Introduction
Pat Langford was an artist/embroiderer who died at the age of 75 in 2003. She contributed to the promotion of textile arts in Australia by drawing attention to the possibilities of embroidery as an expressive art form. Her embroidery is characterised by an acute observation of the world around her, an inventive approach to technique and a marvellous use of color. She explored the expressive possibilities of fabric and thread just as painters have explored those of brushstrokes and paint. By her own estimate she completed more than 300 major pieces, which were exhibited in many solo and group shows as well as in an innumerable number of smaller exhibitions. She authored a book, 'Embroidery from Sketch to Stitch' which was first published in 1996 by Kangaroo Press, Sydney (ISBN 0 7318 1008 2). The images below and texts have been taken from her publication. It is a wonderful testament to her art.
Enjoy!
Marie-Therese Wisniowski
The Embroidery Art of Pat Langford
Title: Kitchen Window.
Comment[1]: The shiny surfaces of paintwork, pots and glasses are illustrated in this piece using the simple richness of gold kid as a foil to the mass of detail.
Technique and Material[1]: Gold kid, one of the richest materials possible, was used as a background. It helps reveal the quality of light in this corner. The window was cut into the kid and the blue papers were laid behind. After a lot of machining copper leaf was added for the highlights.
Size: 32 x 38 cm.
Title: Spinifex Circle.
Comment[1]: The spinifex grass grows in wonderful roundish shapes, enlarging year-by-year as the center dies out. The formations can vary greatly, some growing as rings and some as domes. It is very easy to see why marsupial mice favour spinifex for their homes. The mystery of the spinifex circle seemed to be suggested by the small contained works.
Technique and Material[1]: Because the ground was very hard around the spinifex grass, I didn't use any padding here, just a piece of calico to support the fabric. Small pieces of organza were stitched down first. I then searched for different kinds of threads to cut up in short lengths which I attached in bundles to suggest the grass, plus many other small pieces of materials.
Size: 46 x 41 cm.
Title: Clutter in the Window.
Comment[1]: 'Clutter in the Window' exploits the quality of gold kid as a background to offset the mass of stitchery.
Technique and Material[1]: Also uses gold kid. This time smaller windows were cut and an etching laid behind. Just a suggestion of quilting is used for the window recess.
Size: 32 x 38 cm.
Title: After the Party.
Comment[1]: Suggests the emptiness of the house after everybody has left.
Technique and Material[1]: Uses layers of different colored paper with bands of gold, all machined together. Metal threads and gold leaf were added as final touches.
Size: 32 x 38 cm.
Title: Deep Windows.
Comment[1]: The dark blue paper emphasises the depth of the window.
Technique and Material[1]: A non reflective surface was used with different papers machined down and gold paint with gold leaf applied before cutting an irregular edge.
Size: 32 x 38 cm.
Title: Double Image.
Comment[1]: I mounted two windows side-by-side to make this special image. The gold machine stitching and the final overlay of gold leaf linked the works together, the two images revealing two moods at the same time.
Technique and Material[1]: The two parts of Double Image are on different backgrounds. The left-hand one uses paper. This time the windows were just outlined by machine with the highlight of the glass in painted gold paper. The right-hand side is worked on a non-reflective surface. This time the glass of the windows is suggested by gold kid and gold paper.
Title: The Rose Wall (detail view).
Comment[1]: It seemed to me that the rose was the dominant flower throughout England. Roses climbed over fences and arbours, there were separate rose gardens everywhere. This rose was spectacular as it climbed the inside wall of a house, almost reaching the roof.
Technique and Material[1]: Having chosen the fabric and colors from the flower heads, I transferred the gold paint onto the background fabric by doing a mono print. Using a thicker wadding I then quilted this part to give the suggestion of a brick or stone wall. The flowers were worked on water-soluble fabric, two layers stretched in an embroidery hoop to give extra strength while stitching. I used gold and copper metallic thread and Isofel in a metal needle with machine embroidery, using the same threads in the bobbin. The next step was to dip the fabric in a bowl of water to dissolve, leaving the flowers as a kind of embroidered appliqué to machine onto the background.
Size: 84 x 54 cm.
Title: Richard Grows Dahlias (detail view).
Comment[1]: Such a glow of color. My cousin Richard has a passion for dahlias so his back garden is full of different varieties: from the largest blooms to the smallest pom-poms. There seems to be new colors every time I look at his garden. His wife Val doesn't like dahlias and so he grows chrysanthemums for her.
Reference:
[1] P. Langford, Embroidery from Sketch to Stitch, Kangaroo Press, Sydney (1996).
