for textile purposes. Thus, the small figures composed of the tints,
as arranged in one of the conventionalized leaves of this design,
may be grouped on a sateen system in a style for fancy vestings. It
is suggestive in other ways. Ideas for cotton stripes or checks of a
flannelette class may, for example, be obtained from it. Stripes of the
blue shades here given, placed on a white ground, and brightened with a
few threads of the orange hue, would form harmonious colouring. Again,
a fabric of a dress-stuff description, in which the same arrangement
of tints is observed, but the colours softened or tempered with black,
could be appropriately coloured on this system. In such an instance
scarlet would be replaced by dark brown (Shade I, Plate IV.); orange by
reddish olive (Shade 9, Plate VI.); medium green by deep green (Shade
2, Plate VI.); pale green by toned green (Shade 3, Plate VI.); blue by
dark blue (Shade 7, Plate IV.); and pale blue by toned blue (Shade
9, Plate IV.). It is evident from this group of shades that such a
brilliant blend of hues as that composing the design given in No. 3,
Plate VIII., may be turned to useful account; for in this instance it
has been made to form the base of a new scheme of combining a number
of dark colours adapted to a dress-stuff style. Of course it will
be noticed that the modified colours are related in hue to the pure
colours of the specimen of colour contrast considered; hence it follows
that if the original colouring is characterized by balance of tone and
harmony, the resultant blend of shades must possess similar qualities
mellowed and tempered in intensity.
One further thought on this plan of colour-mingling should be alluded
to. In the foregoing example in shade-deduction from a combination
of bright hues, dark colours have been employed; but it is equally
feasible to appropriate tints as follows: rose (Tint 6, Plate IV.)
for scarlet; pinkish orange (Tint 11, Plate VI.) for orange; pale
blue (Tint 11, Plate IV.) for blue; lavender (Tint 10, Plate IV.) for
light blue; pale green (Tint 5, Plate VI.) for green; and very pale
green (Tint 4, Plate VI.) for light green. This series of tints, when
associated with suitable quantities of white, might be applied to
textiles with satisfactory results, more especially if the system of
grouping given in No. 3, Plate VIII., were adopted. Illustrations,
based on this interesting specimen of colour amalgamation, have been
multiplied because they indicate how useful “hints” in harmonious
colouring may be gleaned from an apparently extravagant though elegant
arrangement of hues.
[Illustration:
Plate VIII
EXAMPLES IN COLOUR CONTRASTS
1, 2. Stripes. 3. Figuring in Bright Colours.]
40. _Mono-chromatic or Analogous Contrasts._--This kind of colour
contrast is extensively applied to all classes of decorative work.
Nature abounds with suggestive illustrations of the principles of
these colourings, a few of which may be described. Amongst flowers and
plant forms which exhibit contrasts in reddish hues, the rose and stem
of a forced rhubarb are particularly good. Take the rose first. What
a beautiful delicate series of red tints it contains, and how mellow
and rich are its finely gradated tones! There is an entire absence of
harshness or even tendency to hardness of tinting in its colour
composition. Ruskin, writing on gradation of hues, observes: “The
victorious beauty of the rose as compared with other flowers depends
wholly on the delicacy and quantity of its colour-gradations, all other
flowers being either less rich in gradation, not having so many folds
of leaf, or less tender, being patched and veined instead of flushed.”
A stem of rhubarb also contains an infinite variety of gradations of
crimson. At the base, it commences with a saturated crimson which
alters in intensity to a palish pink. Not only are examples in red
contrasts discovered in natural forms, but also shadings and tintings
of green, blue, and brown. In the flimsy, delicate petals of the
harebell several gradations of blue occur, running from a deep to a
palish tint. For browns, the foliage of autumn only need be referred
to. The leaves teem with diversity of shade, yet all the colours are of
a brownish cast, varying from bright tan to rich russet. Some species
of sandstone and pebbles exhibit useful gradations of fawn, such as
cool and warm colours, especially suitable for application to textile
patterns.
The chief characteristics of graduated contrasts--which compose a large
variety of colourings in decorative design--are softness and mellowness
of toning, combined with lustre and force of effect. Compared with
hue contrasts, they may lack strength and precision of emphasis, but
they possess a soft, saturated fulness which makes them useful in the
production of fancy textures.
41. _Toned and Tinted Contrasts._--Mono-chromatic compositions may be
considered under two varieties, namely, Toned and Tinted Contrasts. The
former comprise all associations of shades in which the colours have
been toned or darkened by admixture with black; while the latter are
composed solely of colours which have been tinted with white. These
contrasts comprise the most valuable assortments of colours seen in
fabrics produced for wearing purposes. Their quiet and mellow toning
makes them of great utility in textile designing. Probably the largest
proportion of fancy textures manufactured for men’s wear, results from
this sort of colour composition.
Illustrations in this type of colouring deserve to be carefully
considered. The first example which will be alluded to is on Plate
IX., No. 1. It is a toned contrast, being a mixture of the three
browns, Shades 1, 2, and 3 on Plate IV. The style is suitable for
either woollen or worsted materials, and is of a check description. The
mode of sketching shows the effect due to the simple twilled weave used
in its construction, as well as the peculiar form of check resulting
from the plan of blending the shades. But it is the colour element of
this fabric, with its gradated contrasts, that is at this stage most
important. The three shades of brown have been combined thus in both
warp and weft: 8 threads of dark brown, 8 threads of medium brown, 8
threads of light brown, and 8 threads of medium brown. The medium shade
thus alternates with the dark and light colours, maintaining one depth
of contrast throughout the pattern. Blues (Shades 7, 8, and 9, Plate
IV.), greens (Shades 1, 2. and 3, Plate VI.), or olives (Shades 7, 8,
and 9, Plate VI.) might have been selected with similar results as the
browns of this illustration. Three greys would also have shown the
principle of this type of contrast, for compositions of dark, medium,
and light greys form an endless diversity of textile patterns. But to
return to this brown example. The contrast is of a mellow kind. There
is no marked distinction between the shades, the three composing a
softly-toned coloured effect. This characteristic of the style is of
course attributable to the several shades being derivatives of the same
hue--the red element predominating in each. Whatever kind of shaded or
tinted contrasts are considered, they are characterized by the same
tone of colouring seen in this pattern.
In order to show the precise nature of this class of contrast in tints
instead of shades, another illustration is that in No. 2 on Plate IX.,
composed in this instance of three lilac tints similar to those given
in Nos. 16, 17, and 18, on Plate VI. Again, the plan of the weave of
the fabric is cassimere twill, but the system of colouring has been
diversified; thus, it consists of 16 threads of the deep tint, 8
threads of the medium tint, 16 threads of the light tint, and 8 threads
of the medium tint. While this arrangement forms a somewhat more varied
style than the preceding method of combination, the tints of which it
is composed are distributed in equal quantities, producing a uniform
colouring. Its quality of mellowness is even more pronounced than that
of No. 1. Being a light pattern, it possesses a unique delicacy of
toning. This applies to all compositions of tints, which, when properly
graduated, constitute the most mellow type of colouring producible.
These illustrations in Toned and Tinted Contrasts are typical of the
general effects obtainable by combining colours of the same hue but
of different degrees of lightness and shade; they show that while
effective compositions may be acquired with shades or tints, yet they
are usually deficient in that force of contrast characterizing patterns
containing a variety of hues.
42. _Comparison of Contrasts by Shade and Contrasts by
Colour._--Relatively considered, contrasts in several colours are
more definite and brilliant than contrasts in shades or tints; hence
the former are applied to all classes of decorative fabrics, while
the latter constitute the bulk of the colouring in textures made for
wearing purposes. Of course, both systems of colouring largely overlap
each other, making it impossible to limit the classes of fabrics in
which each finds expression; still, in the general run of styles,
tempered colours are the most appropriate for the ground or foundation
of wearable textures; while, on the other hand, bright and positive
colours impart the most telling precision to ornamental forms. Hence it
may be affirmed to be a common law in textile colouring, that shades
and tints compose a large proportion of styles intended for garments,
whereas the special province of hue contrasts is in the development of
figured designs. Tartan checks or plaids (see Plates V. and X.) are
amongst the principal exceptions to this rule.
43. _Shaded and Tinted Compositions._--These may either result from the
use of one or more colours. First, suppose an instance in which blue
shades are combined with blue tints, or in which the same hue prevails
throughout the whole of the colouring. Thus, take the three shades
given in Nos. 7, 8, and 9, and combine them to form a striped pattern
with the three tints, Nos. 10, 11, and 12, on Plate IV. Providing they
are arranged in the order here mapped out, they would constitute a
perfectly toned shade of blue. The gradations would run from a deep
shade to a light tint, or from an extreme dark to an extreme light
blue. An idea of how shaded patterns are arrived at in woven textures,
in one hue of colour, may be gleaned from this example, for it is
evident from the elements of its arrangement that a shaded effect may
be produced in all kinds of hues, such as brown, olive, and green, if
they are capable of yielding a sufficient diversity of toning.
But, in addition to this method of associating tints and shades,
these colour derivatives are also combined in distinct hues, forming
a varied assortment of colourings. A ground pattern, for example,
consists solely of an arrangement of shades; but, in order to give
brightness to the style, a few fancy threads of tints derived from
other hues--possibly of opposite, or may be of complementary, qualities
to those from which the shades have originated--may be called into
requisition. This principle of colouring may be clearly demonstrated
by referring to the brown check pattern given in No. 1, Plate IX. To
impart a degree of freshness to this design, blue tinted threads might
be employed, say about two between each shade. Exactly the same tint
should not be introduced between the checks of the several shades.
For the darkest shade the deepest tint should be used, for the medium
shade the medium tint, and for the light shade the light tint; in
other terms, whatever the nature of the shade, a corresponding tint is
requisite. Balance of colouring and of contrast is only attainable by
strict adherence to this rule. If the same tint were used for all the
shades, it would appear stronger and more pronounced in some sections
of the pattern than others. The blue tint which produces exactly the
desired contrast when associated with the light brown of this pattern,
would have a very different effect if placed on the dark brown: so
that in applying tints to a good blend of shades, or shades to a good
blend of tints, to secure diversity and freshness of pattern, combined
with uniformity of contrast, care must be exercised in the selection
and appropriation of these fancy or brightening elements, otherwise
they are likely to prove more or less effective in some instances than
calculated, and to destroy the harmony of the whole colouring.
[Illustration:
Plate IX
MONO-CHROMATIC CONTRASTS
1. Contrasts in Tones
2. Contrasts in Tints]
The methods of acquiring Colour Contrasts by combining tints and shades
may be summarized as below: I. Compositions of several Shades or
Tones of the same Hue;[9] II. Compositions of several Tints of the same
Hue;[9] III. Compositions of Shades of different Hues; IV. Compositions
of Tints of different Hues; V. Compositions of Shades and Tints of the
same Hue; and VI. Compositions of Shades and Tints of different Hues.
44. _Bright Colour Contrasts Modified with Black and White._--Some
elaborate check patterns for dress and other materials consist of
bright colours. An example of this type of contrast is supplied on
Plate X. The colouring is harmonious and choice; showing that the most
potent colours may be used in textiles with satisfactory results.
However this pattern is examined, it is lustrous and rich in
composition. Possibly the black and white introduced into the texture
mellow and soften the general colouring, for they undoubtedly subdue
the strength of the contrast arising from three such positive hues
being in immediate affinity with each other. It is already understood
that these shades are of great utility as mellowing agents when
combined with bright colours. They prevent the sharp contrast which
sometimes ensues when several lustrous hues are in close proximity
with each other. Blue and red in certain forms constitute a harmful
contrast, the two producing anything but delicate harmony. Vigorous as
the contrast is, in this instance it is not harsh or defective. There
are several elements which are conducive to its harmony. First, there
are the black and white threads just alluded to; second, the quantities
in which the several colours are associated; and third, the peculiar
effect due to the plan of interlacing the warp and weft threads in the
construction of the texture. Weaving largely multiplies the effects due
to a combination of colours, as is instanced by this pattern, which,
though only comprising four distinct colours, and white and black,
contains many varieties of colouring. These result from the different
colours crossing and blending with each other in the formation of the
check. At intervals, the scarlet weft covers the scarlet, blue, green,
yellow, white and black warp yarns, producing a specific effect in
every transition. Analysis shows the various effects to comprise solid
checks of red, green, blue, yellow, black, and white; and mingled
checks of the following shade couplets: blue and red; yellow and red;
green and red; blue and yellow; blue and black; blue and white; red and
black; red and white; yellow and black; yellow and white; and black
and white. What a variety of lessons in colouring such a woven sample
teaches! The black and white on the red adds mellowness to this bright
colour, in addition to giving diversity of effect. The white in other
sections in contiguity with the medium green, and crossing the yellow,
has a like toning quality. The black against the yellow enhances its
brightness, but in juxtaposition with the blue forms a soft shading,
the latter making a clear definition of colour with the shaded green
effect to which it is adjacent.
