it is based upon the number of hanks, "cuts," or "runs" of a given
length which are required to weigh 1 pound. The standard length of
the hank varies according to the nature of the yarn. Cotton Yarn
measures 840 yards per hank; Worsted Yarn measures 560 yards per
hank; Woollen Yarn measures 256 or 300 yards per "cut," "run," or
hank, according to district; Linen measures 300 yards per lea; and
Spun Silk, 840 yards per hank. The number of such "cuts," "runs,"
hanks, or leas required to weigh 1 pound avoirdupois equal the number
of the count. When Woollen Yarn is in gala cuts of 300 yards the
number of such cuts required to weigh 24 ounces equal the count: this
becomes equivalent to the number of 200 yards required to weigh 1
pound.
=Coutil.=--French for Drill. A strong three-thread twill cloth
with herring-bone stripes dyed drab or French grey and used for
corset-making.
=Covert.=--A wool or worsted cloth, usually in fine twill weave, in
small mixture effect. There are various grades of Coverts and they
all have as a distinctive feature neutral tones of colour. The real
Covert cloth is always made from double and twist warp yarns and
single fillings. The weave is such that the filling yarn does not
show on the face of the cloth, therefore almost any shade similar in
general tone to the warp may be used as filling. Cheap grades are
made as a piece-dyed union mixture containing up to 30 per cent.
cotton. They are also known as Venetian Coverts when they have a
pronounced whipcord effect. The weave is a sateen weave of the
warp-face variety.
=Crabbing.=--One of the many processes through which cloth goes from
the time it leaves the loom on its way to being turned out as a
finished fabric. The object of crabbing is to fix or set the cloth
at the width it has to be as a finished fabric. The actual operation
of crabbing consists of running the cloth at a tension on to a
steaming or boiling roller. The axle or core of the roller is hollow
and perforated; the cloth having been tightly wound round, steam is
forced through the perforations and right through the mass of tightly
wound cloth. The superheated steam sets the cloth.
=Crape Cloth, Plain.=--Plain Crape Cloth is an all-cotton fabric,
plain woven from hard-twisted cotton yarns and is free from any woven
or printed ornamentation. The nature of the hard-twisted yarn is
such that it readily shrinks or curls in length when not kept at a
high tension; this, together with subsequent finishing operations,
causes a considerable contraction to take place, resulting in an
uneven crinkled surface, which is the chief characteristic of Crape.
The crinkled surface in true Crape is obtained in several ways:
(1) by combination of materials; (2) by weave combination; (3) by
combination of (1) and (2); (4) by mechanical arrangements during
weaving; (5) by subjecting fabrics specially constructed to a special
chemical process during finishing. The cheaper grades of Crape have
the crinkled effect produced by suitably prepared rollers through
which the cloth is passed, and the crinkled effect in cotton Crapes
is not always the result of true Crape weaving, which relies on the
irregularity of the interweaving of threads to produce the Crape
effect. In width Crape seldom exceeds 30 inches, but is made up in
pieces of varying length.
The name is also applied to a thin, transparent, "crisp" or crumpled
silk material, usually black, which is used in mourning, as well as
to a sort of thin worsted material of which the dress of the clergy
is sometimes made.
=Crash.=--A coarse plain-weave linen material in which the unevenness
of the weft yarns gives a rough surface to the cloth. There are
various grades of Crash, of which the coarser and more irregular
kinds are used for towelling, whilst the finer are dress materials.
Some Crash fabrics are woven from waste cotton.
=Cravenette.=--A waterproofing process applied to fabrics made of
silk, wool, or cotton. Not a fabric.
=Crêpe de Chine.=--A sheer silk having a minute crape effect in the
weave. The name in its correct acceptance applies to an all-silk
fabric, but there are also cotton and silk mixed fabrics which
bear this name, and at times even all-cotton fabrics have been so
designated--by the retailer, at least. All the materials which are
known by this name are of comparatively light weight. In practically
all these fabrics the lustre is imparted by the warp yarns, which
are likely to be of better silk than the filling. The filling yarns
are twisted harder than for ordinary cloth. The hard twisting of any
yarn will so curl up the fibres that they will not lie parallel and
so will not reflect light and give lustre. All-silk Crêpe de Chine
fabrics have a width of about 40 inches, whilst all-cotton and cotton
and silk mixtures average 27 inches in width. The all-cotton variety
is most often simply designated as Crêpe.
=Crêpe Meteor.=--A lustrous silk Crêpe.
