Colour in woven design

253. Curls, Textiles of the Astrakhan Group.—“Curls” are a type of textile that belong, strictly speaking, to fabrics of the astrakhan and lambskin type. One of the objects here is to manufacture a fabric similar in appearance, texture, and general character to the original astrakhan. But at the same time, it is sought to acquire these effects by cheaper and more expeditious methods than are practised in making astrakhan, lambskin, and similar fabrics. The production of cheap, serviceable “curls” has led to the construction of spiral, curled, and knopped yarns—all threads which, when appropriately employed, impart a curly surface to the cloth.

254. Four Types of Curled Effects.—Curled effects may be classified under four heads:⁠—

(1) Those in which the effect is obtained by employing wires in weaving.

(2) Those in which the yarn is curled previous to weaving, and the flushes of weft thread cut after the piece leaves the loom.

(3) Curls due to the employment of yarns composed of two or more classes of materials. The curl in this case is developed in milling.

(4) Fabrics in which a curled thread is used in the weft.

The first and second classes of curls represent the original methods of gaining effects of this kind, while the third and fourth classes represent the modern principles of manufacture. Examination of the different classes will show that each possesses some advantages which the other lacks, and also that certain defects are characteristic of each process of production.

In the first species of curls—in which colour is introduced into the warp—are astrakhans, lambskins, and other classes of similar fabrics.

255. Curls obtained by Wires.—Curls obtained by the use of wires are fabrics containing two warps—one of which forms the foundation, and the other the curled effect of the texture. The ground warp is usually cotton, the curled warp mohair, and the weft woollen. The mohair yarn is submitted to a process of curling or crimping before weaving, so that when the threads are cut over the wires, in the actual manipulation of the fabric, the ends thus produced twist, twirl, and roll into all kinds of shapes. The larger the curl, the thicker and more curly the material used in its formation, and the deeper the wires inserted into the cloth during weaving. Fig. 233 will illustrate the principle on which the wires are employed and the part they play in the development of the curly appearance of such fabrics. In this sketch, which is a sectional drawing showing the interlacing of the threads and the position of the wires in a simple astrakhan prior to cutting, threads A represent the mohair warp, threads C the ground warp, b the picks or shoots of weft, and W the wires. It will be observed that there are several picks between each wire which interlace with threads C to form a texture, or foundation fabric, on to which a layer of curls, closely grouped together, is secured. There is a firm woven cloth in addition to the curled effect in all such structures; and it should be noticed that the more substantial this concealed portion of the foundation, the more durable the texture produced. An insecure ground texture should be prevented in the manufacture of all fabrics in which wires are employed. The picks b interweave with threads C on the plain principle, but not invariably so, as the three-end twill sometimes forms the plan of intersection for these yarns.

No less than five ground picks are inserted between each wire in the fabric sketched, forming a firm foundation for the wires. Another point secured, by having this number of ground shoots intervening the wires, is the production of a large curl, because the wires are not forced into close or absolute contact with each other.

256. Process of Weaving Curls produced by Wires.—The routine of the actual operation of weaving this style of curl may be briefly stated:—The proper number of ground picks b, having been interlaced with yarns C, one half of the mohair warp is elevated and wire 1 inserted; the same number of ground picks is again introduced into the warp C, and then the reverse half of the mohair warp raised and wire 2 inserted. This completes the process as far as the interlacing of the threads is concerned. One particular that has not been noticed is the mode of binding the curled warp to the texture; this is effected by depressing the mohair yarns both previous to, and after the insertion of the wires, crossing them of course with the picks b. After some five or six wires have been secured, as shown in the illustration, cutting takes place. This is done by the weaver running his knife down the grooved part of the wire, a process which divides the loops and liberates the threads, when their curling properties cause them to twist and curl so effectually together as to entirely cover the surface of the ground fabric on to which they have thus been fastly woven. The spiral condition into which the ends twist themselves on being liberated, is seen in Figs. 234 and 235, a section of an astrakhan fabric after cutting.