The quantities or proportions in which these colours are distributed
in the pattern should be observed. Any increase or even variation in
the quantities of each colour would produce a different harmony of
composition. Regard must, therefore, be paid to the nature and potency
of colours in determining their scheme of association in textile design.
45. _Successive and Simultaneous Colour Effects._--In the above
pattern, both successive and simultaneous contrasts are found. A
simultaneous contrast is a blend or group of colours in which the
several hues are in proximity. The intermingled checks of red and blue,
yellow and blue, etc., are all illustrative of this type of contrast.
In successive contrasts, there may be the same colours, but instead of
being in juxtaposition they are separated; and, consequently, do not
act in perfect unison on the eye, but each independently.
Comparison of the results of these contrasts shows, that colours
suffer the most in lustre and purity of hue when in “simultaneous”
association. Several examples of this kind occur in the pattern
given. For instance, in those sections in which the red and green are
intermingled in equal proportions, both colours undergo an apparent
change in hue. In reality, it is simply the fundamental law of all
colour contrasts asserting its influence on the colouring as a whole,
whereby each hue is modified.
Amongst some of the most salient principles of textile colouring
emphasized by this design that should be specially noticed, are
these: Colours are modified the most largely in hue when in actual
contact; the stronger two or more colours, the less are they changed
by simultaneous contrast; bright colours on a dark ground increase
in luminosity, but are impoverished if applied to light grounds; and
lastly, that intense colours gain in saturation on light grounds, but
suffer in this quality on medium and dark surfaces.
46. _Methods of Neutralizing the Effects of Strong Colour
Contrasts._--It has been pointed out that when any positive colours
are in immediate proximity, each suffers somewhat in purity of hue. To
obviate, or partially neutralize, this sequence of colour association,
some ingenious methods and technical devices are adopted. As already
explained, colours change the most in hue by juxtaposition, so that
the object to be attained is to separate them without bringing the
divisional lines into prominence. It is not always feasible, in figured
and fancy fabrics, to have the colours detached; they frequently
intermingle, and it is at the points of actual contact where the
skill of the colourist in obviating a defective contrast, due to the
proximity of two or more brilliant hues, is exercised. No. 1, Plate
XI., illustrates this feature of colouring. This pattern is composed
of red and blue, and contains small quantities of a third hue which
are of value to the harmony and contrast of the design. If the red had
been allowed to actually touch the blue ground, the figuring would have
lacked precision, and the colouring congruity of toning. Moreover,
as green is the contrasting colour of scarlet, it has developed the
figuring, and mellowed the effect of red on this deep blue ground.
Minus this intermediate colour, the contrast would have been harsh, if
not defective; but by its employment richness has been given to the red
and softness of tone to the blue. Let it be supposed that red and blue
were substituted in succession by green and tan (Shades 6, Plate VI.,
and 3, Plate IV.); by olive and rose (Shade 15, and Tint 5, Plate IV.);
and by lilac and primrose (Tint 16, Plate VI., and Tint 16, Plate IV.).
Tan, rose, and primrose to compose the figuring, and green, olive,
and lilac the ground in the new colourings. Now, in order to prevent
impingement of hues, divisional colours to take the place of the green
in the illustration should be selected, which, while contrasting with
the several hues employed for the figuring, should also harmonize with
the ground colours. For the first couplet, the pale blue (Tint 10,
Plate IV.) may be used; for the olive and rose combination, pea-green
(Tint 4, Plate VI.); while for the lilac and rose blend, the salmon in
Tint 11, Plate VI., will be found useful. In each of these instances
there is harmony and contrast of colours, which would prominently
develop the figured sections of the design. To show these results,
paint two pieces of paper similar in hue to Shades 6, Plate VI., and
3, Plate IV. Having done this, place the tan sample--which should be
smaller than its companion--on the green slip, and then surround it
with a narrow slip of rose, Tint 4 of Plate IV. On adding this last
colour, a tasteful contrast will be formed by the green spot and the
rose edging; and also soft, mellow harmony produced by this tint
and the tan groundwork. Should each of the colourings alluded to be
similarly experimented with, they would constitute equally pleasing
combinations. As important principles underlie this kind of colour
arrangement, it is advisable that numerous experiments o£ this class
should be made by the reader; for, in order to educate the eye for
colour contrast and harmony, practice in the combination of hues is
essential.
47. _Harmony._--Some colourists have propounded theories of harmony
which are quite untenable in practice. For example, one scheme is
based on the supposition that if the primaries are blended in the
proportions of 3 parts of red, 5 parts of yellow, and 8 parts of
blue, harmony of composition ensues. There can be no doubt that the
ratio of quantities materially affects the congruity of tone of all
shade assortments; but in designing it is not feasible to work to any
set of proportions. Colour harmonies are not to be acquired by rigid
adherence to a mathematical system of arrangement. Theories of this
kind cannot be said to be of much technical value. Acute and cultured
discriminative power for colour is of more consequence in this art than
theoretical directions; the acquirement of what Rood calls “a delicate
colour emphasis” is difficult even when there is natural aptitude for
colouring. Systematic study of the works of designers of acknowledged
capacity, and of all accessible rare and well-coloured woven specimens
in harmony of tinting, should be made. Adopting this course, the
student will acquire a ready capacity for blending hues by such
methods, as to compose choice and harmonious results.
[Illustration:
Plate X
SPECIMEN OF BRIGHT COLOURING IN PLAIDS]
48. _Principles of Harmony._--Though Colour Harmony is intricate, and
more or less incapable of being reduced to rigid principles, yet its
general qualities may be clearly defined. For instance, certain colours
when amalgamated fail to produce congruous patterns; whereas other
colours invariably constitute harmonious compositions.
Harmony, moreover, is only attainable when the several colours are
combined in such proportionate quantities, and on such principles
of shade-association, that each hue employed will conduce to the
mellowness of the whole pattern. Should any colour be conspicuous, it
is sufficient to detract from the harmony of the entire colouring.
Balance of hues is an important essential; and it is generally a
feature dependent on the proportions in which the several colours are
combined. Examine, for example, the blue-green and scarlet check on
Plate XI., No. 2. Red is so much more potent than green, that when
these two hues are associated in the same pattern, the former requires
to be used less extensively than the latter. The common rule is that
those colours which are the intensest and strongest in hue should be
sparingly employed. When the various shades are of equal depth, the
quantities may be more uniform, being only varied to such an extent as
to impart precision to the leading features of the design.
Apart from hints that may be given in harmonious colouring, and
knowledge that may be acquired by study and experiment in blending
hues, in order to excel in this art the designer must possess natural
aptitude for the work.
FOOTNOTES:
[8] Chevreul: _The Laws of Contrast of Colour_, p. 120.
[9] _Analogous Colours._
CHAPTER IV.
COLOUR STANDARDIZATION.
49. Objects of Standardization in Colouring--50. Systems
of Colour Standardization--51. Standardization by Selected
Colours--52. Analysis of Standardization Scheme, Plate
XII.--53. Use of Standards in Blending--54. Applications of
the Scheme.
49. _Objects of Standardization in Colouring._--There are several
difficulties in formulating a scheme of colour standardization
applicable to any particular branch of woven design. This arises,
firstly, from the tone of colouring which obtains in decorative, dress,
suiting, and other fabrics. The manufacturer of each of these styles of
textures should select standards of different degrees of brightness.
In the second place, the colourist must have free scope--he should not
on any account be fettered--in his work. Standardization may appear
to impose restrictions. But on considering the several, branches of
textiles, it is obvious that certain elemental ranges of shades are
mainly used in the several departments of woven manufactures, as,
for example, in fabrics for men’s wear, women’s wear, decorative and
other purposes. This not only suggests the possibility, but renders
it feasible--without placing limitation upon the originative faculty
of the designer--of adopting in practice a standard set or series
of selected colours from which other shades may, by the process of
blending, be acquired.
This may be done with the object of (1) economy of colour production,
a limited set of colours yielding an unlimited set of distinct shades;
(2) the substitution of uncertainty of “colour” or “shade” due to
independent dyeings, by certainty of result due to mixing; and (3) the
manufacture of yarns by blending from a set of fixed colours which may
be stocked, producing new shades as varied and solid in appearance as
those obtainable in dyeing.
In the ordinary method of obtaining new shades by blending, there is an
absence of a scale of fixed colours; neither in the blending is there a
base of proportions, nor in the colours combined a standard scheme of
colour gradation. But in standardization there is a distinct range of
colours, each of which is toned or graded to the same degree.
50. _Systems of Colour Standardization._--There are two systems
on which Colour Standardization may be effected, namely, (1) the
primaries, secondaries, and tertiaries may be adopted as the initial
colours; and (2) a series of initial colours may be determined upon,
each colour being graded from light to dark, and forming a number of
intermediate shades between the two extremes.
Defining the first system, the Primary and Secondary colours have each
three distinctive hues, that is, the pure or spectrum hue, and the two
obtained by modification.
Red, tinged with blue, forms crimson.
Red, tinged with yellow, „ scarlet.
Yellow, tinged with red, becomes slightly orange in tone.
Yellow, tinged with blue, becomes slightly green in tone.
Blue, tinged with red, becomes slightly purple in tone.
Blue, tinged with yellow, becomes slightly green in tone.
thus changing the hue, but to such a small degree that the original
colour predominates.
The Secondaries and Tertiaries are subjective to similar changes
without eliminating the definite or spectrum colour.[10]
On this principle, eighteen base colours are obtained, all of which,
by the addition of white in variable quantities, may form a series of
tints, and by the addition of black, a series of tones; or they may be
softened in brilliancy by the addition of neutral grey.
In such a scheme, it would probably only be found desirable to modify
the Tertiaries by mixing with black and white respectively.
The question of the brilliance of the initial colours is one that has
to be fixed according to the application of the scheme. To mix pure
white with the colours described would give, in many instances, useful
tints for the dress and decorative trades, and also, if mixed with
black, suitable tones for the same fabrics; but for ordinary textile
purposes the pure elemental colours are too bright. These would require
to be dulled or subdued by adding neutral grey to a definite scale of
gradation.
51. _Standardization by Selected Colours._--The second method of
Standardization consists, as stated, in selecting a series of
recognized workable colours and graduating them to six or more degrees.
The principal colours are blue, green, and brown, with the addition
of blue green, olive, and heliotrope, or colours which, with their
gradations, are generally found most appropriate in fabrics for wearing
purposes. (See series A to J, Plate XII.)
Having fixed upon the initial colour in each set, the question of
toning or gradation is all-important. A uniform scale of gradation must
be adhered to in each group. If this is departed from, mixing would
result in a want of balance of gradation.
The base for the standard series of tones and tints are neutral greys
(see Plate XII.). Here the mixing of black and white may be made to
give ten or twelve or more tones with similar degrees of difference. A
scheme of gradation formed in this way is, applicable to any type of
blend composed of a dark and a light shade, corresponding to black and
white in the grey. Between the two extreme colours, several shades may
be introduced, and yet uniform toning maintained; for whichever series
of colours is selected, it will be seen that the movement from a dark
shade to a lighter, in any part of the series, is correct as to depth
and tone. This must be an absolute law in mixing the same number of
colours in any series, or any group, providing that the scale of tones
has been accurately produced in each kind of colour.
52. _Analysis of Standardization Scheme, Plate XII._--The chart
contains in specimens 1 to 6, series A to J, the simple or dyed colours
which have been selected as the base or scale standards. These are
varied in two ways, the specimens 7 and 8 being tinted with white, and
9 and 10 toned with black in the following proportions:--
Tint No. 7, 5 per cent., Standard No. 1.
95 „ White.
Tint No. 8, 60 „ Standard No. 1.
40 „ White.
Tone No. 9, 40 „ Standard No. 6.
60 „ Black.
Tone No. 10, 5 „ Standard No. 6.
95 „ Black.
These tints and tones could be carried out to six in each, when
suitable proportions would be as follows:--
Tints ⎧Colour 5 20 40 60 80 95
⎩White 95 80 60 40 20 5
Tones ⎧Colour 95 80 60 40 20 5
⎩Black 5 20 40 60 80 95
In the second method, the colours are blended crossways in equal
proportions. No. 1, Series A, and No. 1, Series B, give No. 1, X_a_,
X_b_, etc. Similarly, No. 1, Series B, and No. 1, Series C, equal No.
1, X_b_, so that whether blending shades in each series, 1 A, 2 A,
etc., or blending two shades in adjacent series, 1 A, 1 B, etc., that
is two shades of the same colour in the former, and two shades of
contiguous colours in the latter, for practical purposes, solid shades
would be acquired.
The chromatic scale is compiled as follows:--
A. Blue.
B. Green blue.
C. Blue green.
D. Green.
E. Yellow green.
F. Yellow brown.
G. Brown.
H. Red brown.
I. Purple.
J. Red blue.
It will be observed that there is no such decided change in hue or tone
between any two adjacent colours as to produce, when mingled in equal
quantities, an apparent mixture. This is an important elemental feature
of any scheme of Colour Standardization--the several colours must be
accurately graded. If, for example, any two shades are too far apart
in the chromatic scale, the blending of them would produce a mixture
effect. In other words, if the difference in tone or the difference in
hue is pronounced, mixtures and not solid shades are formed.
