt and sleeves material of different REPAIRING 227 texture. A cloth or serge skirt may be lengthened by facing with velvet of the same shade, covering the line of sewing with cord, braid, or passementerie of the same shade or black. There should be an under- facing of light-weight crinoline to make the bottom of the skirt firm and to give strength. The same facing and passementerie may be used at neck and sleeves. Thin gowns of lawn, dimity, etc., can be lengthened with a faced or extension hem, the line of sewing to be covered with feather stitch or any of the fancy stitches of white or colored thread. If the lawn or dimity has a colored figure, the embroidery silk or cotton may match this. Under skirts and drawers may be length- ened in the same way or rows of tucks may be added. In waist repairing, the sewing silk should match the material. Set the patch into the seams when possible and trust to careful pressing. If the material begins to wear near the end of the bones, cut off the bones an inch and take in the dart or seam. If the silk wears off around the hooks and eyes, move them along ever so little. Make a virtue of worn out seams by taking them in and covering them with fancy stitching. If the garment is lined, the outside should be carefully basted to the lining before stitching to take in the seam. It has been said that silk waists are serviceable as long as the upper parts of the sleeves remain good. If garments have not been well cared for from the first and beyond a certain point, "making over" is poor Extension Hem and Tucks Waist Repairing' 228 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Mending Blankets TIse of Tape TTse o( Judgment in Mending economy. Never attempt cleaning and making over old clothes unless the material is good enough to make it worth while to do the work well. The mending basket is an important adjunct of mending and should be well supplied with darning cot- ton of all colors and sizes, good English tape, black and white, of different widths, linen tape, bias tape, differ- ent kinds and sizes of needles,— sewing, darning, shoe, carpet, and tape needles. For repairing bands and facings, where buttons have been torn off by wringer or iron, and for strengthen- ing weak places, tape is invaluable. It saves the time required to turn in the edges of the cloth and is less clumsy and bungling. The mender should use good judgment as to the amount of work to be applied to each garment. She should substitute the machine needle whenever possible and not put tiny stitches by hand into half worn gar- ments or in unseen places. Ripped tucks and bands can be sewed in a few minutes on the machine. Serv- iceable darning can be done on the machine. Before putting away freshly laundered clothes it is a good plan to take out the clothes already in the draw- ers and lay the ones washed last on the bottom, thus all garments will wear alike, each article in its regular turn. TEXTILES AND CLOTHING 229 BIBLIOGRAPHY Home and School Sewing, Frances Patten, ($.60, postage 6c). School Needlework, Olive C. Hapgood, ($.75, postage 6c). Sewing Course for Schools, Mary Schenck Woolman, ($3.50, postage 20c). Progressive Lessons in Needlework, Catherine F. Johnson, ($.90, postage 8c). Sewing and Garment Drafting, Margaret L. Blair, ($1.25, postage loc). Manual of Exercises in Hand Sewing, Margaret L. Blair, ($1.25, postage loc). Dressmaking Up to Date, Butterick Pub. Co., ($.25, post- age 8c). Note : The above books may be borrowed, one at a time, by members of the School. Send the postage given with re- quest. They may be purchased if desired. TEST QUESTIONS The following questions constitute the "written reci- tation" which the regular members of the A. S. H. E. answer in writing and send in for the correction and comment of the instructor. They are intended to emphasize and fix in the memory the most important points in the lesson. TEXTILES AND CLOTHING PART III Read Carefully. To make this test of greatest value to you, write fully from your personal standpoint and experience. Try as many methods given in the text as your time wili allow so that you may ask for explanation if the descriptions are not clear to you. Methods are many ; if you do not agree with these given, suggest better ones. 1. (a) What are the requisites for good dress- making? (b) How does dressmaking dif- fer from white sewing in make, finish, and ornamentation ? 