A feature in which this class of curls differs from others is that if two or more shades of yarn, and several depths of wires are used, one for each colour of curled warp, then, by a suitable arrangement in the design, an attractive combination of effects results.

257. Curls formed by the Weft in which the Warp is Cotton Threads.—This class of “curls,” which may be examined in detail, also includes fabrics of the astrakhan group. But here, instead of the curl being obtained in the warp, it is obtained in the weft yarn. In cloths of this order the warp is invariably cotton, while the weft is woollen and mohair—the wool being utilized in the construction of the ground of the texture, and the mohair in the formation of the curly effect.

The system of forming the curl by the warp offers larger scope for variety of pattern and texture, than when it is produced on the weft principle. In this instance, the cloth is simple in structure. It is possible, however, on this principle of intertexture, to have either a short or long curl. As in warp effects, the mohair yarn has to be curled or crimped prior to weaving by submitting it to a process of boiling, which may be continued for two or three hours, according to the quality of the yarn and the permanence with which it is sought to fix the curl.

258. The Weave of Weft Curls.—The weave of this type of fabric is arranged on a simple principle. It first admits of several mohair or flush picks being introduced into the warp, which are followed by a plain ground shoot. If the weave occupies, say twenty-four threads, each flushing pick might float over seventeen ends, and then form a plain interlacing with the remaining seven ends of the series. This process securely fastens the curl picks on to the ground of the fabric.

259. Structure of Weft-Curl Fabrics.—Fig. 236 is a section of the interlacing of the warp and weft yarns in this make of textile. Here dots a represent the ends of the warp threads; B, the mohair weft yarns or flushing picks; and c, the plain ground picks. The fabric is twofold in the weft and single in the warp. Picks lettered B are placed, in weaving, over the picks or shoots c, which produce, along with the ends lettered a, a foundation texture on to which shoots B may be fastened. The warp threads are thus made to interlace with both kinds of weft, producing, with the cotton or woollen weft c, a plain fabric, and, with the mohair picks B, a cloth in which the face is formed of long flushes of weft yarn.

Feather trimmings, Fig. 237, are made on this principle, only several widths, A, B, C, of the curl effect are formed in one width of the fabric. The mohair yarn to form the curl is crimped or curled before weaving. The floats in the texture vary in length, and extend from Series A to Series B, and from B to C In the illustration, the weft threads floating over such spaces have been severed and allowed to form the curl effect of which the trimming consists. Many methods of colouring are practised in the production of such fabrics, and also, as seen from the specimen D, special figuring due to the ordinary type of weaving.

260. Operation of Cutting after Weaving.—When the cloth leaves the loom there is no appearance of a curl effect, its under surface being nothing but a plain weave, and the face consisting of long floats of mohair yarn. To produce the curl these flushes require to be severed or cut, when the ends thus obtained twist and twirl into the spiral forms shown in Fig. 235. The cutting process is done as follows:—About two yards of cloth having been stretched tightly on a frame, the cutter inserts the fine point of the knife and guide under one of the row of long flushes formed by picks B, Fig. 236; the loops or flushes being arranged in rows, the knife can be made to travel very accurately under each row of loops to the end of the length of texture spread on the frame. As it is forced through this tunnel of loops, it severs the threads, and, as the yarns were curled or crimped previous to weaving, they immediately assume curly, spiral conditions.

By a slight modification of this principle of weaving it is possible to produce a large variety of patterns. One example of this class of effects is a pattern with a figured design (see D, Fig. 237), in which the pine pattern is developed in extra silk weft in addition to the curl effects. Mohair may be the material used for the curled figures and silk for the figuring.