53. _Use of Standards in Blending._--In both the Woollen and Worsted
trades, blending is an important department of yarn manufacture. Solid
shades are obtainable in piece-dyes, but mixtures have to be acquired
by the blending of coloured materials. The designer and colourist has
resource to the combination of colour units in the blending of fibres
in the production of shades and mixtures possessing novelty of tone. In
this task he has two considerations: (1) the choice of the separate or
distinct colours which, prior to blending, must form, in juxtaposition,
harmony and contrast; and (2) the proportionate quantities in which
they are to be combined. The latter, as every colourist has proved,
may destroy the value of the former. Much of the success of colouring,
whether in the material or the yarn, depends upon the relative weight,
intensity, and proportions in which the colours are united. Now,
when a scheme of standardization has been formed, and is used, the
proportionate parts or quantities are according to a fixed mathematical
scale, but the discovery of the correct colours to blend according to
any series of these proportions is left to the trained faculty of the
designer or expert, who must have regard to the fabrics and style of
design to which they are to be applied.
The proportionate scale which is used does not affect the latitude
for the exercise of the faculty for colour combination, but rather
presents conditions which are so varied and yet definable, as to give
a certainty of result as to depth and nature of colouring due to the
process of blending.
There are two great principles on which the art of Colour Blending in
the raw materials is accomplished, namely--
(1) The origination of blends or mixtures in which tone gradation
is practised.
(2) The origination of mixtures composed of several Colours to
produce different hues or shades, but these to be of the same
weight or tone.
In both, it is a problem of how the colour modification is to be
attained. From the explanation given, it is obvious that in the first
principle of blending, a fixed scale of proportions may be practised,
so that the real essence of the work consists in selecting colours
which harmonize with each other and coincide with the proportions
adopted; or, in other words, the relative contrasts of colour must
be in accordance with the relative proportions. That is to say, if a
bright colour, though harmonizing with other colours in the mixture,
is used in too large a measure, the mixture will be unsatisfactory.
[Illustration:
Plate XI
RED, GREEN AND BLUE COLOURING
1. Figured Pattern
2. Check „ ]
54. _Applications of the Scheme._--In this scheme there is ample scope
for the colouring of many classes of woven fabrics. Bright or brilliant
hues would be added as required. The scheme is, however, sufficiently
complete for the ordinary styles of woollen, worsted, and other classes
of fabrics. For costumes, vestings, cottons, and silks, richer colours
would be desirable. If, for example, the principle of colouring was in
relation to cottons and silks, then the “tints” of the standards would
be found chiefly applicable, white and light grounds being mainly used;
on the other hand, for fabrics with dark or medium grounds, the “tones”
of the standards would be selected.
This standard scheme of colours, systematically toned, forms a
practical workable base of colouring, one which, in the first place,
in the use of the pure colours, makes it feasible, in the production
of patterns, to obtain (_a_) ranges in which the contrast of colour in
each pattern is absolutely uniform, and (_b_) ranges in which there may
be perfect gradation from the dark to a light shade, and yet the same
quality of contrast of colour in each pattern in the range.
In the second place, the scheme provides, by the mixture with black,
grey, and white in succession, a means of acquiring a wide range of
mixtures, each series of which runs by natural and constant degrees
from a comparatively light to a dark result.
Third, it is possible by this system, in blending two or more colours,
to acquire (_a_) graded series of mixtures of exactly corresponding
depths of tone; and (_b_) varieties of mixtures in light, medium, and
dark shades of similar depth of tone, but of different hues.
And lastly, the system is applicable to the production of distinct
colours, such as would possess similar qualities to colours dyed in the
wool, yarn, or piece.
FOOTNOTES:
[10] See also Pars. 8 and 9.
CHAPTER V.
MIXTURES.
55. Varieties of Mixture Patterns--56. Elements of Mixture
Colouring--57. Importance of Pure Materials--58. Several
Classes of Mixtures Compared--59. Simple Blends--60.
Blends of Wools and Pigments Compared--61. Modes of
Testing Compositions of Colours--62. Mixtures composed of
Two Shades--63. Compounds of Two Colours in which White
is used--64. Illustrations in Mixtures composed of White
and a Second Colour--65. Mixtures composed of Black and
another Colour--66. Grey Mixtures--67. Bloomed Greys--68.
Coloured Greys--69. Two-Coloured Mixtures--70. Multi-Shade
Mixtures--71. Twist-Yarn Mixtures--72. Marls--73. Weave
Mixtures.
55. _Varieties of Mixture Patterns._--There are five methods of
making mixture patterns, namely, (_a_) by carding several colours
of fibrous materials together, producing _mixture woollen_ yarns;
(_b_) by combining in the process of _drawing_ two or more slivers
of different colours, producing _mixture worsted_ yarns; (_c_) by
combining in the process of _roving_ two or more slivers of different
colours, producing “_marl_” _worsted_ yarns; (_d_) by using fancy
yarns; and (_e_) by mixing two or more classes of threads in the
weaving process. Each system is extensively practised; but the most
intermingled effects ensue from blending the various coloured elements
in the fibrous form. This system of producing mixtures yields a yarn in
which the separate particles of colour, however diverse, are uniformly
distributed throughout its length. Carding affords every facility
for obtaining a softly toned blend, or one in which the filaments of
distinct colours are perfectly mixed and intermingled. The shades are,
as it were, united in this instance in the powdered or most minute
particled form possible in textile compositions; whereas the methods
of combining twist yarns, and of weaving shades of distinct colours
together to compose mixture effects, consist of blending comparatively
larger particles of colours. Perfect promiscuity, as a consequence,
characterizes mixtures produced in the willowing and carding processes.
These compositions are also distinguished by softness and mellowness of
tone, entirely foreign to corresponding effects got by other methods.
So completely are the elements associated on this system, that if
blue and yellow wools were compounded they would constitute a green
mixture, not so pure, however, as if pigments were amalgamated, for
reasons alluded to in the sequel, but still they form a suggestion of
this process of combination. If the same colours were united in the
yarn state, even in the form of twist threads, they would still appear
as separate hues; in other words, the yellow would remain yellow, and
the blue would remain blue. To borrow an illustration, these methods
of compounding fragments of colours in the manufacture of so-called
mixture patterns may be compared with chemical and mechanical mixtures
of substances; for just as in the former the bodies unite to compose
a third substance, and in the latter they are mixed but not changed,
so in blending colours in the fibre the mixing may be so complete as
to yield an additional shade, but in blending them in the thread each
hue retains its individuality. Twist-yarn mixtures possess a motley
appearance of a broader character than those of blends in the wool
or material, but still the richness of intermingling of tints is not
wanting. In self-coloured yarn patterns of a mixture class the patchy
character and detachment of individual colours are increased, while the
mellowness and toned softness of the composition are diminished.
56. _Elements of Mixture Colouring._--All mixtures require mellow
treatment as to colour constituents. Patterns of this order should not
be characterized by a patchy, but by a tinted appearance; every hue
employed should be useful in composing an indefinite series of minute
and closely mingled colour effects. To produce such styles no single
hue should be allowed to obtain greater distinction or more prominence
than other adjacent colours. Bright colours like red, crimson, blue,
and yellow, seldom require to be used in large quantities. Black
and white, browns, tans, medium blues, medium greens, olives, and
other toned and tinted colours, form the main colouring of mixture
compositions: the more potent hues find a province in enriching and
imparting lustre into these patterns.
The principal colours should generally be of a tempered type; still, it
is important to use bright and decided hues. Murky, dull, and insipid
shades should be avoided, as they are only capable of yielding dingy
effects. The fragmentary nature of mixture colourings largely affects
the lustre of the pattern resultant. Two colours which, when combined
in large quantities, may possess congruous attributes, on being broken
up into particles and intermingled lose lustre. In blending colours in
the natural state, the separate hues are distinguishable after carding,
for each, in the carded sliver, helps to constitute quite a new and
additional shade. If, for example, claret, fawn, and bright orange
wools, in quantities of four parts of claret and one part of fawn and
one part of the orange were scribbled together, neither the orange,
fawn, nor claret would in the resulting “blend” possess precisely its
original hue. Traces of each would be noticeable, but a species of
indefinite drabbish-brown mixture, streaked with filaments of orange,
would be the composition obtained.
57. _Importance of Pure Materials._--Bright and lustrous mixtures can
only be secured by using pure wools. Such colourings are not feasible
in the low materials used in making some classes of woven goods. Scotch
mixtures will always excel in brilliant tinting so long as fibres
of a mungo, shoddy, and extract class are rejected by manufacturers
north of the Tweed. Having a good foundation to work upon--a fibre
that will not only take a vivid colour but retain it--Scotch textures,
notably Bannockburn and heather mixtures, are unsurpassed in lustre
and mellowness of toning. Mixtures made in centres of the low woollen
industry are not comparable with them as regards freshness of
colouring. Of course, a passable imitation of the pure wool production
is made, but the fabric lacks not only bloom and fulness of colouring,
but quality and softness of handle. How is it feasible to get these
elements of good mixtures developed to the same degree in these
inferior articles, made of materials which in some instances have
been utilized time after time in made up garments, and as frequently
ground up or reduced to filaments, scribbled, spun into yarn, and
woven into a marketable fabric, as are obtainable in the genuine
woollen texture? If mixtures bright in colouring are to be acquired,
resource must be had to wools of a sound quality. Stress is laid upon
these points because they lie at the basis of good colouring in mixture
styles; and also on account of the necessarily futile attempts made by
some manufacturers to secure corresponding richness of composition in
a mungo, or partially mungo production, as characterizes an all-wool
article, which it is important to understand is totally impossible, for
the simple fact that the better the raw material, the more lustrous the
coloured effects secured.
[Illustration:
Plate XII. CHART Of SCHEME OF COLOUR STANDARDIZATION.
Originated and Compiled by the Author and Mr. Thomas Hollis]
58. _Several Classes of Mixtures Compared._--The diversity of mixtures,
acquired by blending several shades of fibres, is very large,
comprising an infinite range of light, medium, and dark effects, in
both woollen and worsted fabrics. There is, however, one quality
characteristic of every species of this type of mixtures, namely, a
rich, mottled aspect of colouring. Whether considered in the fibrous
state or in the woven fabric, this mingled but continuous poly-tinted
appearance is noticeable. Where the separate hues occur, and are lost
to view, or how numerous they are, it is only possible to determine
after careful examination. All the hues are scattered equally
throughout the mixture, hence the blend in every part possesses similar
qualities of bloom and diversity of tinting. These mixtures may be
distinguished from those obtained by other processes, by the manner in
which the various colourings are intermingled.
If a mixture fabric made on this system were compared, by analysis,
with one got by using twist yarns, or by threads of divers colours in
both warp and weft, some interesting results would be obtained. To
dissect a mixture fabric produced by “blending,” the yarns of which
the texture is composed would require to be reduced to the original
filaments. The proportions in which the colours are combined, are far
more difficult to arrive at than the nature of their hues. Having
by this method secured the exact colour elements, some data has
been discovered upon which to base experiments, which, if properly
conducted, will lead to the determination of the quantities in which
the colours have been combined in the production of the composition.
Ordinary twist-yarn mixtures do not offer so many difficulties to
the analyzer. First, as to their colour constitution: this is easy to
discover if the different kinds of threads are classified, which can be
done by unravelling the texture. Next, ascertain the colour composition
of each by untwining the twists or separating the threads used in their
construction. By adopting this system,of analysis, both the exact hue
of the colours and the quantities in which they have been combined may
be obtained. The reason why the routine of dissection is, in this case,
comparatively simple, is because the coloured factors of the fabric
may be feasibly separated, whereas in the preceding class of mixtures
the isolation of the various hues of the filaments employed is more
difficult to effect. To discover the composition of a mixture in which
self-coloured yarns have been used, it is only necessary to ascertain
the methods of warping and wefting, or the plan of combining the yarns
in the production of the fabric. Evidently, in these two last styles of
mixtures, exact analysis of the colourings, both as to quantities and
hues, is quite feasible, but in the first kind the proportions, as well
as the precise colours, are difficult to acquire.
59. _Simple Blends._--The most economical species of mixtures belonging
to this class is that obtained by combining any one colour with
white. Mixtures of this kind may be defined as tinted wools, for the
process of production exactly coincides with that of forming tints
with pigments. They differ, however, from the latter in appearance.
