ost, if not all the cloths which you see in the retail
dry goods stores which are in plain colors are dyed in the jig. Some
of the cheaper qualities of dyed fabrics are padded in a mangle, but
there has been a very small quantity of these goods on the market for
many years.
Printed fabrics may be made as fast as dyed fabrics; it all depends
upon the process by which the goods are converted. Within the past few
years great headway has been made in dyeing with what are termed _vat_
colors. Indanthrene is a vat color and a great many mills have used
this class of dye successfully in dyeing plain shades. This is what
would be termed a _fast_ color in every sense of the word. There are a
number of dyestuff makers in Europe who put vat colors on the market,
but they all call them by different names. Vat colors have been used
with success in printing during the past year or two, especially on
shirting fabrics, and these colors are fast to both light and washing.
Most direct colors used for printing or dyeing are equally fast to
light and washing, but of course they will not stand the test as well
as the vat colors mentioned above.
The essential qualities of a good printed fabric are its ability to
withstand exposure to light and washing. In printing, of course, a
greater variety of desirable styles can be obtained than by dyeing, in
fact there are certain popular lines of goods now on the market the
effect of the designs of which cannot be obtained in any other way
than by printing. At the same time, although the field in designing
for dyed fabrics is limited, some very handsome effects can be
obtained.
It will not be many years before a large proportion of the printed and
dyed fabrics put on the market, both foreign and domestic, will be in
the vat colors which, as stated above, are very fast. Even at the
present time there are many mills that are using this class of colors
entirely, especially the mills which manufacture woven fabrics.
_Questions_
1. In printed fabrics is the pattern clearly discernible on the back
of the cloth?
2. If the fabric is printed on both sides, how may this fact be
proved?
3. What is the difference between printed and dyed fabrics?
=Experiment 26--Bleaching by Sulphur Dioxide=
Apparatus: A quart bottle.
Material: Sulphur, worsted or silk fabric.
Bleaching powder cannot be used in bleaching animal fibers such as
woolen and silk fabrics. It injures the fibers and a
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