Preamble
For your convenience, I have listed other posts in this series on this blogspot:
Hawaiian Quilts - Part I
Hawaiian Quilts - Part II
Hawaiian Quilts - Part III
Introduction [1]
By the 1870s Hawaiians had developed their own approach to quilt design, filling the entire top of their quilts with a single large appliqué. To make appliqué quilts, Hawaiians typically folded the piece of cloth from which the appliqué is to be cut, in eighths. Usually the fabric is folded in half vertically, the left side brought over to meet the right edge. The second fold is horizontal again halving the fabric by bringing the top down to meet the bottom edge. The third and final fold creates a triangle by drawing the top right corner down to the lower left corner. The fabric is ironed after each fold to lay the seam as flat as possible.
Fabric folded into eighths.
The quilter then pencils on the appliqué design, which, like the folded fabric, is exactly one-eight the size of the quilt. Early quilters drew their designs free-hand directly on the cloth; paper and cloth patterns came into use in the nineteenth century.
Appliqué design is exactly one-eighth of the quilt.
After tracing, the pattern is ready to be cut. All eight layers of the folded fabric are cut at the same time. (Some of today's quilters skip the folding by cutting around a full paper pattern. Usually the border design is cut first and then the central design.
Unfold your cut out design, then pin or glue to the white background fabric leaving a space to turn your applique edge.
After carefully unfolding the material to reveal the symmetrical cutwork design, the appliqué is placed on a solid-coloured quilt top and, working from the center out to the edges and border, basted in place with long stitches. The basting holds the material in place while much finer and more closely spaced invisible hand appliqué stitching is applied to finish the job. When the needlework of the top is completed, batting is placed between the top and a backing fabric, which is usually a piece of solid coloured cloth that matches the background color of the top.
Both in technique and style, Hawaiian appliqué bears a striking resemblance to the cut paper work that was popular in the northern eastern United States during the early decades of the nineteenth century. Many Pennsylvania Germans practiced scherenschnitte, a form of decorative folded paper cutting common in German-speaking areas of Europe. Similar cut paper designs were executed by New England schoolgirls, who crafted valentines, memorials, and pastoral pictures with scissors. Although no documentary evidence has been found to confirm the theory, paper cutting may well have been introduced to Hawaii by missionaries who were familiar with it.
Hawaiian Quilt Designs - Part IV [1]
Artists Alice Mahelona: Bird of Paradise (ca 1925).
Materials and Techniques: Cottons, hand appliqué and quilted.
Size: 83 x 79 inches.
Mission House Museum, Honolulu.
Gift of Margo Armitage Morgan.
Comment[1]: The addition of a number of small, appliqué tricoloured flowers between the center and border motifs brightens and enlivens the quilt's highly stylized design. The unusual combination of Jazz Age colors, including jade green, lemon yellow, pink, and dark blue, probably reflects the wide range of cotton fabrics available to the professional dressmaker in the 1920s. The quilt is backed with a sheet of bright pink fabric.
Artists Unknown: Unnamed Floral Pattern (ca 1930).
Materials and Techniques: Cottons, hand appliqué and quilted.
Size: 92 x 84 inches.
Collection of Susan Parrish Antiques.
Comment[1]: Although most Hawaiian quilts are square, this example was made in a slightly elongated shape to accommodate its unusual overall design. The central fits within a square. However, the quilt maker decided to extend the design to fit a rectangle shape. To fill out the corners of the rectangle, the quilter has added an almost complete, nearly exact mirror image of the floral design unit that repeats four times to form the interlocking pattern.
Artists Mary Kaulahao: Flower Vase of the ('Iolani') Palace (ca 1930).
Materials and Techniques: Cottons, hand appliqué and quilted.
Size: 92 x 84 inches.
Collection of Lyman House Memorial Museum.
Comment[1]: Iolani is Hawaiian for 'Bird of Heaven'. The design for this quilt was inspired by the etched pattern on the glass doors of 'Iolani Palace in Honolulu. This quilt embodies the strong nationalistic feelings of most Hawaiians of the period, who correctly feared their islands and their sovereignty would be ultimately wrested from them by foreigners.
Artists Unknown: Unnamed Floral Pattern (ca 1930).
Materials and Techniques: Cottons, hand appliqué and quilted.
Size: 78.5 x 75 inches.
The Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, Vermont.
Comment[1]: This quilt's dynamic appliqué cut-out creates a pattern that combines positive (blue-on-white) and negative (white-on-blue) designs of equal size and strength. Two almost identical enclosed large half-circular white-on-blue designs fill the sides of the quilt's central X shape and create a powerful visual pulse at the quilt's center.
Artists Hannah Ku'umililani Cummings Baker: Pikake and Tuberose (ca 1938).
Materials and Techniques: Plain woven cotton, hand appliqué and quilted, with machine stitched edging.