A tint obtained by mixing red with white, for example, constitutes
quite an even surface of pink; but mix white and red wools in similar
quantities, and something more than a rose compound is produced,
namely, a mottled, intermingled colouring, whether seen in the
material, yarn, or piece. Equal quantities of blue and white, green
and white, and orange and white wools, all form colourings streaked
with their composing hues. It will be evident that this class of colour
amalgamation opens up a wide field for investigation. First, there is
the range of colours with which white may be associated, comprising
both positive and tempered hues of a primary, secondary, and tertiary
character. Second, there is the considerable diversity of proportions
in which the elements forming the mixtures may be combined; for either
the white or colour may preponderate, or the two shades may be equally
mixed. In addition to these mixtures, which are of the most elementary
class, there are those resulting from blending black with other
colours, and from compounding materials of two or more colours. The two
former kinds are utilized in the manufacture of yarns for serge dress
textures, for which fabrics they are particularly well adapted. The
tints and shades on Plates IV. and VI. illustrate the results obtained
by this scheme of blending. In combining wools, however, or other
materials, though the same proportionate quantities of tinting and
toning elements were used as in forming these examples, still compounds
of a somewhat different character would ensue, arising from the colour
factors being of a fibrous character.
60. _Blends of Wools and Pigments Compared._--It is important that the
dissimilarity between wool and pigment mixtures should be thoroughly
understood; for it will be quite evident from the nature of these
substances that, though in each the same quantities of similar colours
were blended, yet the resulting compositions would be characterized
by many features of difference. To these reference will next be made.
When two or more shades of wools are amalgamated, each colour--however
well the materials are grouped and intermingled in scribbling, carding,
and spinning--retains its individuality of hue, which, of course, is
opposed to the law of pigment combinations, in which all traces of the
original colours, as separate hues, disappear by admixture. Still, when
fibrous materials are associated, a sort of new shade, streaked more or
less with its composing elements, is obtained. For example, a species
of bluish-fawn mixture would result from blending wools as follows:--
9 parts of dark brown. 6 parts of fawn.
4 „ „ pale blue. 4 „ „ green.
But while the resultant composition in this example might be designated
a kind of fawn, yet, if it should be closely examined, the brown, pale
blue, and green would be discovered, which give bloom and saturation
of tone to the whole shade. Providing the same elements were mixed
in pigments, they would yield quite a different result. In only one
particular would it correspond to its wool contemporary--it would be a
fawn shade; more murky and dingy, however, and scarcely recognizable
as being composed of exactly the same colours in like proportions.
When paints are mixed, all colours, as individual hues, are totally
obliterated, hence a shade is formed in this instance in which the
green and blue can hardly be distinguished, the brown and fawn with
which they are associated largely neutralizing their effect.
Of course their presence is perceivable, but not to the same degree as
in wool mixtures, for the simple reason that, whereas in this latter
instance, the fibres of blue and green are mixed and grouped with
those of brown and fawn, and the four colours in association form a
brownish-fawn mixture, tinted with each of its colour elements, in
the case of pigments the particles of various colourings entirely
disappear, and combine to constitute a perfectly new shade of somewhat
indescribable qualities. It follows that, in one sense, fibrous blends
of colours are more effective than those of pigments, for they not only
possess the nature of new shades, but the several hues of which they
are composed are kept unchanged, enhancing the beauty and intensity
of the whole combination. Each colour of filament remains, and is
traceable in the mixture as a separate hue, and thus a pleasing and
attractive compound is obtained; one, moreover, only producible by
blending different colours of fibrous materials. These effects are
alone seen in woven textures, and in that class of fabrics in which
the colours have been blended prior to weaving or in the carding
operations. Should twist yarns be employed instead of various hues
of fibres, a more patchy colouring results (see Pattern 2, Plate
VII.); one, indeed, in which the colour factors are more prominently
separated, and hence devoid of those qualities of neatness and softness
invariably associated with mixtures produced in the processes of
scribbling, carding, and spinning. Passing to mixtures got in the loom
by self-coloured yarns, a still further divergence from a one-shade
mixture, resulting from blending several colours, is obtained; for
here the several tints employed remain quite detached and distinct.
Undoubtedly, in woven fabrics, the most elegant style of mixture is
that secured by combining the colours in the material form, or in
mixing them in the production of the thread; which method produces
a promiscuous shade, tinted, freshened, and brightened with every
element of colour entering into its composition; and which constitutes,
moreover, quite an evenly-balanced colouring.
61. _Modes of Testing Compositions of Colours._--Two methods of testing
the effect of combining different shades may be practised. First, the
most handy system consists in mixing various colours of pigments.
Although it is barely possible to represent in this manner the precise
result any compound of shades would have in textile materials when
scribbled, carded, and spun into yarn, still a fairly accurate idea of
the tone and general aspect of a mixture of tints may thus be arrived
at. Tests of this kind also serve another purpose--they foster a
taste for colouring, and develop the faculty of judging the depth and
brilliance of the tone and tint of mixtures in general. This method of
testing new sets of colours for mixtures is important. The pigments
should be used in solution, which, for convenience, may be kept in
small bottles, so that, in mixing, the minutest quantities can be
readily and accurately measured off. When thus working with liquid
colours, in order to properly test any group of shades, a surface
should first be prepared of the principal colour in the mixture. Should
this be black, brown, or any other dark colour, it will be necessary to
mix the bright colours with white. After the body of the mixture--that
is, in this instance, the black or dark brown--has been obtained, the
whole should be completed by stippling on to it the other colours in
succession, care being exercised not to apply a new colour before
that previously used has become perfectly dry. Let an illustration be
considered. A mixture of colours which it is required to put through
this test is compounded thus:--
4 parts of black. 2 parts of medium green.
3 „ „ scarlet. 1 part of white.
The first process would be to prepare the black surface, employing for
the purpose four parts from the bottle containing this pigment in the
liquid form. After this has been done, the scarlet, which requires to
be first mixed with white, would be stippled over the black, leaving
intervals or small patches of the black ground uncoloured. The scarlet
dried, two parts of green would be similarly added, and lastly one
part of white. In each addition of colour minute spaces should be
left of black, and when the last tint has been applied, there should
be distinct streaks of the several colours, the black, of course,
largely preponderating. If this routine is carefully observed, almost
any variety and proportions of colours may be represented. Necessarily
there is an absence in the blend thus acquired of that mingled
colouring so characteristic of wool mixtures, but still the result is
sufficiently accurate to enable the colourist to form a just conception
of the value of any shade composition.
Now for the second method of experimenting with colour elements in the
origination of new mixtures. Here, wools are used; small hand cards
being constructed for the purpose. This is obviously the best system
when the exact shades of wools can be acquired, but this is often both
difficult and expensive. Where the spinning of mixture yarns is a
speciality, it is, however, advantageous to have a small stock of wools
in as many shades as possible, which the colourist can have access to
and blend in any proportion his ingenuity may suggest.[11] In adopting
this practical system of experimenting, the several colours selected
for combination ought first to be compared on a convenient surface,
preferably black, and then the quantities of the separate tints
determined upon. This accomplished, mixing would follow, which consists
of placing the various samples on the wire of two hand cards, and then
passing the teeth of one card between those of its companion till the
filaments have become as perfectly mingled as if the work of mixing
had been effected by the scribbling and carding operation. Assuming,
for the purpose of illustration, the colours selected to be brown,
blue, fawn, and sage-green, and the proportions as follows: 3 parts of
brown to 1 part of each of the remaining shades, then, providing the
quantities have been weighed off, the several shades would be combined
and mixed by the process just described. Care must be exercised not to
overload the cards, or blending will only be imperfectly accomplished.
Concluding that “carding” has been satisfactorily effected, a compound
shade of a slatish or smokish class will be the result, which will
contain visible traces of all the colour elements of its composition,
namely, of brown, blue, fawn, and sage-green.
Both the “pigment” and the “fibrous” systems of experimenting with
colour for blending purposes should be extensively practised. The
former may be adopted with success when wools are not accessible, while
the latter gives a result identical in every respect to that acquired
in manufacturing operations.
62. _Mixtures composed of Two Shades._--These are of three kinds;
first, those in which white is a factor; second, those in which black
is used; and third, those in which two fancy colours, other than black
or white, are combined, as brown and lavender, purple and gold, and tan
and drab. Mixtures of this kind may not only be economically produced,
but are simple and neat in composition. Many of them are largely used
in the production of both woollen and worsted yarns, and are produced
in light, medium, and dark shades. In textures where a neat effect is
requisite, they make most satisfactory combinations. Still, they lack
diversity of tint; and, as compared with blends containing a larger
assortment of colours, they are characterized by tameness. Of course
their degree of freshness and lustre is proportionate to the brightness
of the hues amalgamated. If these are washy and murky, the resulting
combination will be unsatisfactory. While it is impossible to enumerate
all the colours suitable for this species of blending, yet it may be
remarked that one of the hues should, at any rate, possess bloom and
force of tone; not necessarily harshness of hue, but fulness of tint
and definite emphasis of shade, in order that it may be capable of
affording colour character to the mixture in which it is used. Such
colours as claret, maroon, deep purple, russet, chocolate, tan, warm
olive, full-toned drab, blue, and green drab, are appropriate for this
purpose.
63. _Compounds of Two Colours in which White is used._--Blends of
this class are both numerous and important. They are of many tones,
depths, and intensities. Three illustrations are given on Plate XIII.,
comprising light and medium compositions. The first specimen (No. 1)
results from mixing 3 parts of white with 1 of brown; the second (No.
2) is composed of 3 parts of fawn and 2 of white; and the third (No.
3) consists of 3 parts of reddish purple and 1 of white. In the first
and last of these mixtures the proportions are the same, but in the
former, white is the prevailing, and brown the subordinate tint, while
in the latter, lavender is the main element, and white simply the
secondary factor of the blend. This leads to the consideration that
in forming such mixtures it is imperative to determine, in the first
place, whether white or the colour element, whatever that may be, is
to preponderate in the mixture about to be produced. Having decided
upon this point, some calculation should be made as to the extent in
which one element is to be overpowered by the other. The illustrations
will assist us in the solution of this problem. Starting with the brown
and white combination, it is quite apparent that, in this instance, it
has been sought to acquire an effect of a light character, one, in a
word, just tinged or toned with a brownish element. As a consequence,
white should preponderate, but the point arises to what degree. If the
proportions were four parts of brown to one part of white, the mixture
would be too pale; if three parts of white and two parts of brown were
combined, the mixture would assume a dark cast, for the brown element
would be too potent; hence the proportions from which the illustration
has been obtained are the most appropriate for producing a light-shaded
compound. Results of this kind can only be arrived at by experiment.
Theory merely expounds the principles of the art, practice alone can
illustrate and verify them. With pigments, the reader may acquire much
useful and reliable knowledge of these combinations; or by dyeing
for himself in a small vessel a number of different shades, which is
no difficult task, and using the hand cards alluded to in a previous
paragraph, he may become a competent and skilful combiner of fancy
shades for mixture yarns.
[Illustration:
Plate XIII
BLENDS OF COLOURED WOOLS]
64. _Illustrations in Mixtures composed of White and a Second
Colour._--Mixture 3, Plate XIII., is compounded of reddish purple and
white. It is suitable for either worsted or woollen yarns intended
for dress goods made in the plain weave or in the simple twill. It
also forms a yarn capable of giving good results when blended with
Mixture 1 of the same Plate. Stripes and check patterns formed of
these two mixtures, make very neat and attractive styles. The pinky
aspect of Mixture 3 causes it to be applicable to textures for ladies’
costumes, in which brightness and warmth of colouring are often a
valuable acquisition to the fabric. The white beautifully softens the
red purple, the two shades in union, and in the proportions rendered,
forming a satisfactory mixture.
The remaining sample in these mixtures (No. 2, Plate XIII.) is the most
suitable for tweeds, yet considered. As a compound shade, it possesses
many excellent features for both summer and autumn styles. Here, as
already stated, white is the minor element of the composition. While
in the two preceding examples it predominates, here it simply acts as
a tinting factor which gives softness and mellowness to the green drab
forming the bulk of the mixture. The utility of white for this purpose
is thus clearly seen.
Below are furnished some additional examples in this description of
mixtures:--
I.
3 parts of light bluish drab.
1 part of white.
II.
3 parts of tan.
1 part of white.
III.
3 parts of olive brown.
1 part of white.
IV.
3 parts of slatish fawn.
1 part of white.
V.
2 parts of deep chocolate brown.
2 parts of white.
VI.
4 parts of chocolate.
1 part of white.
VII.
6 parts of white.
4 parts of deep slatish blue.
VIII.
3 parts of white.
2 parts of fawn.
Nos. I., II., and III. are specially suitable for yarns employed
in the manufacture of dress and other thin fabrics of a bright and
cheerful tone. No. IV. is an interesting compound after the nature of
No. 2, Plate XIII., but deeper and stronger in cast. Such mixtures
are most useful in the production of fancy tweeds and woollen and
worsted textures intended for men’s wear. Blends V. and VI. are also
appropriate for tweed goods. They are both of a brownish character, but
the latter is the darker and more pronounced in tone. No. VII. might
be defined as a slatish blue mixture. It makes a good fancy yarn, and,
in fine worsted, a thread suitable for thin fabrics for costumes. The
last of these combinations possesses a very mellow appearance. The fawn
is a shade between olive and brown, approaching a species of tan. By
altering the proportions to three parts of fawn and one part of white,
an excellent mixture results, which might be used in combination with
No. VIII. in the production of checks and stripes and a large diversity
of other patterns.
