Crepe--A light weight silk, silk and wool, or all wool or cotton cloth of irregular weave.

Diagonal--A worsted cloth with prominent diagonal ridges.

Doeskin--A compact twilled woolen, soft and pliable.

Drap D'Alma--A fine, close, flat-ribbed, twilled fabric of wool or silk and wool, finished on but one side.

Drap D'Ete--A fine, light worsted fabric woven in longitudinal cords.

Drilling--General term for various cotton stuffs used for lining men's wear, and general purposes.

Empress cloth--A heavy dress goods with napped or corded surface, named for the Empress Eugenia; sometimes called Electrol cloth or Beretz.

Etamine--A light woolen cloth similar to batiste and nun's cloth, used for women's and children's wear.

Faille Francaise--A soft, lustrous silk of wider cord than grosgrain, but narrower than ottoman.

Farmer Satin--A lining of cotton chain or warp and wool filling, finished with a high lustre, also called Italian cloth.

Flannel--A soft, light weight woolen fabric of which the yarn is but lightly twisted, plain weave or twilled; used for clothing etc.

Flannelette--A half cotton or all cotton flannel-like fabric.

Frieze--A thick, shaggy, heavy nap woolen overcoat cloth.

Gingham was first manufactured in Gonghamp in France and was known as Madras gingham. Seersucker gingham was originally a thin linen fabric made in the East Indies. Zephyr gingham is a soft fine variety of Scotch and French ginghams, are superior qualities, heavier in weight.

Fur Beaver--A long napped cloth imitation fur.

Grass cloth--A fine, smooth, linen woven in checks of blue and white, red and white, etc., used for dish towels; also a thin dress material of ramie and cotton, etc.

Grenadine--A thick silk gauze, either plain with a solid design or pattern upon it or combined in stripes with other weaves, as satin, moire, etc.

Grosgrain--A close-woven, finely ribbed or corded silk with but little lustre.

Haircloth--A cloth woven of horse hair, from which it takes its name, for weft with cotton or linen warp; used for facings, linings, furniture cover, etc.

Holland--A stout, plain-wove, unbleached, linen cloth used for linings, window shades, etc.

Homespun--A cloth woven on hand looms or made in imitation of such cloth for both men's and women's wear.

Hop-sacking--A plain woven canvas dress fabric of wool.

Huchaback--A corruption of huckster-back, meaning originally pedler's ware--Toweling made of all linen, linen and cotton, cotton and wool, either by the yard or as separate towels; the part wool huck always separate towels.

Irish linen--Full bleached, fine, plain woven linen used for shirts, collars, cuffs, etc., of different widths.

Jersey cloth--Woolen stockinette.

Kaikai--A thin Japanese silk.

Kersey--A heavy, closely woven cloth with a smooth face and glossy finish.

Kerseymere--A fine, twilled, woolen cloth of peculiar texture, one thread of warp and two of wool being always above.

Khaki--A light, yellow-brown colored cotton cloth used for army service in hot countries.

Ladies' cloth--A fine, wide, wool flannel, slightly napped, similar to broadcloth.

Lusterine--A thin, twilled, cotton lining finished with high lustre in imitation of silk.

Marseilles--A sort of figured pique, used for women's and children's clothes and for men's coats.

Matelasse--A silk and wool or all wool brocade, usually for coats.

Melton--A stout woolen cloth, fulled, sheared, and finished without a nap; like Kersey, but without a gloss.

Merino--A thin woolen fabric made of the fine wool of the marion sheep, generally used for women's and children's wear, vestings, and underclothing.

Mohair--A shiny fabric of great durability, made from the wool of the Angora goat; used for both men's and women's clothing.

Moire--The water effect produced on silk, moreen, and like fabrics. The finest watered silks are known as Moire Antique. Moreen is a woolen or mixed fabric to which the same process has been applied.

Moleskin--A medium heavy twilled cotton cloth, napped inside; used for men's wear and ornamental purposes.

Muslin--A cotton fabric of various classes and names; bleached and unbleached, half bleached, cambric, book muslin, long cloth, mull, organdie, lawns, etc.; used for all purposes.

Nankeen--A peculiar fabric of a pale dull yellow or orange color, woven out of the fibrous tissue which lies between the outer and sap-wood of a tree or shrub that grows in the East Indies and especially in China. The name is derived from the city of Nankin. An imitation is made out of cotton, colored with Annato. The genuine nankeen is never more than eighteen or twenty inches wide and is used for light summer clothing.