Size: 86 x 86 inches.
The Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, Vermont.
Comment[1]: This lovely, lay quilt is typical of Baker's best work, combining a strong central design with a complex, complementary border and detailed quilting.
Artists Unknown: Unnamed Floral Print (ca 1940).
Materials and Techniques: Cottons, hand appliqué and quilted, with machine stitched edging.
Size: 85 x 81 inches.
Collection of Ardis and Robert James.
Comment[1]: This bold red-on-white design sets a large cross shape at the center of the quilt and adds V-shaped forms, suggestive of potted plants, in the four corners. A small, negative white diamond at the very center is echoed by the overall form of the central design. The cross shape is filled out with a repeating pattern of smaller floral designs set on and within a linear framework that makes up a four-pointed star.
Artists Unknown: Ka Ua Kani Lehua [The Rain That Rustles Lehua Blossoms] (ca 1940-50).
Materials and Techniques: Cottons, hand appliqué and quilted, with machine stitched edging.
Size: 84 x 78 inches.
Private Collection.
Comment[1]: Lehua blossoms are among those most commonly used for leis, the garland made of flowers, hair, leaves, nuts, shells, or other natural objects that have been made and worn by Hawaiians for centuries. Early Hawaiians identified themselves with particular natural objects and often wore or gave leis made from their personal totems.
Reference:
[1] Hawaiian Quilt Masterpieces, Robert Shaw, Hugh Lauter Levin Associates, Inc., China, 1996, ISBN 0-88363-396-5.
Preamble
For your convenience I have listed below the other post in this series:
Art Nouveau (Part I)
Art Nouveau (Part III)
Art Nouveau (Part IV)
Introduction [1]
Art Nouveau in its development relied heavily of new printing processes that were becoming available. These processes which were invented in the second half of the nineteenth century made possible the reproduction of polychromatic submissions, with the number of copies published being unrestricted; the representatives of Art Nouveau availed themselves of this possibility.
An old print machine used to make the lines on paper Letterpress, Art Nouveau.
The synthesis of art into daily life embedded itself in the production of books and magazines as well as periodicals. Their inclusion would stimulate the imagination of the reader in order to give rise to a new and visual consciousness of possibilities. Education and political intentions often formed the basis of such endeavours: art was to become popular, and a common property. The dual aim was to take pleasure in the imagery as well as heighten, educate and cultivate public taste for this new form.
Art Nouveau Typographic Ornaments - Wall Corners.
In every European country, numbers of periodicals were founded at that time: in Paris, "Revue Blanche" (1891); in London, "The Studio" (1893); in Berlin, "Pan" (1895); in Munich "Simplicissimus" and "Jugend" (both 1896); and in Vienna, "Ver Sacrum" (1898) - to name the most important forums for the new art, which was not necessarily identical with Art Nouveau.
Art Nouveau (Part II) [1]
Walter Crane (1845 - 1915)
Floral symbolism played an important role in European Art Nouveau. Flowers, plants, blossoms and leaves feature reportedly as an essential decorative, but also as a symbolic element in works from around the turn of the century. The flower as a symbol of fertility, of the feminine, of sexuality, is often portrayed in detail, in a manner which highlights similiarities with male and female genitals.
Walter Crane, with his numerous publications, was the main theorist of Art Nouveau in Britain. As an academic teacher he was a mentor to a whole generation of artists who subscribed to the new style; he thus represents the link in the chain between the Pre-Raphaelites and Art Nouveau.
Illustration for A Floral Fantasy in an Old English Garden, 1899 (Detail).
Technique: Autotype.
Size: 19.9 x 14 cm.
Josef Hoffmann (1870 - 1956)
The founding member of the Viennese "Secession", the architect and graphic artist Josef Hoffmann, is one of those representatives of Art Nouveau who realised most consistently the notion of "the synthesis of the arts" in their work. Dozens of public and private buildings were erected according to his plans (mainly in Vienna). The famous Palais Stoclet in Brussels should be mentioned. He designed furniture, wallpaper, crockery, and jewellery. From 1899 onwards he was Professor of Architecture at the College of Commercial Art in Vienna.
Two Designs for House Entrances, 1898, from "Ver Sacrum", Vol. 1, No. 7, page 14 (Full Size).
Technique: Pen and ink.
Size: 12.5 x 16.5 cm.
Fritz Endet (1873 - 1955)
After studying theology, Fritz Endet turned to painting. From the sea grows a mermaid, the concrete combines with the fantastic as ornamental becomes life. However attractive his wood engraving appears, one cannot help but feeling he has taken Art Nouveau to a point here, which permits no further development; it collapses inwardly, juste like a wave consumed by its own energy.