261. Curls developed by Milling.—In the two classes of these fabrics already described, the curl effect is the result of preparing the yarn by subjecting it to a crimping process before using it as warp or weft in the composition of the cloths. Both types of curls considered are, moreover, submitted to a cutting operation, which, severing the loops or flushes of mohair yarns, results in the production of the curled characteristic of the textures. In the curled cloths produced in milling, the curl is not due to cutting one series of the yarns in the fabric, but to the more rapid shrinking of some threads in the texture than others, a process which develops loops on the surface of the piece. The curl in this instance is produced by the doubling of certain threads, and not by any curling and cutting operations the yarns may be subjected to either previous to, during, or after weaving.

262. Points of Dissimilarity in the Various Builds of Curled Textures.—If a fabric in which the curl is obtained in the warp and by the use of wires is dissected, it will be observed:—On removing, in the first place, to withdraw a curl thread it would be found to be divided into short lengths, each curl being a separate length. The entire series of curls might be removed and still a plain woven texture would remain intact; if, however, either the warp or weft of this foundation structure were disturbed, the whole fabric would be reduced to a group of loose ends.

Let a fabric in which the curl is formed by the weft yarn and developed by cutting, after the piece leaves the loom, be next analyzed. Here it is possible to remove the curls, as in the other fabric, and yet to retain a woven texture. The wide dissimilarity between this fabric and the warp curl is to be found in the fact that the various short lengths of mohair which form the mass of small curls, covering the texture, are in this case sections of picks of weft and not threads of warp.

Curl textures, which obtain the curly appearance in the milling machine (see Figs. 239, 241, and 243), are constructed on an entirely different principle of manufacture. To remove any thread or pick from this fabric, curl or otherwise, destroys the structure of the cloth. In this type of curl there is only one warp and one weft, the threads of which appear alternately on both sides of the piece. Either warp or weft may contain both woollen and mohair yarns, but still the cloths are constructed from single weaves.

263. Two kinds of Curls developed by Milling.—Curled fabrics of this group may be divided into two classes: (1) those in which the curl yarn is introduced into the warp; and (2) those in which it is employed in the weft. The warp thread which forms the curl is in some cases made of the noil resulting from combing mohair or alpaca, or the waste from the machines in making lustre worsted yarns. These materials possess exactly the curling properties that are requisite to the production of the effect characterizing this kind of curl. As to the weft thread, it is made chiefly of “extract” and similar materials.

264. Spiral Threads used for Warps.—The warp is composed of twist threads known as “spirals,” a name applied to them on account of their crimpy form. They derive their principal characteristic from the system on which they are prepared; thus one of the two threads utilized in their production is, during twisting, only slightly tensioned, while the other thread is highly tensioned. This arrangement causes the compound yarn resultant to be crimpy or spiral, and to possess an undulated, wavy appearance. When the piece is subjected to heat, soapy moisture, and the friction of the milling process, the thick, slack thread shrinks up into loops, or forms small buttons, or curls, on the surface of the cloth. The process of fulling these cloths is interesting. Previous to this operation the fabric possesses a level surface; for there is little indication in the cloth when it leaves the loom as to any curly or looped effect. This is entirely a subsequent development. As soon as the felting operation commences, this characteristic appears, the thick and soft threads of the twist yarns forming loops or curls which cover both sides of the fabric.

265. Variety of Patterns in Spiral-Warp Curls due to Colour.—Pattern or design in these goods is mainly due to colour combinations. As the weave is generally a four-end twill, there is facility for developing effects of this character with precision and clearness. Styles of a mixture, stripe, and check class are employed. One example of a mixture effect is as follows: Warp, two ends of maroon (spiral) and two ends of green (spiral); weft, all olive brown. The pattern thus obtained is intermingled in colouring, the warp threads giving indefinite and mellow patches of maroon and green, while the weft forms a solid and continued series of olive-brown twills.

266. Twist-Yarn Cotton-Warp Curl.—This is a backed fabric, the face or right side being formed of curled twists and the back or under side of woollen yarn. Diversity of pattern or style is, in this kind of curl, obtained by employing several colours or shades of twists. Amongst the twists which are largely used three or four may be mentioned, namely, black and white, black and steel grey, black and olive, and black and medium blue, the white, steel grey, olive, and medium blue forming the loops or curls of the respective threads.