2. From your point of view what do you consider a successful garment? 3. Give methods of altering patterns. 4- Give briefly the cutting and making of a wool garment from patterns: (a) waist, (b) sleeve, (c) skirt, (d) collar, including meth- ods of stitching, pressing and finish, stating how patterns should be placed on lining and outside materials, 5. How may pressing be done to give the best re- sults ? What garments require little or no pressing, and why? 6. (a) State some of the principles and purposes of ornament, (b) What is your idea of orna- ment applied to garments? (c) Give some errors in ornamentation not named in text. 231 232 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING y. Cut from magazines illustrations showing your idea of good and faulty ornamentation in dress. Give reason for your opinion. 8. Illustrate in some way, either by picture, draw- ing, embroidery, braid, or stitching, some de- sign appropriate for ornament work on neck or sleeve. 9. Where should ornament be placed, and why? 10. (a) Give your idea of appropriate design on tex- tiles, (b) The advantage and disadvantage of plain materials. 11. Make a color card of silk, wool, paper or raffia showing colors that contrast, (b) Colors that harmonize. 12. What colors do you find satisfactory for your own wear, and why? 13. What materials are best suited for infants' gar- ments? (b) What can you say in regard to children's clothing? 14. What is your opinion of the care of clothing? (b) What experience have you had in clean- ing (a) cotton, (b) wool, (c) linen, (d) silk, (e) velvet? 15. Do you consider it economy to repair garments? Can you suggest better methods than those given in the text? TEXTILES AND CLOTHING 233 16. If possible make some garment, shirt waist, skirt, or simple dress while studying this les- son and describe in detail how you went about it, the result, time taken, total cost. Tell why you selected the design, the color, the mate- rial. 17. Have you found the ready made garments satis- factory in underwear and dresses? 18. Tell of some of your failures in dressmaking and give the reasons for your lack of success. 19. What methods, new to you, have you tried in connection with this lesson? What questions have you to ask? 20. Can you add any suggestions that would be help- ful to others in this work? 21. Wherein have the lessons been of practical value to you? 22. For Teachers. Draw up an outline for a course in sewing to combine two considerations: (a) adaptability to the child's interests and capaci- ties, (b) orderly sequence in the technical part. Note : After completing the answers, sign your full name. 234 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING REFERENCES: ORNAMENT AND DESIGN Bachelder — Principles of Design in America. ($3.00.) Brown — History of Decorative Art. ($1.25.) Carter, Mrs. H. J. — Historic Ornament in Color. (15c. a sheet) . Prang. Clifford — Period Decoration. ($3.00.) Crane — Claims of Decorative Art. (Out of print.) Crane — Line and Form. ($2.25.) Daniels — -Teaching of Ornament. ($1.50.) Day — Application of Ornament. ($1.25.) Day — Nature in Ornament. ($4.00.) Day — Ornamental Design. (Out of print.) Day — Planning of Ornament. (Out of print.) Day — Decorative Design of all Ages. ($0.40.) Day — Ornament and Its Application. ($3.25.) Day — Ornamental Design, Anatomy of Pattern, Planning of Ornament. ($3.00.) Day — Some Principles of Everyday Art. (Out of print.) Glazier — Manual of Historic Ornament. (New