PROBLEM: PORTIÈRES AND COUCH COVERS
Suggestions for the Design.—If the loom is wide enough these may be woven in one piece; but usually it is necessary to weave them in sections or breadths. In this case, of course, they must be afterward neatly joined. The possibilities in colour design are naturally varied. They may be woven with a woof of plain colour contrasting with the colour of the warp, in stripes, or with plain centres with striped ends. Harmony of colour effects is always to be sought. Depth and richness may sometimes be obtained to a highly satisfactory degree by a generous use of black. Materials may be yarns, bits of silk or velvet, or pieces of fine, soft woollen goods. The warp may be silk or linen or mercerized cotton. Beautiful portières have been woven by leaving out two threads of warp at regular intervals, giving a loose and fluffy effect. Silk and wool pieces may be used in the woof, alternating with one or more threads of wool yarn of any desired shade; and, if of the same colour as the warp used, they will impart a very decided tone to the whole product. In portières, the general appearance is much improved if the woof is not beaten up hard into the warp. The soft beating gives a resulting texture that is more pliable and more suitable for hanging in easy folds such as is demanded in portières. Couch covers, however, which will have to resist more wear and tear, should be beaten up harder. In preparing the silk and wool pieces the cloth should be cut into very fine strips, joined by carefully lapping the ends, and, by cutting away a part of the cloth, making the joint uniform in size. If the material is cloth of ordinary thickness 1⁄2 an inch is quite wide enough for strips. The length of the pieces used may vary greatly, though they may be somewhat different in colour. They may vary all the way from a few inches to a length long enough to weave an inch in the portière or cover. This makes it very easy to secure a source of supply for the material in saving old garments and short pieces of cloth for the specific purpose of making up the woof threads for these products of the loom. Almost any household will be able to save enough in a short time to furnish the material for a beautiful pair of portières or a couch cover which will be durable in quality, easy to clean, attractive in colour, and satisfactory from every point of view.