Overcoating--Fabrics woven especially for overcoats--covert, kersey, melton, beaver, frieze, vicuna, whipcord, cheviot, chinchilla, etc., made of both wool and worsted.

Pique--A heavy cotton cloth having a surface that is corded or having a raised lozenge pattern; used for women's and children's suits, men's vests, etc.

Prunella--Lasting cloth.

Sateen--A close twilled cotton fabric, soft and glossy, used for lining.

Satin--A silk fabric having a high lustre on its face.

Satinet--A cheap clothing material similar to cassimere, made with a cotton warp and a filling of short, inferior, shoddy wool which is mixed with enough long wool to enable it to be spun and woven in a way to bring that filling to the surface of the cloth; afterwards fulled, sheared, and the pattern printed on the face.

Serge--A lining of cotton or linen warp and a wool or mohair filling, woven three-leaf twill.

Serge--A fine, diagonal, twilled, worsted--both all worsted and with a worsted warp and woolen filling; used for men's and women's suits.

Shetlands--Very shaggy overcoatings, named from the Shetland pony, the coat of which it is supposed to imitate in appearance.

Shoddy--Waste thrown off in spinning--shredded rags, and bits of cloth manipulated into new cloth.

Sicilian--A mohair fabric.

Silesia--A light, close-woven, fine twilled cotton fabric used for dress linings, etc.

Stockinet--A plain, elastic texture made on a knitting frame, used for underwear, etc.

Surah--A twilled silk similar to serge; first made in Surat, India.

Tricot--A double-twill cloth having both a warp and filling effect.

Tweed--Much like homespun in appearance, both being either twilled or plain. They are made from rough worsted yarn spun at home. In tweed the yarn is harder twisted, giving a more distinct twill. It is generally more compact, less rough, and better finished than homespun.

Uniform cloth--Cloth suitable for uniforms, usually a stout, fulled, woolen cloth, similar to kersey.

Venetian--A cloth milled and cropped bare in finish.

Vicuna--A soft twilled cloth similar to cheviot, made of the Andes vicuna, hence its name.

Whipcord--A worsted cloth having a small, prominent twill.

Yacht cloth--A flannel heavier than ordinary serge or flannel.

* * * * *

Cord--The general term is applied to any fabric in which the lines run in the same direction as the selvage.

Count--In spinning, the number given to any thread or yarn, except silk, to indicate its relative fineness, based on the number of yards required to weigh one pound.

Felt--A cloth of wool, hair, fur, etc., not woven, but felted together; used for hats, slippers, boot tops, etc.

Flock--Finely divided woolen waste used in finishing cheap woolens.

Kemps--Fibers or hair like structure that sometimes come in wool, always in goat hair. They do not take the dye.

Mercerized--A term applied to cotton fabrics of which the yarn is chemically treated with a strong solution of caustic soda, giving the appearance of silk, more or less permanent; named after Mercer, discoverer of the process.

Mill ends--Trade term referring to short lengths, seconds, damaged pieces, etc., of cloth, embroideries, etc., that accumulate in mills and shops and are usually sold at a nominal price.

Narrow cloth--Trade term for fabrics less than 29 inches wide. Wider cloths are called broad cloths.

Oil-boiled--Trade term for colors so treated to insure permanence.

Oiled silk--The plain silk boiled in oil. Silk boiled in oil and dried, becoming translucent and waterproof; used as a perspiration guard.

Pepper-and-salt--A black and white or grayish mixture, effected in weaving.

Rubber cloth--Usually cotton sheeting or drilling with a coating of rubber on one side; used as a protective cloth for various purposes.

Shepherd check--Tiny checks, usually black and white.

Twilled--Woven in such a manner as to produce lines or ribs diagonally or across the surface of the fabric.

Woolens--Name of fabrics or carded wool, usually soft woven.

Worsteds--Fabrics made of combed wool, usually hard woven. The combing is the process of arranging the fibers of wool, mohair, cotton, linen, into a parallel condition, preparatory to spinning into a smooth, even and regular yarn. The perfected application of the combing principle.

BIBLIOGRAPHY ON TEXTILES

Historical and Art

Arts and Crafts Essays $1.00 Morris, Crane, et al. Postage .10

Colonial Days in Old New England 1.25 Alice Morse Earle. Postage .12