=Crepoline.=--A fabric of a warp rib character in which the regular
order of the weave is so broken as to give a "rib crape" effect.
=Crépon.=--A dress fabric of silk or wool in which the design is
produced by using yarns having a different degree of stretch, so
that portions of the fabric are crisped, crinkled, or apparently
blistered, either irregularly or in set designs.
=Cretonne.=--This fabric is essentially a printed cotton fabric
woven either with a plain twill satin or oatmeal weave. The weft is
generally made from waste and is not very regular. Cretonnes, being
used mainly for curtains, hangings, or furniture coverings, are
generally printed with large, bold, and highly coloured designs. It
is woven with a bleached or grey cotton warp and filling in widths
ranging from 25 to 36 inches, and for curtains in widths up to 50
inches. Their main feature is their large bright-coloured floral
designs, and their value depends to a great extent upon the artistic
merits of these designs. Sometimes a fancy weave or small brocaded
effect may occur in this class of fabric, but it is seldom met with,
and it is not representative of the true Cretonne fabric. Flax also
is said to be used in the manufacture of certain grades of Cretonnes,
without, however, taking them out of the class to which Cretonne
fabrics belong.
=Crimp Cloth, Plain, or Crimps.=--Crimps are plain-woven all-cotton
fabrics which have as their distinctive feature "cockled" striped
effects. These "crimped" or "cockled" stripes are produced by
dividing the warp threads into two separate "beams," one of which
is under greater tension than the other; that is to say, the warp
threads from one of the beams will be tight and the others slack.
These slack threads in the process of weaving are "taken up" more
rapidly and form the "crimped" stripes. Crimps may also be produced
by subjecting fabrics specially constructed to a special chemical
process during finishing, or by passing the material through suitable
rollers which will stretch the material in some places more than in
others and thus artificially produce the "cockled" stripe. Crimps are
made up in widths seldom exceeding 30 inches; the length of pieces,
however, may vary considerably. It is also known as Seersucker or
Crinkle.
=Crinkle, or Seersucker.=--Names given to striped fabrics of the
Crimp type. Seersucker originally meant a silk fabric.
=Cross-dyed.=--Cross-dyed goods may be described as fabrics woven
with black or coloured cotton warps and wool or worsted fillings and
afterwards dyed in the piece. This process is resorted to because
the warp and filling of a fabric woven with a cotton warp and a wool
filling, and then piece-dyed, would not become identical in colour,
as cotton and wool have not the same attraction for dye. Cross-dyeing
is generally used in mohair, alpaca, and lustre fabrics, and the
principal cloths in this classification are cotton warp figured
Melroses, Florentines, Glacés, Brilliantines, Lustres, Alpacas, and
Mohairs. _See_ Union Cloth.
=Crossover.=--This name is given to fabrics having stripes, of either
colour or weave effect, extending across the width of the cloth from
selvedge to selvedge.
=Cut Goods.=--Underwear made of either ribbed or flat webbing knitted
into long rolls and cut to the proper lengths and sections for
garments, after which the various parts are sewed together.
=Cuttling.=--Plaiting cloth in folds; used in the same sense as
lapping and folding, as opposed to rolling into bolts.
=Damask.=--The name Damask is technically applied to certain classes
of fabrics richly decorated with figures of foliage, fruits, scrolls,
and other ornamental patterns, usually of a large and elaborate
character. The weaves usually employed are twills (mostly satin
twills), and the figures in the fabric are made by alternately
exchanging warp for weft surface or _vice versa_. The materials
employed vary according to the purpose to which the fabrics are to
be applied. In the manufacture of upholstery cloth for hangings
and furniture covering, silk or worsted is used; while for table
covers, towels, napkins, etc., linen is generally employed, except
in the cheapest grades, when cotton is the material used. Damask was
originally applied only to silken fabrics whose designs were very
elaborately woven in colours and often with either gold or silver
threads. Although in the majority of Damask fabrics nothing but
satin twill weaves are employed (principally five and eight shaft),
very good effects are obtained by combining other weaves with satin
twills. Where Damasks are made all of one colour, as in white linen
table covers, the effect is given by the threads lying at right
angles to each other; the light falling upon them brings the pattern
in bold relief and makes it easily visible.
=Damassé.=--Applied to fabrics having a rich woven design. Similar to
Damask.
=Delaine.=--A term applied to plain-woven materials made "of wool."