65. _Mixtures composed of Black and another Colour._--These, if
anything, have a more extensive application than the mixtures just
alluded to, and are probably more diversified in composition and
colouring. They are largely employed in the production of yarns for
dark and medium-shaded goods. As the illustrations furnished on Plate
XIII. indicate, many useful combinations may be obtained on this
method. The first example (No. 4, Plate XIII.) that may be considered,
is a russet-brown mixture. Probably, the russet is a degree too warm,
but, for some purposes, the blend is all that could be desired.
Bloom, mellowness of cast, and rich fulness of tint are its chief
characteristics. As a tweed mixture produced by using two colour
factors, it is invaluable. It contrasts with the following mixture,
No. 5 of the same Plate, which results from blending one part of black
with one part of light olive. The olive used is more drab than orange,
and in association with the black assumes a greenish cast. By combining
yarns made of this mixture with yarns made of the preceding mixture,
some good patterns might be produced, simple, but neat in composition;
the streaks of russet in the one harmonizing and contrasting with the
filaments of olive in the other. The qualities of bloom and warmth
lacked by this latter example are possessed by the russet blend, while
the mellow characteristic of the olive mixture, when associated with
the russet, yields a compound colouring of tasteful properties.
But one further illustration, No. 6, Plate XIII., in this species of
blend calls for description, namely, a black and fawn combination in
which fawn is the principal hue. It is illustrative of the diversity
of effect that may be acquired by mixing two colour elements. As the
fawn composes the bulk of the blend, it possesses, when viewed at some
distance, a brownish tone, but on closer examination the small flakes
of fawn colouring assume a rich bloom as well as a soft, mellow aspect.
Other examples in this style of mixture, not illustrated, may be
briefly described, the colourings of which are:--
I.
5 parts of black.
2 „ tan.
II.
1 part of black.
1 „ tan.
III.
6 parts of black.
3 „ bluish green.
IV.
4 parts of black.
5 „ dark purple.
V.
3 parts of black.
2 „ sage green.
VI.
4 parts of black.
3 „ drabbish fawn.
VII.
4 parts of black.
1 part of lilac (medium shade).
VIII.
6 parts of black.
1 part of rose pink.
Combinations I. and II. are quite dark. The former is a warmish, and
the latter a somewhat cool colouring. Yarns from these two mixtures
harmonize well when associated in the same pattern. The tan used in
No. I. is similar to No. 3, Plate IV., and the bluish green to No.
2, Plate VI., but rather more blue in tone. Mixture II. is a medium
colouring, suitable for suitings and the general run of fancy tweeds.
Warmth, freshness, and lustre are its main and characterizing elements.
No. IV. is a unique colouring. It forms an admirable dark thread. A
fabric in which the warp is composed of yarns made of this mixture and
woven with yarn from Blend I. is an excellent combination of tints.
Mixtures V. and VI. are both of a medium tone. No. V. is rather dull in
tone as compared with No. VI., but both are useful colourings. Blends
VII. and VIII. are of a different character. In these examples the
colour element is small, but comparatively light and lustrous in tint.
The object has been to obtain a black composition just streaked with
filaments of a bright shade. The quantity of lilac in No. VII. is just
sufficient to change the tone of the black, and to produce a compound
approaching a species of grey, but bright and fresh in colouring.
No. VIII., though very dark, is cheerful in quality, being suitable
for a fancy yarn, or for thin textures for robes and costumes. It is
unnecessary to multiply examples of mixtures in this class, as those
furnished are typical of the endless variety of combinations which in
practice are required by this scheme of colouring.
66. _Grey Mixtures._--Amongst the most useful mixtures resulting from
combining two shades are those known as greys. These are sometimes
bloomed or enriched with purple or full-toned blue, but they are more
frequently constituted of black and white simply. Ranges of fancy
woollen and worsted patterns are rarely made without their use. For
ground shades, and also for fancy colours in check and stripe patterns,
they are of great utility. Some of the most important and common
proportions are as follows[12]:--
I.
6 parts of black.
1 part of white.
II.
5 parts of black.
1 part of white.
III.
4 parts of black.
1 part of white.
IV.
3 parts of black.
1 part of white.
V.
2 parts of black.
1 part of white.
VI.
1 part of black.
1 „ white.
VII.
2 parts of white.
1 part of black.
VIII.
3 parts of white.
1 part of black.
IX.
4 parts of white.
1 part of black.
X.
5 parts of white.
1 part of black.
XI.
6 parts of white.
1 part of black.
The most useful of these combinations are Nos. V., VI., and VII., which
are in many instances the only ones used. No. V. is called dark, No.
VI. medium, and No. VII. light grey.
To produce a perfectly gradated shade it is necessary to use some five
or seven greys, but in ordinary styles, for both woollen and worsted
textures, it is not customary to employ a larger number than the three
mixtures just named. The following is an arrangement for a shaded
pattern in five greys:--
5 or any appropriate number of threads of No. IV.
5 „ „ „ „ V.
5 „ „ „ „ VI.
5 „ „ „ „ VII.
5 „ „ „ „ VIII.
5 „ „ „ „ VII.
5 „ „ „ „ VI.
5 „ „ „ „ V.
Mixtures I., II., and III., form very dark shades; and Mixtures XI.,
X., and IX., form very light shades; and are only employed in the
production of extreme fancies.
67. _Bloomed Greys._--These, as already explained, are greys tinted
with some bright hue. The colours generally used for this purpose are
very deep purple, rich blue, and red purple. The quantities of such
hues are small, but sufficient to impart freshness of tone or lustre
to the mixture. Blue is used chiefly in brightening light greys.
For example, a much fresher light grey is formed by the following
proportions than if black and white were alone used: 6 parts of white,
4 parts of black, and 1 part of blue. Though the blue only constitutes
one-eleventh of the mixture, still it imparts freshness. An excellent
medium grey, warmed with reddish purple, can be secured thus: 8 parts
of black, 4 parts of white, and 3 parts of red purple. Deep purple is
one of the most suitable hues for dark greys, as it possesses both the
qualities of warmth and lustre, and is a most potent hue. Two examples
follow in which it is used with satisfactory results:--
I.
6 parts of black.
2 „ deep purple.
1 part of white.
II.
3 parts of black.
3 „ white.
2 „ deep purple.
Both these mixtures possess richness and depth of tone, and are
preferable to the common greys insomuch as they are fuller, more
lustrous, and mellower in composition; No. I. is a dark, and No. II. a
medium shade.
68. _Coloured Greys._--Mixtures of this kind are mainly compounded of
black and white, but the colouring element introduced may be so potent
in hue as to impart quite a tinted aspect to the shade. It will be
sufficient for the purposes of illustration, to treat of mixtures of
this class in which red, blue, yellow, orange, green, and purple, or
the primary and secondary hues, are used as the tinting factors. It is
very rarely that more than one colour is employed in the same blend, as
the examples given will show. Four standard coloured greys, in which
red is the tinting element, are as follows:--
I.
1 part of black.
1 „ white.
1 „ red.
II.
2 parts of black.
1 part of white.
1 „ red.
III.
2 parts of white.
1 part of black.
1 „ red.
IV.
2 parts of red.
1 part of black.
1 „ white.
These proportions, giving typical results, will be adopted throughout
the exposition of these mixtures; that is to say, when the tinting
element is changed to blue or orange, the same quantities will be
combined as in those furnished in the above examples.
In No. 1 the shades are blended in equal proportions, hence there is
no tint preponderating in the resultant mixture, which is a species
of brownish grey, neat in composition, and one that is useful in
textile designing. Black predominates in Mixture II., resulting in the
production of a more appropriate shade than that formed by No. I. for
autumn and winter cloths. Referring to No. III.--white is the chief
element, hence a medium compound shade is acquired: somewhat pinky in
appearance, owing to the entrance of white and scarlet into the blend,
but still the whole is toned and increased in depth of composition
by the admixture of black. It is, on account of its richness, more
suitable for yarns for dress fabrics than for heavy goods for men’s
wear. The same remark applies to Mixture No. IV., in which red is the
preponderating hue. But this is a bright and cheerful colouring, and
one that makes an excellent fancy yarn. These reddish-grey mixtures all
form valuable shades for winter styles, as they are decidedly cheerful
and warm in aspect, and produce a kind of pattern both bright and
comfortable in character.
Grey, in conjunction with yellow, forms a species of drab mixture,
which finds appropriate use in the manufacture of summer textures.
Taking the same order of mixing as furnished in the red greys, the
following results are obtained:--
V.
1 part of black.
1 „ white.
1 „ yellow.
VI.
2 parts of black.
1 part of white.
1 „ yellow.
VII.
2 parts of white.
1 part of black.
1 „ yellow.
VIII.
2 parts of yellow.
1 part of black.
1 „ white.
The equal quantities constitute quite a drab blend. In this example
there is first the association of the black and white elements
constituting mid grey, which receives additional lustre from co-mixture
with yellow, which tinges the whole composition a drabbish olive. An
agreeable variation may be made by employing a bright tan in the place
of yellow. On allowing the black element to preponderate, as in No. VI.
blend, a much darker result is attained, one, however, in which the
olive cast is preserved, though the bulk of the composition is dark
grey. A pleasing mixture ensues when white (No. VII. blend) is made the
maximum element. It is soft and bright in colouring, and of extensive
utility in the production of fancy yarns and fine worsted textures.
Perhaps when yellow is the main shade (No. VIII. blend) the cast of the
mixture assumes a too ochre-like aspect, but the yarn resulting from
this composition has nevertheless its specific province in woven design.
Black and white mixed with blue form a valuable series of mixtures,
more or less applicable to all classes of fancy goods. When the
quantities of the several shades are equal (1 part black, 1 white, 1
blue), the mixture formed is of a peacock blue tone, streaked with
grey. This mixture may be applied both as a fancy and as a ground
shade, according to the texture being produced. Increasing the black
(2 parts of black, 1 white, and 1 blue) results in the formation of a
dark bluish grey, applicable to a large variety of fabrics. By giving
preponderance to the white (2 parts of white, 1 black, and 1 blue), a
slatish blue grey is obtained, which, in combination with certain brown
mixtures, is capable of forming elegantly coloured patterns. When the
blue element is the principal hue (2 parts of blue, 1 black, and 1
white), the mid grey, constituting one-half of the compound, assumes
a mellow, quiet blue tone, making a mixture specially appropriate for
goods, in which cheerful but soft colouring is an important feature of
the design.
It is evident, from these examples, that a wide field of colouring is
opened up in the admixture of black and white with the primary colours.
In the illustrations considered, only four sets of proportions have
been dealt with, but by multiplying these it will be obvious that an
endless diversity of results, even with these five shades--black,
white, red, yellow, and blue--can feasibly be acquired. But when it
is taken into account that other hues besides those named are used
in combination with black and white, it will at once be seen that the
possibilities of this preliminary method of combining colours for
textile work are largely increased. The subject cannot be followed
further than the secondary colours at this stage: these, in conjunction
with the primary combinations just described, will give a fairly
comprehensive view of the styles of compound shades obtained in
practice by this system.
In the first place, allusion may be made to the admixture of orange
with black and white. Should the quantities be equal (1 part black, 1
white, and 1 orange), a drabbish grey is produced, a degree warmer in
hue than if yellow were the colouring factor. On doubling the quantity
of the black element (2 parts black, 1 white, and 1 orange) a greyish
olive mixture tinged with a reddish tone is formed; while a light fawn
mixture is produced if the white preponderates (2 white, 1 black, and 1
orange). A tannish grey composition, suitable for fancy yarns, results
from the proportionate quantities being 2 parts of orange, 1 part of
black, and 1 part of white.
Green, when associated with black and white on this system, does not
constitute mixtures well adapted for yarns for fabrics of a heavy
description, but yields compounds useful in the decoration of dress
and other thin textures. These blends partake of a species of mellow,
mingled, greenish grey. Such blends are more pleasing to the eye in
woven fabrics than solid green, possessing a softer, quieter, and
a more satisfactory tone. Beginning with white, black, and green,
equally compounded, a mixture is obtained that may be appropriately
described as a slatish green, the grey element imparting to the blend
a rich mellow cast. By increasing the black factor (2 black, 1 white,
and 1 green), the slatish tone is augmented, because it is due to the
association of this shade with the green element of the blend. As black
is, in this instance, the principal shade, the mixture, while mellow
and greenish, is decidedly deep and full in tone. The employment of
white as the leading shade (2 parts of white, 1 black, and 1 green)
yields an interesting combination between a pea and a slate green.