edition in press.) Hulme — Birth and Development of Ornament. (Otit of print.) Jones — Grammar of Ornament. ($18.00.) Prang — Art and Ornament in Egypt. ($1.50.) Note — The books out of print inay be found in some public libraries. TEXTILES AND CLOTHING 235 REFERENCES: HISTORY OF COSTUME Earle — Costume of Colonial Times. ($1.25.) Earle — Two Centuries of Costume in America, 2 vols. ($2.50 each.) Evans — Chapters on Greek Dress. (Out of print.) Fairholt — Costume of -England, 2 vols. ($1.50 each.) Hill — History of English Dress. (Out of print.) McClellan — Historic Dress in America. ($10.00.) Planchet — History in British Costume. ($1.50.) Quegly — What Dress Makes of Us. ($1.25.) Racinet — Costume. ($2.00.) Rhead — Chats on Costume. (.^51.50.) Schild — Old English Peasant Costume from Boadicea to Queen Victoria. (Out of print.) SUPPLEMENTARY PROGRAM ARRANGED FOR CLASS STUDY ON TEXTILES AND CLOTHING MEETING I (Study pages 1-59) Primitive Methods Endeavor to obtain a Colonial spinning-wheel in working order, and get some one to operate it. If possible, obtain samples of weaving done on a hand loom. Examine a hand-loom if possible. They may be seen at the manufacturers of rag and remade carpets. References: Woman's Share in Primitive Culture, Mason, Chapter III, The Weaver. ($1.75, postage i6c.) Colonial Days in Old New England, by Earle. ($1.25, postage I2C.) Textile Fibres Collect an exhibit of raw fibres and fibres in process of manu- facture. Send to the U. S. Department of Agriculture, Department of Botany, Washington, D. C, for small sam- ples; to manufacturers of thread; to friends in manufac- turing towns. Test the variotis fibres by burning. Examine under a mi- croscope with a small hand-glass, if greater power cannot be obtained. Try warm acid — sulphuric, hydrochloric, or oxalic — on the fibres; let the fibres dr-", . Also try a solu- tion of caustic soda on the fibres. References: The Textile Fibres, by Matthews. ($3.50, postage 1 6c.) Textile Fibres and Cotton Fibre, pamphlets of the American School of Correspondence. (50c. each, postage 4c. each.) 236 PROGRAM 237 Send for all the Government Bulletins men- tioned in the Bibliography, page 104 Note that the free bulletins are obtained simply by addressing the Department of Agricul. ture, Washington, D. C, but the sale bulle- tins only by sending coin or money order to the Superintendent of Documents, Wash- ington, D. C. MEETING II (Study pages 59-102) Modern Methods Visit a textile mill if possible, after studying the text. Practice home dyeing. Read carefully the directions given by the manufacturers of the dyes. See the booklet ' ' Dia- mond Dyes," to be obtained at many drug stores, or send for it to Wells Richardson, Burlington, Vermont. References: Text-books of the American School of Corre- spondence — especially Textile Chemistry and Dyeing. (Parts I, II, III, and IV, post- age 4c. each.) The Dyeing of Textile Fabrics, by Hummell. ($1.75, postage i2c.) Bleaching and Calico Printing (containing samples), by Duerr. ($4.00, postage 14c.) Weaves and Fabrics Show as many different kinds of weaves as possible. Separate rate the threads and examine under a hand microscope. Get the local dry-goods or department store to co-operate with you in getting up an exhibit of samples of standard goods — cotton, woolen, worsted, linen, and silk. Label each cample with the width and price. 