The term probably originated in France and was applied there to
all plain-woven fabrics of light weight made of wool. As used at
present, the term may be combined with another name, and then purely
designates the nature of the material used in the manufacture of the
fabric, such as in Muslin Delaine.
=Denim.=--A stout cotton warp-faced twill cloth, generally woven
as a four-end twill. The warp is dyed either blue or brown before
weaving, whilst the weft is grey; they are both of coarse counts.
Denim, being a warp-faced material, has the warp on the surface; and
as the warp is made of coloured yarns, the cloth when woven shows
a solid coloured surface. The back of the fabric shows the bulk of
the weft threads, and these, being in the grey, give the back of the
cloth a distinctive lighter colour than the face of the cloth. Like
all warp-faced twill weave, the back of the cloth shows a plain-weave
effect. Denims have generally a white edging forming the selvedge;
they range from medium to heavy weight and are largely used in the
manufacture of workmen's overalls.
=Derby Rib.=--Applied to hosiery having six ribs on the face
alternating with three on the back.
=Diagonal.=--This name is applied to plain or figured twills of bold
character and originates in the twill effect, which, in relation to
the length of the fabric, runs in a diagonal direction. This twill
effect is produced by raising warp threads in groups in a progressive
order, the filling thus making them stand out in ridges or heavy
twill.
=Diaper.=--This term as applied to fabrics is used to describe two
distinct styles, the first of which consists of a small diamond
weave, while the second and true Diaper has rectangular figures or
dice interwoven on the Damask principle. In cotton fabrics it is
confined to diced or diamond reversible patterns on a small scale.
The weave is produced by the interchanging of warp and weft. In linen
fabrics, also, it is used to produce diced, diamond, and bird's-eye
patterns, and also small reversible Damask patterns. In some
districts the names Dorneck and Diced are used instead of Diaper.
=Dimity.=--A fine cotton fabric, plain or printed, having a cord
design running lengthways of the piece. The figures are often
arranged in alternate stripes and appear as if embossed, this effect
being due to the coarse weft "flushes." A cheaper kind is sometimes
made by arranging a reversed woven stripe of warp-face and weft-face
twill on a plain ground texture.
=Discharge Printing.=--In what is known as the "discharge" style
of printing, the cloth is first impregnated throughout its whole
substance by being either vat-dyed or pad-dyed; then the cloth is
dried, but the colour is not fixed. It is next passed through the
printing machine, and chemicals having the property of preventing
the development are printed on it, either alone or in combination
with other colouring matters. The ground colour is then developed by
steaming, and the printed pattern, white or coloured, is obtained
upon a coloured ground.
=Dobbie, or Dobby.=--This name is used to describe a type of loom
used for the production of certain classes of figured fabrics which
have a great many points of similarity with fabrics produced by means
of a Jacquard loom. The distinctive feature of a Dobby loom is the
series of lattices into which pegs are inserted, which control the
lifting of heald shafts in their proper order, so as to form the
shed, the heald shafts being pulled down again by means of springs
after having been lifted up to form a shed.
=Domestics.=--This term is used in the textile producing districts
of Great Britain to denote a class of medium and heavy weight grey
cloths, plain or twill woven, the better qualities of which are not
exported but used for home or domestic consumption.
=Domet.=--A strong, heavy, twill-woven cotton fabric resembling
Canton or Cotton Flannel, having a raised or napped surface on both
sides of the fabric. Domet may be either in the grey or white and is
a plain fabric.
=Double Cloth Weave.=--Where two single cloths are so woven that they
are combined together and make but one, it becomes known as a Double
Cloth and is the result of double-cloth weaving.
Double Cloth is woven either to obtain two well-defined and finished
faces or to allow of a heavy material being made with a good quality
face and with the back made up of a cloth composed of inferior
material. This style of weaving is resorted to when the object is to
produce certain kinds of bulky or heavy overcoating.
=Double Sole, Heel, and Toe= means an extra thread added to hosiery
at points mentioned. Strictly speaking, "double" applies only to
single-thread goods.
=Double Warps.=--The name double warp is used to designate various
kinds of fabrics of good quality in which the warp threads consist
of two-fold yarn. Not to be mistaken as designating two-ply or
double-weave fabrics.
=Drap d'Été.=--Allied to Cashmere in weave, but heavier.
=Dresden.=--A small unobtrusive design in pastel colourings.
