Dyes and dyeing

by Charles Ernest Pellew

Now, if the size of the delivery hole is right, and the wax is neither too hot nor too cold, it will form a little globule on the end of the tube, and stay there; and when this drop is wiped off and the tube at once applied to the cloth or other material, the wax will flow out in a fine thin stream, as long as it is drawn along in contact with the cloth, and when lifted up it will stop flowing until again applied to it. If the wax is too hot, so that it runs too freely, it is easy to cool it to the proper temperature by blowing on it. If it is too cool, so that it begins to chill in the tube, and to flow slowly and unevenly, it must be warmed by being again dipped into the hot wax for a new supply. Great pains must be taken to have the wax free from dust or grit, or else the delivery tube will be constantly stopping up. A fine but stiff bristle or a very thin whisk of broom corn should be always on hand for cleaning the tube. And after using the tjanting pains must be taken to clean out all the wax thoroughly before laying it aside, so that the tube will be clear for the melted wax, when it is next filled. The whole tjanting, tube and cup, should be gently warmed before filling, for fear of the wax chilling in the capillary tube before it can be applied. But the arrangement of the handle is such as to call for the use of an outside melting pot for the wax, while the small size of the cup is evidently so that the melted wax can be all poured out before it has time to chill.

Modification of the Javanese Tjanting.—We have with much trouble had some tjantings made here (see Fig. [24]), following closely the Javanese principles, which have proved extremely satisfactory. The delivery tube is equally fine, and the general action is the same. But the cup has been made somewhat larger, and very considerably heavier, so that it will hold more wax, and will hold the heat better. While, for economy’s sake, instead of hammered copper, the cup is made of spun brass, and the wooden handle is attached to its side, and not to the bottom of it. This enables the worker to heat the cup directly over the alcohol lamp, without danger of scorching the handle. Of course, when this is done carelessly, it is liable to char some of the wax in and near the tube, and so to cause stoppages. And also, it is hard to draw a series of fine lines of exactly the same thickness, unless the wax in the tjanting is always of practically the same temperature.

But there is no difficulty in filling these modified tjantings, just as the Javanese do, by scooping up the melted wax from a pot, or by pouring the melted wax into them from a casserole or ladle. While, in case the wax gets chilled in the tjanting, it is very convenient to be able to warm the cup quickly over a low clean flame, or by setting it upon the corner of a hot plate.

Composition of the Wax.—As a general rule we have found that ordinary unrefined beeswax, carefully melted and strained, or poured off, free from dust and sediment, is fairly satisfactory. It is, however, pretty expensive, and so can be replaced, without disadvantage, by the cheaper mineral wax, known in a crude state asOzocerite, and in its refined form, which alone should be employed, asCeresine. To make the wax more brittle, and thus to improve the “crackle,” it is well to add more or less paraffin. And it is well, too, to add considerable rosin, to make the wax adhere better to the goods, and not be so liable to rub or peel off. On the Continent, it is customary to use Japanese vegetable wax instead of beeswax, but we have not found this to be advantageous.

Where economy is desirable, or where it is hard to replace supplies, it is well to save the once used wax and use it over again, by extracting the wax from the goods, after dyeing, with boiling water, and then, when this cools, collecting the wax as a cake floating on the top.

Dyeing Batiked Goods.—In Holland and, to some extent, elsewhere on the Continent, where this process has been introduced, great stress has been laid upon the importance of using the old vegetable colors of the Javanese, along with their tjantings. It is hardly necessary to tell my readers that this practice is both unscientific and, in a true sense, uncraftsmanlike. The object of any intelligent craftsworker should be to produce beautiful and interesting and characteristic results in the most durable and effective manner possible, with the minimum expenditure of energy upon the mechanical, as opposed to the artistic, details. Why, after carefully batiking a good design on a piece of silk or calico, must the craftsman spend hour after hour of valuable time in some tedious, complicated, and expensive dyeing process, simply because “That is the way they do things in Java,” especially when, by using modern dyestuffs, he can get results quite as beautiful and far more permanent, in a few minutes’ time, and with far less danger of spoiling his work. Even the clever and skilful little Javanese could learn something from modern dyeing chemists.

The class of dyestuffs to use depends, of course, on the kind of materials that are being worked on. One of the great charms of this process is that it can be applied to all sorts and kinds of textiles and, indeed, of a host of things never included under that name.

Batik can be applied to cotton, linen, wool, silk, and other woven goods. It can also, if desired, be used upon basketry. And charming effects can be produced, by its aid, upon leather, pasteboard, parchment, vellum, and other bookbinding materials, as well as upon wood, bone, or indeed anything that possesses a smooth surface, and will hold a dyestuff.

On copper, brass, and other metals it can also be used, not, indeed, for dyeing, but for etching, with acids and other chemicals, with great success.

(a)Calico and Linen.—There is no doubt that for vegetable fabrics in general Batik is very well fitted, especially since the introduction of modern dyes, which are applied in a cold bath and are set by oxidation. The Sulphur dyes work extremely well, in cold or lukewarm baths, especially if used in a strong dye-bath. But they, it will be remembered, are not very bright colors, and are very short on the red side. For soft, quiet colorings, however, extremely fast to washing, and quite fast to light, which can be applied easily and readily, they will be found very useful.