Years ago the most successful shades of cardinal were produced by
taking about equal parts of turmeric and oxalic acid and diluting in
boiling water, entering feathers in same for a while; then adding
thereto about half a cupful of extract of safflower and about the same
amount of extract of archil, letting them remain in until the bath was
cold. Not a bad recipe, but very expensive.
Prepare your feathers by washing and rinsing thoroughly, after which
take about one gallon of boiling water, and add to it about one
teaspoonful of oxalic acid, and enter feathers for a few seconds. Take
out and add to bath a teaspoonful of rocceline powder, thoroughly
dissolved, and re-enter feathers; raise temperature of bath to boiling,
either with steam or fire, and let feathers remain in about four
minutes. If quite a dark shade of cardinal be required, add to bath
about a tablespoonful of extract of archil and let remain in a little
longer, or a few drops of diluted violet in bath will answer instead.
Then empty out all but a small quantity of your bath and cool off with
cold water, and add a small handful of starch. Pass feathers through,
squeeze out and dry. The result is a most beautiful shade of cardinal.
This color is perfectly fast to light. If your shade to match should
happen to be slightly on the yellowish order, a few drops of diluted
aniline brown added to bath with rocceline will produce the yellowish
tint. It is hardly possible to spoil this color, except by the
extravagant use of one of the ingredients.
[Illustration: CHOCOLATE--page 75.]
[Illustration: CORN--page 64.]
[Illustration: MEDIUM BLUE--page 67.]
[Illustration: BEIGE]