267. Backed Weave for Curled Cloth.—A reference to Fig. 238, which is a standard example of the description of crossing employed in making this sort of curls, shows that in reality this curled texture is constructed on the backed weave principle, a system of intertexture which readily allows of the production of a thick cloth. The picks marked in ⊠’s represent the woollen yarns, or weft for the ground, and the picks marked in ◻’s form the weave for the curl effect, or the looped twist weft. On examining the former series of picks, it will be observed that they interlace weft cord with the warp threads. The face weave—marked in dots—is the eight-heald doeskin or sateen, a plan of crossing which not only permits the curled yarn to be flushed on the right side of the fabric, but attaches it to the woollen and cotton ground texture in a uniform and secure manner. While the curl yarn should not show on the back of the cloth, the woollen yarn should not be visible on the face.

Of course it will be understood that the character of the curly effect is dependent on the kind of twist weft employed; thus, should the yarn be of several colours and the loops on its surface large, a clear, bold curl will result; but should the loops be more of a knop than a curl, the pattern will be correspondingly indistinct.

268. Essential Characteristics of Cotton-Warp Curls due to Milling.—The cotton warp, which constitutes the foundation of the fabric, possesses no felting power, but the mohair yarn which forms the weft, though not possessing the same fulling quality as some classes of wools, yet when floated on the surface of a cloth of this character, felts to such an extent as to draw, or compress, the warp ends into closer contact with each other; and it is this contracting of the texture in the direction of the weft that produces the curly or looped appearance desired.

It must not be understood that because the curliness is entirely developed in fulling, the structure of the weave in no way affects the pattern obtained, for striped and other effects, can be woven by a proper modification in the arrangement of the design. A sketch of a curled stripe made on this principle is supplied in Fig. 239.

269. Examples in Designs for Cotton-Warp Curls.—The weave, Fig. 240, is technically called a plain rib, being so constructed as to flush the curl yarn on the face of the cloth, and yet produce a fast, plain woven texture underneath the floats. All designs for curls of this description are made on the principle illustrated in this weave, and also Fig. 243, it being of equal importance to secure a fast fabric as to float the mohair yarn on the face side of the texture.

Part A of the design forms the small curly effects drawn in Section 1 of Fig. 239, while part B gives the piping of curls represented in Section 2. When the odd picks—1, 3, 5, and 7—are woven into the warp they flush over the entire series of threads in A, but form a plain interlacing with the threads in Section B. On the other hand, when the even picks—2, 4, 6, and 8—are introduced into the warp, they flush over the threads in part B, but work plain with the threads in A. The woven result of this weave is, first, a striped pattern is formed on the upper side of the cloth, consisting of two distinct bands of curls; second, a firm cloth is produced, though the weft is flushed to such an extent on the upper surface as to conceal the cotton warp, for the picks which give the flushes for the curl in A, form a plain cloth under the picks which float over the threads B, while the picks yielding the curly appearance due to Section B of the design, at the same time form a plain texture underneath the shoots of weft which pass over threads A. So that on this principle, facility is afforded for a proper flushing of the weft yarns on to the upper side of the cloth, yet provision is made in the weave for the construction of an all but plain fabric to which the flushes of mohair that form the curl are securely attached.

Generally these textures are piece-dyed, but in such patterns as those given in Figs. 239, 241, and 243, some excellent styles may be obtained by using two colours of weft yarn, such as black and maroon, blue and olive, and black and white. In such combinations one shade would form the broad and the other the narrow stripe of curls.

In Fig. 241 a fabric is sketched in which the curls are distributed, without any apparent design; yet according to the weave—Fig. 242—there is really a twilled or diagonal distribution of the curls. Felting, however, destroys this characteristic.

A more irregular pattern is that in Fig. 243, produced in Fig. 244, being woven one pick of light, and one pick of dark yarn alternately. In this way, varied colourings and forms of designs are obtainable in these structures.