=Drills.=--Drills are strong, heavy, warp-faced fabrics woven from
yarns of good quality with a three (two warp and one weft), four
(three warp and one weft), or five (four warp and one weft) end twill
weave. When so woven they are known as Florentine Drills, of which
the khaki Drill so often met with in the Colonies is a good example.
Drills are also woven with a warp sateen weave which have--as the
twill effect is done away with--a smooth surface.
Drills may be either linen or cotton fabrics, grey or white, bleached
or dyed, printed or striped. They average 40 yards in length per
piece and vary in weight from under 10 to 12¾ pounds or over per
piece and 31 inches in width. The name is from the Latin _trilex_,
of three threads, and is applied to a "three-thread twilled cloth."
Cotton Drill is a medium weight single cloth weighing from 4 to 6
ounces and composed of all-cotton yarns, warp, and filling, and is
generally woven as a three-end twill-weave fabric.
=Drillette.=--This is a cotton fabric, finer and lighter in make than
the ordinary cotton Drill. Drillette of 30-inch width is imported
into Colonial markets, where it is largely used for linings and
pocketing.
=Duchesse.=--A satin fabric having the back woven in flat twills,
with a smooth surface.
=Duck.=--Duck is a heavy single-cloth cotton fabric made of coarse
two-ply yarn of plain weave. Lighter than Canvas, Duck is woven on
the same principle as Canvas. Duck on leaving the loom is finished
by washing and sizing, drying and pressing; this gives the finished
material a peculiar, hard, stiff feel. There are linen Ducks, but
they are specially designated as Linen Ducks, the term Duck being
used to denote the cotton variety.
Better qualities of Duck, such as are used for tropical suitings,
are woven with a two-and-two matt dice or Hopsack weave. The term
"two-and-two" means that two weft threads pass alternately under and
over two warp threads, exactly as if a plain weave had been doubled
and the weave worked with two threads instead of one; the plain weave
is often termed a one-and-one weave. _See_ Cotton Duck.
=Dungaree.=--A stout cotton warp-faced twill cloth woven as a
four-end twill from coarse-count warp and weft. The only difference
between this fabric and a Denim is that in the latter the weft is
grey, whereas in a Dungaree both the warp and the weft have been dyed
prior to weaving. Dungaree, being a warp-faced material, has the warp
on the surface, and as both warp and weft are dyed yarns, the cloth,
when woven, shows a solid coloured surface.
=Duplex Prints.=--Fabrics which have one set of patterns printed
on the face of the cloth and another different pattern or design
printed on the reverse side are generally styled Duplex Prints. They
differ from fabrics which have been printed in colour on one face,
but in such a manner that the printed pattern has soaked through and
shows--though less sharply--on the back of the fabric. The Duplex
Print is the result of two distinct printing operations, first on one
side, then on the other side, of a fabric. This being the essential
condition for a Duplex Print, it follows that the two patterns need
not be different. Fabrics printed on one side only, but in such a way
that the design shows equally or nearly so on both sides, are not
Duplex Prints.
=Dyeing.=--This term is used to describe the colouring of materials
to enhance their value and appearance. There are five methods of
producing colour in the fabric:--
1. Raw material dyeing.
2. Yarn dyeing.
3. Cross dyeing.
4. Mixed dyeing.
5. Piece dyeing.
Unless the process is specially mentioned when a fabric is spoken
of as "dyed," it can be taken that what is meant is that the fabric
was "piece-dyed," _i.e._, dyed in the piece after being taken off
the loom. A dyed fabric is one which has been impregnated with some
colouring matter and this irrespective of the means adopted to so
impregnate it. Whether the fabric once woven has been allowed to--
1º. Remain in a dye vat soaking up dye, or
2º. Whether it has been drawn through a series of troughs
containing dye (Continuous or Pad-dyeing process) with a view to
its absorbing the dye--
is immaterial. Where both sides of a fabric are equally coloured, and
where a fabric shows that there has been thorough saturation, that
fabric is said to be dyed.
=Dyed and Printed.=--This term is used to designate any fabric which
has been first impregnated with colouring matter either by being
vat-dyed or pad-dyed, and which in addition has been ornamented by
having certain designs impressed on the surface of the fabric in
either one or more colours. This is known as direct printing. Fabrics
may be dyed and printed by various styles of printing, such as
"Discharge," which consists of printing chemicals upon dyed fabrics
in designs, the chemicals causing the dye to come out wherever
applied, leaving the printed design either white or in a different
colour from that of the dyed ground. "Resist" or "Reserve" style of
printing is a process used to obtain white figures on a coloured
ground. In this process the designs are printed in substances that
are impervious to the dye into which the cloth is subsequently
placed. The cloth is dyed, but all parts covered by the resist agent
remain white.
