Carpets

by R. S. Brinton

In recent years it has been turned to a notable development in the art of carpet making; the production of medallion breadth squares. This involves the exercise of the greatest ingenuity and skill on the part of the designer, heavy expense in respect of card-cutting, and the greatest care in weaving and finishing. When completed, a medallion square is a triumph of technique. The number of sizes available is obviously limited; but a carpet of each size is absolutely perfect in design, matching everywhere, as well as if made laboriously by hand, instead of being the product of machinery and brains.

Coming back once more to the final stages of finishing, though the roll of carpeting, body, border, or stair, is complete and ready for the market when it is rolled and papered, this is not the case with the breadth square, which has so far been treated in the same way. The square, or series of squares, which are still in a continuous roll, are cut up into their proper lengths, matched, and sorted. They are then passed to the sewing room, to be made up into complete carpets. Hand sewing has been superseded in most factories by mechanical sewing, by hand or electric power, for which Messrs. Singer supply a very efficient machine. In the larger power machine made by this house, the breadths to be sewn together are clipped face to face with flush edges, and stretched in the frame of the machine in such a way that the moving part of the mechanism runs along over the two edges and sews them together. The ends of the carpet, top and bottom, are then turned over and hemmed by hand or machine. The carpet is then fastened to the floor, face downwards, and the seams are damped and then pressed with a heavy heated iron. If these operations have been properly performed, and if the edges of the breadths are good, the seams of the carpet will be barely visible. The carpet is then finished, though some manufacturers prefer to stretch their carpets by attaching them tightly to a frame, and leaving them for some hours.

From the sewing room the carpets pass to the stock room or the packing room.

CHAPTER VI
WILTON

Wilton carpeting is similar in manufacture in many respects to Brussels. The loom is practically the same for both fabrics, convertible from one to the other without much difficulty or expense. The preparation of yarns for worsted pile, chain, stuffer, and weft is substantially identical, while most of what has been said with regard to weaving and finishing operations applies no less to Brussels than to Wilton.

The essential differences are two—a major and a minor one. In the first place, the loops of worsted yarns are cut, so that the character of the surface is velvety instead of smooth and ribbed. This is effected by the use of a narrow wire ending in a knife blade, which blade stands outside the fabric when the wire is inserted, but severs the loops of worsted when the wire is withdrawn.

The second difference, which, however, does not apply to all grades of Wilton carpet, is that for the sake of holding down the pile more securely, there are three shots of weft to each row of pile, instead of two. This is effected by an adjustment of the gear and harness motions, in such a way that the lash or shed of worsted selected to form the pattern does not rise alternately with the shed of the chain, but once in every three picks of the shuttle or beats of the sley.

The cutting of the yarn, resulting as it does in exposing to view the ends instead of the sides of the wool fibre, gives a richer and softer surface effect both in appearance and in feel, while the treble weft shot makes a better weave and a firmer fabric. Generally also Wilton carpeting is woven closer, with more rows to the inch, than Brussels, which necessitates, incidentally, the use of thinner wires.

The standard best or Super Wilton carpet is 256 pitch, with a beat-up of 10 to the inch, woven with a wire about 3/16 in. high; a linen weft is used, and a stuffer of bump. Five frames of worsted are generally employed. This is an excellent carpet for dining and drawing rooms, theatres, show rooms, and restaurants, and will wear well. Several better qualities are made, however; and the fabric lends itself readily to fine and luxurious effects. Wires are used occasionally as high as 3/8 in. or more.