If the yarn made from this mixture, were associated in the same
pattern with that resulting from blend No. III. of the red series, an
exquisite assortment of tints would be obtained. It is by blending the
yarn product of one combination with that of others that attractive
colourings are arrived at. When the proportions are 2 parts of green,
1 part of black, and 1 part of white, the compound has too greenish a
cast to be of extensive use in textile designing, hence this mixture is
chiefly used in the form of a fancy or lively thread.
Allusion has now only to be made to the purple-grey combinations.
First, when the proportions are 1 part of black, 1 part of white, and
1 part of purple, a distinctly purple grey is produced, owing to the
extraordinary potency and diffusiveness of this secondary. Making
black the predominant factor, a more useful compound from a textile
standpoint is acquired; perhaps slatish in cast, but, nevertheless,
warm and cheerful in tint. Should white preponderate, a pure slatish
grey, just tinged with the warm, lustrous hue of purple, ensues. These
two last combinations, in addition to the mixture resulting from
compounding 2 parts of purple, 1 part of black, and 1 part of white,
are chiefly useful in the form of fancy threads. If purple is employed
in grey mixtures, for tweeds, and other medium and heavy textures, it
must be in lesser proportions than here given, indeed on the principle
indicated in the examples supplied in Paragraph 66.
Many other colours besides the primaries and the secondaries are
blended with black and white in the production of mixture yarns,
but the illustrations that have been treated of, will enable the
reader to arrive at methods of combining other tints or shades, than
those supplied in these mixtures--the most useful of all compound
shades--namely, light, medium, and dark greys.
69. _Two-Colour Mixtures._--Next to the series of blends obtained by
combining black or white with another colour, mixtures resulting from
associating two colour elements are the most commonly produced. In
addition to being the least costly of all fancy mixtures, into which
black and white are not imported, they are neat, simple, and elegant
in composition. Examples are given in Nos. 7, 8, and 9, Plate XIII.
The first is compounded of 3 parts of bright brown and 2 parts of
lavender; the second of 4 parts of claret and 1 part of gold; and
the third of 3 parts of tan and 1 part of drab. In mixtures of this
class, one shade should always be chosen for constituting the bulk
of the compound; and this, of course, should be of such a character
as to be suitable for application to fabrics intended for wearing
purposes. Turning to these examples, it will be seen that shades of
this kind have been adopted as the principal factors, for in one
instance, dark brown is the body colour, in another claret, and in
the third instance, tan. So that this law of using a comparatively
mellow and unostentatious colour for the bulk of the combination has,
in this type of mixtures, almost universal application. Alluding
specially to the brown-and-lavender blend, the object here has been
to secure an intermingled shade of rather more than medium depth.
Both colours are prominent, yet they constitute quite a new shade of
recognized utility in textile manufacturing. In the claret-and-gold
mixture, claret largely predominates, and imparts depth and body of
tone to the resulting compound. The function of the gold-coloured
fibres is essentially to brighten and freshen the whole. The last
example is quite a distinct species, having no common elements with
the two preceding, beyond the fact that it only contains two factors
of colouring, tan and drab. As these shades are more or less allied
in hue, the mixture acquired by combining them is slightly wanting in
diversity of tinting; yet it is a style of blend admirably adapted for
producing fancy yarns for light goods in woollen materials. Two shades
of brown, blue and slate, and olive and drab, similarly blended, would
all form creditable mixtures. Some of the Bannockburn blends only
contain two colours, though apparently full of variety of tinting. The
peculiar nature of the wool fibre substantially contributes to the
richness and elegance of these two-colour compounds.
70. _Multi-Shade Mixtures._--The general principles of the art of
blending have now been explained, and it is not needful to treat
extensively of the remaining kinds of mixtures. By the aid of further
illustrations, the methods of combining any reasonable number of
colours in the constitution of “stock” for fancy yarns, may be
indicated. First, consider the claret-brown blend given in No. 10,
Plate XIII., and composed of 4 parts of claret, 1 part of drab, and
1 part of gold. The colours combined not only harmonize when mixed,
but also when separated. If any one of the colours were removed, the
combination would be incomplete, showing the perfect union of the
tints selected. Should four colours be blended, increased freshness
and lustre of combination may be acquired, as is instanced by No. 11,
which consists of 4 parts of black, 2 parts of drab, 1 part of scarlet,
and 1 part of white. As in the previous example, a dark shade is here
employed for the bulk of the mixture, the other tints combining to
impart brightness to the whole colouring. The touch of scarlet is very
appropriate, giving warmth and tone; the drab is useful as a filling-in
factor, while the black and the white give that general mellowness
which characterizes the whole blend. Another example, No. 12, of a dark
description is a compound of three colours, blended thus:--
2 parts of purple.
1 part of orange.
½ a part of warm slate or smoke colour.
The orange should be verging on scarlet, and the purple possess a
claret-like hue. A pleasing mixture is thus acquired, one in which the
distinguishing features are mellowness and beauty of tone, combined
with warmth and richness of composition. Purple and smoke colour are
utilized in furnishing that peculiar varied tinting that constitutes
the main element of the mixture, while the orange introduced affords
brilliance, bloom, and warmth of hue. Other combinations are as
follows:--
DARK BLENDS.
I.
4 parts of brown.
2 „ light brown.
1 part of lavender.
II.
4 parts of brown.
1 part of sage.
1 „ scarlet.
III.
6 parts of maroon.
1 part of medium green.
1 „ scarlet.
1 „ bright blue.
MEDIUM BLENDS.
I.
4 parts of brown.
2 „ light olive.
2 „ white.
II.
4 parts of claret.
3 „ white.
1 part of gold colour.
III.
8 parts of black.
2 „ white.
3 „ orange.
LIGHT BLENDS.
I.
4 parts mid brown.
1 part of drab.
1 „ white.
II.
2 parts of brown.
2 „ white.
1 part of fawn.
III.
4 parts of chocolate.
5 „ white.
2 „ orange.
71. _Twist-Yarn Mixtures._--Recurring to the three great classes of
mixtures defined at the beginning of this chapter, twist-yarn mixtures
were included in the second group. For many reasons they are not so
extensively produced as raw-material mixtures: thus, they are more
costly; they do not generally yield such elegant effects; and they
lack that brilliance of colouring so universally characteristic of
the latter description of mixtures. The twist used for this purpose
includes two-, three-, and four-ply yarns, and curl, knop, cloud,
and other fancy threads. Black and white twist mixtures in woollen,
worsted, and cotton goods are extremely common. A more marked, and
perhaps more streaky class of effects, is obtained by using these
yarns than by employing mixture threads. If the twists were of the
cloud kind, real spangles, more or less elongated, of black and white
shades would be formed in the woven fabric; whereas if curl twists were
adopted, loops of black and white would be irregularly spread over
the surface of the cloth. Generally, the most elementary weaves are
used in the construction of these goods, such as the plain make, and
the common four-end and six-end twills. In worsteds, large quantities
of these mixtures are made, the finest of these threads yielding a
satisfactory species of intermingled colouring.
72. _Marls._--A series of grey and coloured mixtures obtained by
the second method of blending (Class C, Par. 55) is illustrated in
Plate XIV. These yarns show the principle of obtaining a marl mixture
worsted thread, after combing and drawing, or in the operation of
roving. An intermediate style of mixture is thus produced between that
due to blending coloured slivers in drawing, and that due to folding
or twisting two or more coloured yarns into a compound thread. The
blending of the coloured elements is not, on this system, so complete
as by the first method; nor yet are the specks of colour so distinct
as in mixture yarns obtained in twisting. “Marls” made in this way
are combined in stripe and check patterns with similar mixture yarns
developed by doubling or folding.
The proportionate quantities of black and white in Series A and A′, and
of black and a colour in Series B, B′ are as follows:--
PLATE XIV.
MARLS, SERIES A AND B.
Specimen
I. = 1 black thread twisted with 1 marl thread = 25% white
or colour and 75% black.
II. = 1 black thread twisted with 1 marl thread = 50% white
or colour and 50% black.
III. = 1 black thread twisted with 1 marl thread = 75% white
or colour and 25% black.
IV. = 1 marl = white or colour 25% and black 75%; twisted with
1 marl thread = 25%white or colour and 75% black.
V. = 1 white thread twisted with 1 marl thread = 25% white
or colour and 75% black.
VI. = 1 white thread twisted with 1 marl thread = 50% white
or colour and 50% black.
MARLS, SERIES A1 AND B1.
Specimen
I. = 1 marl thread = white 25%, black 75%;
twisted with 1 marl thread = white 25%, black 75%.
II. = 1 marl thread = white 50%, black 50%;
twisted with 1 marl thread = white 25%, black 75%.
III. = 1 marl thread = white 50%, black 50%;
twisted with 1 marl thread = white 50%, black 50%.
IV. = 1 marl thread = white 75%, black 25%;
twisted with 1 marl thread = white 50%, black 50%.
V. = 1 marl thread = white 75%, black 25%;
twisted with 1 marl thread = white 75%, black 25%.
VI. = 1 white thread twisted with 1 marl thread =
white 75%, black 25%.
In Nos. I. to V., Series A′ and B′, each yarn is composed of two marl
threads twisted together, but No. VI. consists of a white thread
twisted with a marl; and in Series A and B, Nos. I., II., and III. are
composed of a marl and black: No. IV. of two marls, and Nos. V. and VI.
of a marl and white.
[Illustration:
Plate XIV
SPECIMENS OF “MARL” YARNS]
73. _Weave Mixtures._--These are least manufactured of any of the three
classes of mixtures. They result from intermingling self-coloured yarns
in the loom. Plain and other elementary weaves are alone suitable for
producing these effects. It is usual to have the warp of one colour,
such as grey, and the weft of two or more colours; or the warp of two
or more colours, and the weft of one. In neither of the two foregoing
classes of mixtures could anything approaching a repetition of effect
be traced in the woven sample, whose surface is invariably one mass
of mottled tinting. For an analysis of the principles on which these
patterns are acquired, the reader is referred to _Woollen and Worsted
Cloth Manufacture_.
FOOTNOTES:
[11] In the Standardization Colour Scheme these initial
colours, as the principal in the blend, are stocked.
Bright or fancy colours might be dyed, in addition,
for toning purposes.
[12] See also Par. 52 and Plate XII.
CHAPTER VI.
ELEMENTS OF TEXTILE COLOURING--STRIPES.
74. Colours applied to Textiles on Various Systems--75.
Types of Woven Colouring--76. Single Weave Colourings--77.
Colour-in relation to Backed, Double, and Compound
Cloths--78. Colour applied to Single-make Figured
Fabrics--79. Fancy Shades applied to Backed and Double
Weave Combination Designs--80. Colour in Designs in
which the Figures are produced by the Weft Yarns--81.
Figured Effects obtained by Warp Colouring--82. Colour in
Textiles Figured by both Warp and Weft Yarns--83. Pattern
Design--84. Styles due to Colouring only--85. Stripes--86.
Checks--87. Mixtures--88. Figures--89. Classes of Striped
Patterns--90. Hairlines--91. Compound Hairlines--92.
Stripes composed of Longitudinal and Transverse Lines--93.
Stripes composed of Two Colours--94. Stripes composed of
Three or more Colours--95. Irregular Stripes composed of
Black and White Yarns--96. Irregular and Indefinite Stripes
in Two Colours--97. Irregular Stripes--Shades in Two
Colours--98. Shaded Stripes in Two Colours--99. Irregular
Stripes containing several Colours--100. Shaded Stripes in
several Colours.
74. _Colours applied to Textiles on Various Systems._--There are
numerous methods of introducing colours and fancy shades into woven
patterns. According to the kind of fabric being produced, the nature
of the materials composing it, and its structural arrangement, the
scheme of colouring practised varies. Suitings, trouserings, mantlings,
dresses, vestings, shawls, rugs, carpets, and other important typical
textures, are all coloured on distinct principles. Worsteds are not
treated in a colour sense precisely on the same system as woollens, nor
silks as cottons. Simple weaves allow of more varied colouring than
diagonals and other intricate crossings; figured designs of a floral
or geometrical character, than those resulting from combining several
small weaves; single-make than double- and treble-make patterns;
ordinary decorative fabrics, than plushes and lenos, and so on. Yet
there are some principles of textile colouring common to all species of
woven design. Certain methods of grouping yarns in elementary plans
of interlacing warp and weft yield, under all conditions, the same
style of effects. As a well-known combination of lines makes the key
pattern, so in textile designing there are methods of classifying and
uniting shades which cannot but produce one form of pattern. While in
subsequent chapters it will be needful to specialize and indicate the
complex modes of colouring practised by the weaver, here the general
principles of the art will be simply expounded.
75. _Types of Woven Colourings._--All varieties of textile colourings
may be classified under two great heads, which are capable of
subdivision, as in the Table appended.
TABLE VII.
ILLUSTRATING THE TYPES OF WOVEN COLOURINGS.
I. COLOUR IN SIMPLE AND FANCY WEAVES.
(_A_) _Single-make Cloths._--Woollen, worsted, cotton, linen, and silk
textures, in plain, twilled, mat, sateen, corkscrew, leno, diaper, and
other weaves.