=Dyed Alpacianos.=--This fabric is found grouped in the Revised
Import Tariff for the Trade of China under "Dyed Cottons."
Alpacianos, as the name of a fabric, seems to have fallen into disuse
and is probably a very old name. Dyed Alpacianos would appear to be
an all-cotton fabric piece-dyed after leaving the loom, probably
averaging between 28 and 31 inches in width and about 25 yards in
length per piece.
The particular weave of Alpacianos is not described in any modern
book of reference dealing with textiles. Names of fabrics vary,
come into fashion, and die out. Few connected with modern textile
industries could describe, say, fabrics such as "Durant," "Tammy," or
"Everlasting Webster," yet not so very long ago there were fabrics
currently sold under these names.
=Dyed Balzarines.=--The cotton variety of this somewhat ancient
fabric was an all-cotton light-weight open fabric resembling gauze,
approximating 30 inches in width and 30 yards in length per piece,
piece-dyed in solid colours after leaving the loom. _See_ Balzarines.
=Dyed Cambrics.=--Real Cambric is essentially a plain-woven linen
fabric of light weight and soft finish, but the kind of Cambric most
often met with is a cotton fabric of similar weave. Dyed Cotton
Cambrics are piece-dyed after leaving the loom and, like White
Cambrics, are generally finished with a smooth glazed surface. The
differentiation between Cotton Cambrics and Muslins is somewhat
difficult, as the term Cambric is often applied to what are in
reality Muslins.
=Dyed Corduroys (Cotton).=--The term is used to describe a pile-weave
ribbed cotton fabric which has been coloured in the piece with a view
to enhance its value and appearance.
=Dyed Cotton Lastings.=--This fabric is a plain all-cotton twill
or kindred weave material firmly woven from hard-twisted yarns and
piece-dyed after weaving. Lastings enter largely into the manufacture
of uppers for boots and shoes.
=Dyed Cotton Spanish Stripes.=--A plain-woven all-cotton fabric
woven with a plain weave, having both surfaces raised, giving the
fabric the general appearance of Flannelette; being a dyed fabric,
it is piece-dyed after leaving the loom. As a distinctive feature,
Spanish Stripes have a list or edge of different colour to the main
body of the fabric. The warp threads are finer and harder twisted
than the filling threads, which are soft and full to facilitate the
raising during the process of finishing. In width this fabric may
vary between 28 and 64 inches, and in length it averages 25 yards. A
similar fabric woven from dyed yarns would be a coloured woven fabric
and would not belong to the dyed cotton variety.
=Dyed Crimp Cloth.=--An all-cotton fabric having the distinctive
"cockled" striped effect of Crimp Cloth. This cockled effect is
produced by greater tension in some of the warp threads than in
others. Dyed Crimp Cloth is piece-dyed after leaving the loom and is
distinguishable from coloured woven Crimp Cloth, which is woven from
coloured yarns. This material seldom exceeds 30 inches in width, the
length per piece varies.
=Dyed Drills.=--A heavy twill-woven all-cotton fabric, the weave of
which is described under "Drills," which has been dyed in the piece,
_i.e._, impregnated with a Uniform colour over its whole surface.
=Dyed Figured Cottons.=--Under this heading may be grouped all
such fabrics which (_a_) are made of all cotton, (_b_) are figured
by having any design, large or small, woven or embossed, on their
surface, (_c_) are dyed in any colour, and (_d_) are not otherwise
enumerated. The fabrics coming under this heading include both
fabrics which have not been subjected to any special process of
finishing and those which have been so treated, irrespective of the
style of finish. The ribs or reps of such fabrics, which are known as
"Reps" or "Ribs," do not in themselves constitute figures. Printing
produces a style of ornamentation which does not rightly belong to
this class of goods, in which it must only be the result of weaving
or embossing.
=Dyed Figured Cotton Italians.=--This name is used to designate an
all-cotton fabric having the characteristic even, close, smooth
surface of the plain Italian Cloth, but which, in addition, has
had its surface ornamented with any figures, floral or geometrical
effects, etc., this figuring having been produced either by means
of extra threads, or by combining the warp and weft threads, or by
having the pattern or outline of the design impressed, stamped, or
embossed in the fabric, which, as it is a "dyed" fabric, has been
coloured after leaving the loom.