238 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Test some of the samples of wash goods for fastness to wash- ing and light, by washing in warm water and soap (or boiling in the soap and water) and expose to sunlight all day for three or four days. Keep a part of each sample j or comparison. (Select a composite -set of answers to the Test Questions on Part I and send to the School, with report on the supple- mental work done and Meetings I and II.) MEETING III (Study pages 107-123) Sewing: Plain Stitches Send to manufactvirers for samples showing the process of manufacture of pins, needles, etc. Demonstrate different ways of making the same stitches; discuss best methods. Embroidery Show how all the embroidery stitches are made. Get up an exhibit of all kinds of embroidery, including Oriental, Japanese, old samplers, etc. Have members make Model I, First Series. References: Home and School Sewing, by Patton. ($0.60, postage 6c.) School Needlework, by Hapgood. ($0.75, post- age 6c.) Manual of Exercise in Hand Sewing, bv Blair. ($1.25, postage IOC.) Topic: Educational Value of Sewing in the Public Schools. Methods. See "A Sewing Course, "by Mary S. Woolman, Introduction (S3. 50, post- age 20c.), and 'The Teaching of Domestic Science in the United States of America," by Alice Ravenhill, pages 9-10, 43-46. ($0.75, postage i2c.) PROGRAM 239 MEETING IV (Stttdy pages 123-165) Hems, Seams, Fastenings, Darning, Patching Have all members make models II. Ill, IV, and V. Previously assign members to furnish models or examples of all other hems, seams, fastenings, patches, darns, etc., illustrated or described in the text, and as many more as possible. Machine Sewing Get the local sewing machine agent to give a demonstration of the workings of the attachments of the machine. (Select models and answers to Test Questions on Part II and send them to the School, with a report of Meetings III and IV.) MEETING V (Study pages 167-200) Dressmaking Get the local drj'-goods or department store to lend different kinds of dress forms. Collect patterns from different makers. Show how patterns are altered to suit the figure. (See text and "Dressmaking Up to Date. ") As many as possible cut out and begin making a simple shirt- waist or skirt. Show finished garment at next meeting, giving accurate account of cost and time spent. References: Dressmaking Up to Date, The Butterick Co. ($0.25, postage 8c.) Sewing and Garment Drafting, by Margaret L. Blair. (Si. 25, postage 12c.) 240 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING MEETING VI (Study pages 205-228) Construction and Ornament in Dress ; Color Collect illustrations showing good and faulty ornamentation. Procure samples of fabrics showing good and faulty orna- mentation. Make a color card showing contrast and harmony of color. (See Question 11.) References: See list on pages 234 and 235. Children's Clothing Get tip an exhibit of simple and satisfactory clothing for children, including color, material, style and make. Discuss children's clothes in reference to laundering. Care and Repair of Clothes Show examples of successful repairing. Try some of the methods of cleaning. (See, also Chemistry of the Household pages 73-84.) (Select answers to Test Questions on Part III and send them to the School, with report on Meetings V and VI.) INDEX Adulteration of linen, 87 Alpaca, 90 Altering sleeve patterns, 194 Angora wool, 39 Aniline dyes, 79 Arrow heads, 123 Aack stitch, 112 Basting, 108 Bibliography, 103, 229 Bleaching, 78 Bobbin, 19 Boning waist, 192 Bow, the, 208 Burling, 83 Bust form, 168 Button holes, 141 large, 145 making, 144 Buttons, sewing on, 145 Carding, 59 Care of clothing, 219 Cassimere twills, 73, 75 Cat stitch, 116 Catch stitch, 116 Chain stitch, 116. Checks, 213 Children's clothes, 216, 217 Cleaning, 59, 221 Collars, 198 putting on, 199 Color in dress, 214 Colors, mordant, 79 Combing, 60 Conventional designs, 213 Costumes, references, 234 Cotton, 29 boles, 32 fibers, 34 Cotton goods, 85 home of, 30 Nankin, 34 sea island, 30 upland, 30 ' Cross stitch, 120 Cuflfs, 196 Cutting table, 168 Darning, 155 on machine, 158 over net 157 Decorations, placing. 