(_B_) _Backed, Double, and Compound Cloths._--Effects produced
principally for men’s wear, in both woollen and worsted yarns; also
rugs, travelling maudes, winter mantlings, and blankets.
II. COLOUR IN FANCY AND FIGURED PATTERNS.
(_A_) _Single Fabrics._--Stripes, checks, and drafted patterns for
dresses, mantlings, ulsterings, blouses, and other textures.
(_B_) _Backed, Double, and Combination Patterns._--Woollen and worsted
patterns for men’s garments; shawls, mantlings, rugs, “Kidder,” Scotch,
and other carpets; also damasks and decorative fabrics.
(_C_) _Figured Patterns Coloured in the Weft._--Vestings, dresses,
matelasses, and cords.
(_D_) _Figured Patterns Coloured in the Warp._--Spotted and figured
styles of various descriptions in simple and complex makes, fancy dress
patterns, mantles, plushes, velvets, astrachans, and carpets.
(_E_) _Patterns in which the Figure is developed by both Warp and
Weft Colouring._--Silk and worsted robes, and elaborately ornamented
patterns in an endless diversity of textures and materials.
76. _Single-Weave Colourings._--The single-make cloths, named in Group
A of the first class of coloured effects, are textures not only single
in structure, _i.e._, not backed, but composed of one weave of a simple
character. Here some of the most elementary types of textile colouring
occur. Many of the patterns produced in these weaves are due to the
arrangement of the shades of the warp and weft. They form a species of
woven design which is purely technical in construction. The artistic
knowledge requisite to their origination is exercised in the selection
and combination of colours. As regards the elements which give the
pattern its form or outline, these are solely of a technical nature,
and relate to dexterity and ingenuity in the invention of novel plans
of cloth construction, and of applying to such makes those schemes
of colouring which will most effectively develop their structural
composition. This class of textile pattern may be described as Woven
Colour Design, for it is one in which the all-important principle
consists in devising new systems of shade arrangement and distribution.
When considering pattern as obtained in simple weaves, this feature
of design is the most prominent for examination. Scotch tweeds, as
well as various classes of fancy woollens for suitings, trouserings,
and flannels, some styles of cotton fabrics, and a considerable
diversity of worsted, silk, and linen fabrics, are examples in this
style of pattern. The more or less complex nature of these textiles
is determined by the intricacy of the weave employed, and the plan of
grouping the shades. Irregular makes or crossings, such as diagonals,
fancy twills, diamond and broken weaves, are more difficult to treat
with colour than simple twills and hopsacks. The comprehensiveness of
this type of textile colouring will be evident when it is mentioned
that in the plain weave, and the cassimere twill, there is practically
no limit to the variety of patterns obtainable in stripes, checks,
diagonals, small figures, mixtures, spotted, and other styles.
77. _Colour in relation to Backed, Double, and Compound Cloths._--The
fabrics named in Section B of Part I. of Table VII. are much more
intricate in structure than those alluded to in the previous paragraph,
and hence require greater technical skill in colour treatment. As these
cloths are multi-ply in the weft, in the warp, or in both warp and
weft, they can only be economically and advantageously coloured when
their build or structure is thoroughly understood. The yarns employed
in the composition of the face pattern have to be kept distinct from
those forming the back of the fabric, and _vice versâ_. Frequently, the
colouring of the face forms a different style from that on the back, in
which case a combination of at least two principles of colouring takes
place.
The range of patterns in these makes is very diversified, but it is
confined to a somewhat limited class of goods, as indicated in the
Table. Winter fabrics for men’s and women’s wear are the principal
goods to which these weaves are applied, so that for climatic reasons
light and fancy patterns are only exceptionally in demand, a fact
which somewhat simplifies the application of colour to these styles.
Some heavy tartan travelling rugs and wraps are also constructed in
this type of weave. In the ordinary backed textures composed of one
make on the face, the patterns are mostly of a simple stripe or check
arrangement, but in rugs and heavy cloths elaborate and complex blends
of shades obtain.
78. _Colour applied to Single-make Figured Fabrics._--These form the A
Group of textures given in Part II. of the Table. In addition to the
effect in this instance due to association of colours, there is design
or pattern produced by a combination of weaves differing in structure
or build, and moreover in appearance in the woven fabric. The weaves
may be arranged to form stripes, checks, and figures. The classes
of goods to which these designs are applied are numerous, including
trouserings and coatings in woollen and worsted yarns, fancy dress
goods, mohair, silk, and other classes of mantlings, ulsterings, silk
handkerchiefs, cotton textures, and decorative fabrics. The principles
involved in this type of textile designing comprise the application of
colour in the development of simple weave effects, and its introduction
into designs composed of several weave elements to give precision and
smartness of figuring. Before colour can be suitably applied here, its
effect on the elementary crossings must be clearly apprehended. The
designs containing various makes, such arrangements of fancy shades
have to be used as will emphasize exactly the several parts of the
whole style, and not result in the suppression of some sections and
in too bold a development of others. The larger the number of weaves
entering into any single design, the greater the intricacy of colour
application. When colour, in relation to the _A_ Group of fabrics
in the first section of the Table, is understood theoretically and
practically, its functions and scope in this branch of designing may be
readily mastered.
79. _Fancy Shades applied to Backed and Double Weave Combination
Designs._--Winter goods of a figured order for apparel are included
in Group _B_ of the Figured Patterns. This class of textiles also
comprises some styles of shawls, mantlings, and rugs. Many types of
striped trouserings, in which two double makes occur, come within
the scope of this useful group of textiles. Generally, if the method
of colouring is simple, the combination of weaves is diversified;
but should the latter only comprise a few elements of weaving,
more complex schemes of colouring are requisitioned. This order of
patterns, moreover, includes certain species of textile effect not
producible by having recourse to any other principle of weaving, but
those appertaining to double-cloth combinations. Regarding the style
of figuring feasible, it may be either elementary or elaborate in
arrangement. Every description of ornamentation can be developed, from
the simplest rectangular pattern to the most fantastic and complex
blend of floral and other forms. It is this feature of this principle
of design and colouring which makes it useful in the production of
various kinds of reversible fabrics--textures figured and wearable on
both sides, such as shawls, Austrian blankets or rugs, and carpets.
Yet while the application of colour to these designs may yield these
elaborate loom productions, the same scheme of colouring applied to
the identical type of weave designs, may give such patterns as obtain
in fancy trouserings, suitings, mantlings, and ulsterings of infinite
variety of style. The structure and weave composition of these fabrics,
and modes of gaining effects in them by colour, will be explained in
detail later.
80. _Colour in Designs in which the Figures are produced by the Weft
Yarns._--In Group _C_ the Textiles mentioned are vestings, dresses,
matelasses, and curl fabrics. This is an interesting type of weave
design in which colour is of great utility in developing the integral
parts of the figures composing the pattern. Warp yarns in these goods
are only of secondary importance, the figured elements of the styles
being solely the product of the weft yarns. These are, therefore, of
various shades, while the warp is generally, although not necessarily,
of one colour. Strictly speaking, these fabrics may be several fold in
the weft, but they are invariably single in the warp. The extreme fancy
character of the textures to which this principle of designing and
colouring is applicable, is indicative of its scope. It is specially
useful in fancy vesting styles, and is absolutely essential to the
construction of one important class of matelasses, and also invaluable
in the weaving of some kinds of curl cloths made for mantlings.
81. _Figured Effects obtained by Warp Colouring._--This is the
reverse of the preceding principle of intertexture. All the fabrics
enumerated in Class _D_ are constructed on this system. They have one
weft and several warps, the number of the latter varying according to
the multiplicity of colours forming the pattern. Warp colouring is
applicable to an extensive variety of fabrics. Commencing with the
simplest type first, this system of colouring plays an important part
in spotted designs, or patterns in which the distinguishing feature is
a series of spots or minute specks of bright colours. These effects
appear in suitings, mantlings, dresses, and cotton goods, including
fabrics for small-ware purposes. Very elaborate dress styles are also
figured by several sets of warp colourings. Here the weft is a sort of
binding agent, uniting into one compact and firm fabric the various
elements of warp colouring. Velvets and figured plushes, comprising
astrachans and pile goods made in imitation of animal skins, in
addition to Brussels, Axminster, and velvet-pile carpets, owe their
design composition to the employment of two or more layers of warp
threads.
82. _Colour in Textiles Figured by both Warp and Weft Yarns._--This is
the most comprehensive of all classes of textiles to which colour is
related. The most elaborate patterns made in the loom, and the most
costly, are the product of combining both warp and weft colouring. It
is quite evident, on consulting Table VII. of the different types of
textile colouring, that, in theory, the _E_ Group of fabrics results
from combining the systems of weaving included in Groups _C_ and _D_,
but, in practice, as subsequent analysis will demonstrate, other
details of designing and colouring are involved in the execution of
this class of fabrics than those here comprised. As this species of
colouring finds expression in all the types of figured woven effects
specialized in the above mentioned styles of fabrics, it is useless to
attempt further classification. These styles are intricate in build and
unique in principles of intertexture. Usually, they are neither purely
double, nor yet purely single in construction, but embrace schemes of
designing and colouring, such as may only be mastered by those who
previously study the former fabrics to which colour is applied, and
which are named in Table VII.
[Illustration: FIG. 5.--_A_, _B_, _C_.]
[Illustration: FIG. 5.--_D_, _E_, _F_.]
83. _Pattern Design._--This style of pattern results solely from the
methods of grouping fancy warp or weft yarns, or both these elements
of textile fabrics. It may be appropriately designated “Colour” to
distinguish it from “Weave” design; for, if the colours are removed
from such patterns, all effect is destroyed. Colour here yields both
the form of the design and the beauty of the style. No type of textile
designing is more extensively utilized than this, for the styles
resultant are characterized by neatness and by great utility. Pattern
design relates not only to the artistic grouping or blending of shades,
but to their arrangement. The latter is a factor which has to be suited
to the build of the weave. The same plans of colours are capable of
yielding quite distinct effects in two different weaves. Fig. 5, _A_,
_B_, and _C_, and Fig. 5, _D_, _E_, and _F_, demonstrate this important
principle of textile colouring. The weaves (marked ⊡’s for weft) are
plain in Fig. 5, _A_, _B_, _C_, and [2\2] or cassimere twill in Fig. 5,
_D_, _E_, _F_. The effects of different marks in the sketches, and also
the methods of warping and wefting, or the order of colouring, are
stated in the following Table:--
TABLE VIII.
ILLUSTRATING THE EFFECTS ON THE PLAIN AND [2\2] TWILL WEAVES OF THE
CHANGING OF THE ORDER OF WARPING AND WEFTING.
---------+-------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
Section.| Warp. | Weft. | Effect in Sketches. |
---------+-------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
_A_ and ⎧| | |◻’s = white warp over white |
_D_ ⎪|1 thread grey|White | weft. |
Fig. 5 ⎨|1 „ white| |▥’s = grey warp over white weft |
⎪| | |⊡ = white weft over grey and |
⎩| | | white warps. |
---------+-------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
_B_ and ⎧| White |1 pick grey|◻’s = white warp over grey and |
_E_ ⎪| | | white wefts. |
Fig. 5 ⎨| |1 „ white|▦’s = grey weft over white warp. |
⎩| | |⊡’s = white weft over white warp.|
---------+-------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
_C_ ⎧|1 thread grey|1 pick grey|◻’s = white warp over grey weft. |
Fig. 5 ⎨|1 „ white |1 „ white|▥’s = grey warp over white weft. |
⎪| | |⊡’s = white weft over white warp.|
⎩| | |▦’s = grey weft over grey warp. |
---------+-------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
⎧|1 thread grey|1 pick grey|◻’s = white warp over grey and |
_F_ ⎪| | | white wefts. |
Fig. 5 ⎨|1 „ white |1 „ white |▥’s = grey warp over grey and |
⎪| | | white wefts. |
⎪| | |⊡’s = white weft over grey and |
⎪| | | white warps. |
⎪| | |▤’s = grey weft over grey and |
⎩| | | white warps. |
----------+-------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
The arrangement of the yarns in the examples is the same, but the weave
structures are dissimilar. The plain make so determines the crossing
of the warp and weft yarns, that the white picks always float under the
grey threads and over the white threads, while the grey picks always
float under the white and over the grey threads, hence the solidity of
the respective lines of colour is uninterrupted, and a pattern produced
of a simple stripe order. Coming to the twill weave, it distributes the
colours differently. Each pick floats over and under two threads at a
time, so that the picks at every interlacing cover, or are covered,
by both a grey and a white thread. Let it now be shown what is the
result of this. Supposing the first thread and pick to be grey (Fig.
5, _F_) and the second thread and pick white, then, if the effect of
the interweaving of the first pick is traced, it will be obvious how
it forms part of the minute diagonal pattern sketched in Fig. 5, _F_.
