Printed Tapestry Brussels

"Printed" tapestry carpets are an inferior grade. They are sold in many cases for the usual tapestry carpet and the layman fails to detect the difference. They are made by weaving yarn, undyed or of a uniform tone of color, on a tapestry loom. After the fabric is woven, it is placed on large 10 revolving drums. Large pattern rollers, with the de-sired design of carpet engraved on them, arc put in contact with the face of the woven fabric which is on these large drums, and the pattern is printed by rotating the drums and rollers, hut one roller being used for each color. They are in this manner printed on the face of the carpets and through the fabric to the hack. Therefore they are first woven and then the pattern is printed, as can he seen if close examination is made.

Tapestry Brussels And Body Brussels And Velvets

The difference between the yarn of the best tapestry Brussels and a body Brussels or Wilton rug, is that in the tapestry rug the yarns are printed before weaving, while in body Brussels or Wilton carpets the yarns are dyed before weaving. By taking hold of a body Brussels or a Wilton velvet rug and turning it to see the back, one will see that the colors are woven through and show on the back, while they do not show through on the tapestry and cheaper velvet. This is the best way for the inexperienced to detect the higher grade carpetings.

The body Brussels carpet is much better than the tapestry grades, in that it is made of a worsted yarn built upon a linen or lisle chain and a linen weft.

The "Wilton" velvet is made the same, but the "pile" is usually longer than the loops of a Brussels, because the wires over which they are woven are usually thicker. Also there are three shots of linen weft thread to each wire, while there are but two shots in the Brussels, which accounts for the difference in weight.

Seldom more than six colors or "frames" are used in weaving these rugs and some run as low as four colors. The more the colors the heavier the rug. This doesn't mean that the colors all show on the top at once, as when the colors are not needed on the surface they are "planted" or buried and go to form the back of the rug.

Plain Wiltons are cheaper because woven on an entirely different machine.

Tapestry carpets are cheaper in that they have a "jute" stuffer yarn, a cotton chain, and a linen, jute or cotton weft, which acts as a binding thread for the wool or worsted loops.

The best velvet carpets may also resemble the Wiltons in having three shots of filling weft to each wire, where in the medium or lower grades only two shots are used, as can be detected by close examination.

Qualities of Wilton rugs vary; some are half wool face, some are wool, others are half wool and half worsted, while others are one-third wool and two-thirds worsted and still others are all worsted.

The difference between "woolen" and "worsted" fabrics is very hard to detect. The "woolen" threads are spun from short staple wool, while the "worsted" threads are spun from long staple wool and are harder twisted. Constant handling of carpetings is about the only way by which a person can become familiar with the different fabrics.