The Knitted Rug Page 6

        Page 1 - Page 2 - Page 3 - Page 4 - Page 5 - Page 6 - Page 7 - Page 8 - Page 9 - Page 10
        Page 11 - Page 12

When this is done the hanks are ready for the indigo vat, both those that are to be dyed plain green and those to be dyed green and yellow.

In Colonial days our great-grandmothers made their shaded wool by this method. They wrapped part of their skeins of woolen thread with corn husks and tied these about tightly with linen thread to give the necessary pressure. The portions covered with the husks retained the original color of the wool while those exposed became the color of the dye bath into which they were put. Hundred of years be-fore, the ancient Greeks used the same principle to produce undulating lines for borders on their garments by twisting and tying the cloth. Some patterns were even made by knotting the fabric in certain ways.

As the corn husks which our grandmothers used are not a commercial commodity, an available substitute can be found in raffia, which is used by florists for tying their flowers and by the market gardener to tie up asparagus. This can be had at any firm keeping garden supplies.

Grounding with Indigo and Greening with Quercitron: The material ready for the dye bath must be dyed blue or grounded with indigo before it can be greened with quercitron bark, the yellow dye. When overlaying one color upon another to produce a third, the color which has the darker value must be dyed first. For instance, while dyeing yellow over blue to make green, the blue is dyed first, for though the yellow changes the color of the blue it does not alter the tone value which has already been fixed by the depth of tone in the blue dye.

Dyeing with Indigo and Setting the Indigo Vat: For the craftsman indigo is not only the greatest of all blue dyes, but the greatest of all dyestuffs. It has the invaluable quality of being the only blue dye which does not lose its tone or color value in artificial light. It is a vegetable product and a very beautiful and permanent color which with varied treatments can be applied to silk, wool, cotton or linen. the vat method being preferred for all fabrics.

Page 1 - Page 2 - Page 3 - Page 4 - Page 5 - Page 6 - Page 7 - Page 8 - Page 9 - Page 10
Page 11 - Page 12

The Craft Of Handmade Rugs - View The Rest Of The Book

Introduction - Some Old Time Rugs - A Word About Dyes - The Braided Rug - The Scalloped Doormat Or Tongue Rug - The Crocheted Rug - The Hooked Rug In Cotton And Wool - The Needle-Woven Rug
The Colonial Rag Rug - Some Applications - Newer Methods Of Stencil Making - The Tufted Counterpane
Old Time Lights - The Batik Or Wax Resist Process