This pick floats over a grey and a white, and then under a grey and a
white thread, so that a small transverse line of grey is formed equal
in length, not to a float over _two_, but _three_ threads, for although
the extent of the weft float is two, yet the grey thread adjoining it
enlarges it in effect to three. Next take the second pick. It floats
over the second and third threads, and, being white, makes a transverse
line of this shade of similar dimensions to the preceding pick,
because the fourth thread in the warp is white, and in the texture is
added to the two-weft float. If picks three and four are examined, it
will be noticed that they give like results, only the positions of
the small lines of colours are moved one thread in each case to the
right, causing the diagonal effect in the fabric to move to the right.
Analyzing the first and second threads, it will be seen that they make
short vertical lines, equal in length to flushing over three picks in
succession. Take the first thread, which is grey: it is depressed on
the first pick, being covered by the grey pick, then up twice; the
second thread is also down on the first pick, then down on the second
pick, being covered by the white weft, and afterwards elevated over
picks three and four, forming a float of white of the same size as if
the thread had flushed over three succeeding picks.
These illustrations show how the structure of the weave modifies the
effect of the colours. This relation of weave to colour, as regards
systems of arranging fancy shades, is one of the technical elements
of textile colouring. Weaving principles cannot be ignored; they must
always be considered, as they are capable both of destroying or of
beautifying a set of colours.
Pattern design also relates to the invention of novel methods of
grouping fancy threads, or to the assortment and distribution of the
several colours in both warp and weft. Independent of the somewhat
subtle question of harmony of tints which has to be considered here,
such schemes of blending warp and weft threads of appropriate colours
have to be devised as will give various styles in the same order
of colourings and the same weave. By a modification of the plan of
combining the yarns great variety of pattern may be obtained. Even when
limited to this mode of producing pattern in the loom, novelty and
force of style is feasible. The simplest alteration in the grouping
of the threads frequently gives quite a new cast to the design. There
are three features of Pattern Design that are intimately associated
with the character of the pattern originated: I. the selection of
appropriate shades; II. their classification and arrangement as to
quantity; and III. the invention of such a plan of combining these
colours in the fabric as will be in accordance with the construction of
the weave or design composing the cloth.
84. _Styles due to Colouring only._--The patterns produced wholly by
varying the plan of associating colours in textiles may in a general
sense be grouped under four heads, viz., Stripes, Checks, Mixtures, and
small Figured Effects. These designs obtain in a large variety in all
kinds of materials.
85. _Stripes._--Treating of each description of style analytically,
stripe patterns may be primarily examined. They consist of bands or
lines of different shades, varying in width, running lengthways of
the fabric, that is, in the direction of the warp. The distinctive
characteristic of a stripe is its line-like composition. All patterns
of this order are nothing more than a blend of lines of divers shades
and of various dimensions, extending from end to end of the piece. For
trouserings, suitings, and some styles of dress and mantling cloths,
no form of pattern is better adapted. The prominence of the several
bands of colour, their solidity and distinctness, or their intermittent
character and subdued or toned aspect, are all qualities depending on
the structure of the fabric and its weave composition, which will be
subsequently noticed. If the pattern in striped styles is principally a
warp product, the weft is only a supplementary feature of the design,
being employed, firstly, to bind the warp ends together and thus
form a wearable fabric; and, secondly, to constitute an appropriate
groundwork on which the warp colourings may be correctly developed.
Proper emphasis of the colours composing the stripes is acquired by
employing a suitable shade of weft, and by adopting that system of
crossing or weaving which will, in addition to yielding the requisite
strength and firmness of fabric, sufficiently interfere with the
continuity of the fancy shades introduced into the warp. Stripes are
of various dimensions and arrangements. Some are mere lines, and no
wider than the diameter of the threads employed; others are many inches
broad. One colour may be so introduced as to form bands of different
widths. Thus, if brown and black were the colours at command, they
could be so combined as to give styles of several descriptions in which
the bands of the respective shades would always be of corresponding
widths; or they might be combined on such a principle as to form sets
of stripes of variable sizes. To a considerable extent, the character
of these patterns is governed by the class of texture in which they
appear. Instances of this occur in the various fabrics produced in the
loom. Generally, for example, stripes for trouserings are not wide,
but of small and medium sizes, and soft and neatly toned in colouring.
For ulsterings, dresses, and mantlings, much broader effects, more
elaborate in arrangement, and of greater force of colouring, are
required. In cotton blouses, small styles are the most valuable, but in
cotton fancies for dresses there are no definite limits to the width of
the stripes and to the intricacy of the plan of colouring.
86. _Checks._--These may be considered as forming the second great
class of patterns in which colour is the all-important element. Of
course reference is only made at this time to that type of check
in which the weave is a simple factor. No allusion is made to, or
consideration taken of, weave compounds which of themselves will form
a species of check. The checks now being examined are those resulting
from adopting the same or a similar order of weft as warp colouring.
In other words, if the arrangement of warp yarns were 10 threads of
black and 2 threads of white, the weft would be the same, forming a
solid square of black, surrounded by a skeleton square of white. The
term “check” is suggestive of the appearance of these styles and of the
scheme of their construction. The warp colourings, however complicated
in arrangement and diverse in composition, to produce a perfect check
must be crossed or “checked,” as the operation is technically called,
in precisely the same manner and by exactly the same shades in the
weft. The plaids on Plates V. and X. are typical examples of the
principles of checking. Here it is evident that each set of colours in
the warp when woven with corresponding shades of weft forms a square
of colour perfectly solid. The blue threads of warp and weft make blue
checks; the green, squares of this colour; and the black and yellow
also checks of these shades. The size of the check is determined by
the mode of grouping the yarns, the coarseness of the texture, and the
thickness of the yarns of which it is composed. Many of the principles
of woven colouring applicable to stripes also apply to checks, which
strictly speaking are patterns striped both in transverse and lineal
directions.
87. _Mixtures._--The mixtures implied here may be defined as small
all-over effects in which the various colours used are so fully
co-mingled that the particular part played by any one colour is not
observable. They require the most mellow treatment of all coloured
styles. Nothing of a loud character succeeds, nor appears attractive
in these textures. Mellow, smart, and choice combinations are desired.
The pattern should present not so much a patchy, as a rich and tinted
appearance--every colour utilized in its formation associating with
its neighbours to compose one indefinite blend of minute effects. To
produce styles of this order no single colour should be distinct and
louder than the rest, nor be allowed to intrude on the eye more than
another--complete harmony of colouring and uniformity of tone are
absolutely essential. But one shade more pronounced in tint or more
powerful in hue--being of a deeper intensity than its associates--is
sufficient to destroy the beauty of the whole combination. This being
the case, the system of mixing the several shades must be such that
all colours will be equally emphasized; for evidently lack of equality
in the prominence of the various colour elements amalgamated, destroys
the essential character of these useful and valuable styles.
Mixtures obtain principally in woollen yarns, whose fibrous surfaces
are well adapted for mixing the hues combined thoroughly, and without
producing a fabric in which the colours form patches or spangles of
variable sizes and shapes. All mixture effects are minute in character,
and are produced for suitings, dress fabrics, etc. In softness and
mellowness of tinting, these are not comparable with similar styles
resulting from using mixture yarns, but they form such an important
description of woven pattern as to deserve specific analysis.
In Donegal (Pattern 1, Plate XXVI.) and other extreme fancy mixtures,
specks of bright colour are obtained in the yarn, which give richness
of character without that complete mixing of fibres which is the
ordinary style of blend.
88. _Figures._--Necessarily these are very minute in dimensions and
limited in form. Perhaps they might be also appropriately designated
spotted patterns, but as the figures are of definable shapes, and are
arranged on various bases, the former term appears the more suitable.
This species of colouring is applied to cotton and woollen and
worsted fabrics. Invariably the weaves are of an elementary grade. In
these, neat and minutely figured styles are developed in considerable
variety. Thus in the plain weave alone, several distinct patterns are
obtainable; while in the celtic, or mat, and in the cassimere and
six-end twills somewhat more broken-up figuring is acquired, which for
some makes of cloths is preferable to designs consisting of pronounced
and decided forms.
[Illustration:
Plate XV
REGULAR STRIPES
1. and 2. Two-Colour Patterns
3. Four-Colour Pattern]
89. _Classes of Striped Patterns._--All kinds of striped patterns may
be comprised in two classes, namely, Regular and Irregular styles.
In the former (Fig. 11, _A_, and Fig. 12, _A_) the bands of colours,
however numerous they may be, are of equal widths, but in the latter
(Figs. 11 and 12, _B_, _C_, _D_, etc.) they vary to an indefinite
extent. The several species of stripes resulting from blending colours
will be treated of as follows:--
I. REGULAR STRIPES.
(_a_) Hairlines.
(_b_) Stripes of two colours.
(_c_) Stripes of three or more colours.
II. IRREGULAR STRIPES.
(_d_) Patterns of two colours.
(_e_) Patterns of three or more colours.
(_f_) Shaded patterns composed of several colours.
[Illustration: FIG. 6.]
[Illustration: FIG. 7.]
90. _Hairlines._--These are the smallest striped patterns produced.
The real hairline is composed of two colours, and is made extensively
in woollen and worsted materials, but is also produced in cotton and
other yarns. Standard hairlines are produced in the plain weave,
prunelle, [3/1] twill, and the five-end sateen: also in mat and
specially-constructed weaves. In the prunelle, three-line, in the [3/1]
twill, four-line, and in the five-end sateen, five-line, or five-colour
patterns are producible.
91. _Compound Hairlines._--These consist (1) of two or more widths of
lines with each grouped in series, of which Figs. 6 and 7, and Figs.
8 and 9 are types; (2) of hairline stripes combined with fancy, and
irregular effects. Figs. 6 and 7 are both woven in the broken [3/1]
twill, the former being coloured two-and-two in section _A_, 2 black,
2 twist in section _B_, and one-and-one in section _C_, the broad line
of white being formed by grouping three white threads together. Fig.
7 is a compound of one-and-one and two-and-two warping, making the
respective stripes _A_ and _B_, which might be of any width and grouped
together in various forms.
[Illustration: FIG. 8.]
[Illustration: FIG. 9.]
Fig. 8 is developed in mat weaves, arranged to produce two-and-two and
four-and-four stripings, grouped as sketched. Fig. 9 is a compound of
hairline effect, one-and-one warping in the broken [3/1] twill, section
_A_, and of two-and-two warping in the [2/2] twill, section _B_, with a
fancy twist stripe, _C_, on the latter.
92. _Stripes composed of Longitudinal and Transverse Lines._--This
pattern--sketched in Fig. 10--is a derivative of the common
single-cloth hairline. It is due to changing the positions of the
colours in relation to the intersections of the weave. Analysis of the
fabric shows that in Sections _A_ the light threads float _over_ the
light picks and the dark threads _over_ the dark picks; whereas in
Parts _B_ the opposite rule obtains, viz., the light threads float
_under_ the light picks and the dark threads _under_ the dark picks. As
a consequence, the lines of colours in _A_ are vertical, while those in
_B_ are horizontal. This arrangement of pattern is entirely due to the
system of warp colouring, which is as follows:--
1 thread of grey.⎫ _A._
1 „ white. ⎭
1 „ white. ⎫ _B._
1 „ grey. ⎭
The weft is 1 pick of white and 1 pick of grey throughout the pattern.
Now as the plain weave has been employed, and is arranged to allow the
white and grey threads in _B_ to be crossed or covered by corresponding
picks, it causes the same threads in _A_ to float over the respective
picks, producing this useful form of stripe, which is applicable to
similar goods as those for which particulars are supplied in the
preceding paragraph.
[Illustration: FIG. 10.]
93. _Stripes composed of Two Colours._--These are included in the
elementary colour effects. A minimum amount of technical skill is
requisite to their construction. The art of producing patterns of this
description is confined to the selection and adjustment of appropriate
shades. An illustration in the Regular order of stripes is given in No.
1, Plate XV. It is an Oxford shirting, the order of colouring being
thus:--
_Warp._ _Weft._
16 threads of white. All white.
16 „ blue.
Such shades and tints as the following would form good patterns: No. 6,
Plate IV., and white; No. 10, Plate IV., and white; and Nos. 12 and 16,
Plate VI., and white. In each case white should be used for weft.
[Illustration: FIG. 11.--Stripe Patterns in Two Shades.]
This class of pattern is largely applied to woollen and worsted
textures. No. 2 on Plate XV. is an example. This style has been
produced in the five-end doeskin and has a dress-face finish. The
arrangement of colours is:--
_Warp._
10 threads of 20 skeins olive.
10 „ „ „ light olive.
_Weft._
20 skeins olive.
Without multiplying illustrations, it will be evident how considerable
diversity of styles is attainable on this system by varying the width
of the stripes and the colours employed.
Specimens of Irregular stripes in two shades are given in Fig. 11,
_B_, _C_, _D_, _E_, _F_, consisting of lines of different sizes in
two shades. It will be seen from these that the method of grouping
the lines, as well as the dimensions, determine the form of pattern
produced.