208 DistafT, 12 Double cloth, 77 Draped waist, 192 Drawing tapes, 140 Dressmaking, 167 Dyeing, 78 home, 80 Dyes, aniline, 79 Dyestuffs, natural, 80 Embroidery, 204 as ornament, 204 eyelet, 122 shadow, 123 stitches, 114 Extension hem, 227 Eyelet embroidery, 122 Eyelets, 149 Fabrics, 85 list of, 96-102 names of, 94 primitive, 27 width of, 93 Facing, bias, 141 skirt, 179 Fastening the thread, 109 Fastenings, 141 241 242 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Feather stitch, ii8 Fibers, 29 cotton, 29 flax, 43 silk, 53 wool, -37 Finishes, 139 Finishing skirt, 179 seams, 196 waist, 192 Finishing, woolens, 83 Fitting, 173, 193 sleeves, 190 waists, 190 Flax, 43 fiberai 47 hackling, 44, 47 Flocks, 83 Folding garments, 220 French hem, 127 knots, 119 seam, 131 Fulling, 83 Fur, 40 Gathering, 11 1, 138 Gathers, whipped, 127 Gauging, 112 Gigging, 83 Gingham, 86 Grease spots, 122 Hand sewing, 107 Harmony in dress, 215 Harness, the, 70 Heddle, 17 Hemp, 50 Hem stitch, 118 Hems, 123 bias, 124 faced, 124 flannel, 127 French, 127 folding, 123 Hems, rolled, 126 Herringbone stitch, 116 Home dyeing. 80 Hook and eyes, 147 Hydroscopic moisture, 42 Jacquard loom, "70 Joining lace, 160 Jute, 50 Knit goods, 72 Lace, design of, 208 Laces, use of, 207 Laundering, 225 Lengthening garments, 226 Linen, 86 adulteration of, 87 characteristics of, 47 Lining, cutting, 188 Loading silk, 56 Looms, 17 Colonial, 19, 21, 22 development of, 19 diagram of, 23 fly shuttle, 26 four harness, hand, 21 Jacquard, 70 Japanese, 20 modem, 25, 69 Navajo, 18 Swedish hand, 24 Loop stitch, 1 16 Madder bleach, 78 Machine darning, 158 sewing, 162 Mending, 83, 225 Mitering embroidery, 158 Modern methods, 59 Mohair, 90 Mordant colors, 79 Muslin, 85 Nankin cotton, 34 Natural dyestuffs, 80 INDEX 243 Olona, 53 Ornament, 203 embroidery as, 204 fitness of, 209 flowers as, 205 of textiles, 212 Ornamental stitches, 108, 114 Ornamentation, errors in, 204 Outline stitch, 114 Overcasting, 114, 142 Oversewing, 113 Packing clothing, 220 Passementerie, 206 Patching, 149 Patterns, 171 altering, 173 cloth, 174 lengthening, 173 pinning, 176 placing, 176 selection of, 171 testing, 174 use of, 172 Picking, 59 Piled fabrics, 91 Plackets, 135 faced, 137 Plaids, 213 Plain material, 212 Plush, 77 Pressing, 201 board, 168, 201 wet, 202 Primitive methods, 3 Printing, 81 block, 81 machine, 81 warps, 82 ■ Ramie, 50 Raw silk, 56 Reed, 19 Reeling silk, 54 Repairing, 225 Retting flax, 45 Roving, 61 Running stitch, no Sateen weave, 79 Satin, 91 stitch, 121 Scouring agents, 41 Sea island cotton, 30 Seams, 128 beaded, 131 felled, 128 flannel, 135 French, 131 lapped, 133 slot, 131 Serges, 88 Seven -gored skirt, 172 Sewing, hand, 107 machine, 162 Sewing machines, 162 care of, 162 types of, 162 use of, 164 Shadow embroidery, 123 Sheep, 39 Shirt waists, cutting, 18: plan for making, 183 Shuttle, 19 Silk, 53 • artificial, 58 boiling off, 56 fiber, 53 loading, 56, 90 production, 53 raw, 56 twilled, 91 Silk, wash, 91 Silk worm, 54 Silks, 90 Singeing, 78 Skirt, 172 band, 179 244 TEXTILES AND CLOTHING Skirt binding, i8o braid, i8o making, 177 placket, 178 plan of making, 173 stiffening, 178 Sleeve making, 183 patterns, 194 Sleeves, cutting, 194, 195 finish of, 197 pressing, 198 putting in, 197 Slip-stitching, 125 Slot seams, 131 Speck dye, 83 Spindle, 6 whorl, 6 Spinning, 3, 59 primitive, 3 wheel, 12 with spindle, 6 Stains, 221 Stitches, 107 ornamental, 108, 114 plain, 107 Stockinet undergarments, 216 Stripes, 213 Stroking gathers, 1 1 1 Table linen, 87 Teazels, 83 Textile arts, origin of, 3 Textiles, 85, 212 design of. 212 list of, 96, 102 ornament of, 212 weaves, 72 Texture, 214 Trimming, 210 Tweeds, 88 Harris, 89 Twills, 74 Cassimere, 73, 75 uneven, 75 Tucked waist, 185 Tucking, 108 Tucks, 128 Unity in dress, 211 Upland cotton, 30 Velvet, 92 weave of, 77 Velveteen, 92 "Waists, 185 lined, 186 plan for making, 187 repairing, 227 tucked, 185 Wash silk, 91 Warping, 69 Weave, 72 diagrams, 73 plain, 73 basket, 76 double cloth, 77 rib, 76 sateen, 76 twill, 74 velvet, 77 Weaving. 14, 69 Wet pressing, 202 Wheel spinning, 12 Whipping stitch, 113 Whorl, spindle, 6 Widths of fabrics, 93 Wool 37 characteristics of, 37 fiber, 36 quality of, 38 scouring, 40 sorting, 40 value for clothing, 37 Woolens, 88 Worsteds, 88 Yokes, 200 Arn^o isvi H>vi"