The Wave, 1900/1902 (Detail).
Technique: Color wood engraving on Japanese paper.
Size: 26 x 11.7 cm.
Wassily Kandinsky (1866 - 1944)
No other artist in the Modern Era underwent such a gross and sudden change in his approach as Wassily Kandinsky and yet had such an enduring influence on his contemporaries. After studying Law and Economics in Moscow (the city of his birth) his first artistic endeavours in 1897 centered on painting. That same year he went to Munich and became a student of Franz von Stuck. He was appointed Professor at the Art Academy in Moscow in 1918. In 1921 he returned to Germany and, until 1933, was Professor at the "Bauhaus" in Weimar and Dessau; when the Nazis seized power he emigrated to Paris, where he died eleven years later. His early works, influenced by his teacher Stuck, revealed a closeness to Art Nouveau. As both illustrations show (see below) Russian folklore has left his stamp on them; similar motifs can be found in the work of Chagall, twenty years Kandinsky's junior.
Wood-Engravings from the portfolio "Xylographies" (1907).
Size: 14.2 x 14.4 cm.
Wood-Engravings from the portfolio "Xylographies" (1907).
Size: 14.2 x 14.4 cm.
Jessie Marion King (1876 - 1949)
If one considers how often in Art Nouveau the woman, female eroticism, is examined and how often the woman is elevated as the giver of life, a symbol of fertility, it is astonishing that there is hardly a single female representative of this artistic style. On the other hand, this fact is perhaps an expression of a changing social role of women around the turn of the century, to which men reacted in an uncertain manner. We are much more likely to find answers to these questions in Viennese Art Nouveau, which was confronted with the results of research by Sigmund Freud, than in the graphic prints of Jesse Marion King.
Illustration for "The Magic Grammar", 1902 (Detail).
Technique: Autotype.
Size: 23.5 x 17 cm.
Aristide Maillol (1861 - 1944)
The French sculptor, graphic artist and painter is mainly known for his plastic art, to which he turned his attention in the 1880s, or for his book illustrations which were printed between 1925 and 1938. The latter, although they were produced much later, reveal, in the logically consistent use of line, a link with graphic art, executed in Art Nouveau style, of which the illustration below is an example. Maillol's penchant for sculpture can be seen in the plasticity of the girl's body, around which swirling water laps.
The Wave (ca. 1898).
Technique: Wood engraving.
Size: 17 x 19.5 cm.
Reference
[1] P. Bramböck, Art Nouveau, Tiger Books Internation, London (1988).
Preamble
This is the ninety-second post in the "Art Resource" series, specifically aimed to construct an appropriate knowledge base in order to develop an artistic voice in ArtCloth.
Other posts in this series are:
Glossary of Cultural and Architectural Terms
Units Used in Dyeing and Printing of Fabrics
Occupational, Health & Safety
A Brief History of Color
The Nature of Color
Psychology of Color
Color Schemes
The Naming of Colors
The Munsell Color Classification System
Methuen Color Index and Classification System
The CIE System
Pantone - A Modern Color Classification System
Optical Properties of Fiber Materials
General Properties of Fiber Polymers and Fibers - Part I
General Properties of Fiber Polymers and Fibers - Part II
General Properties of Fiber Polymers and Fibers - Part III
General Properties of Fiber Polymers and Fibers - Part IV
General Properties of Fiber Polymers and Fibers - Part V
Protein Fibers - Wool
Protein Fibers - Speciality Hair Fibers
Protein Fibers - Silk
Protein Fibers - Wool versus Silk
Timelines of Fabrics, Dyes and Other Stuff
Cellulosic Fibers (Natural) - Cotton
Cellulosic Fibers (Natural) - Linen
Other Natural Cellulosic Fibers
General Overview of Man-Made Fibers
Man-Made Cellulosic Fibers - Viscose
Man-Made Cellulosic Fibers - Esters
Man-Made Synthetic Fibers - Nylon
Man-Made Synthetic Fibers - Polyester
Man-Made Synthetic Fibers - Acrylic and Modacrylic
Man-Made Synthetic Fibers - Olefins
Man-Made Synthetic Fibers - Elastomers
Man-Made Synthetic Fibers - Mineral Fibers
Man Made Fibers - Other Textile Fibers
Fiber Blends
From Fiber to Yarn: Overview - Part I
From Fiber to Yarn: Overview - Part II
Melt-Spun Fibers
Characteristics of Filament Yarn
Yarn Classification
Direct Spun Yarns
Textured Filament Yarns
Fabric Construction - Felt
Fabric Construction - Nonwoven fabrics
A Fashion Data Base
Fabric Construction - Leather
Fabric Construction - Films
Glossary of Colors, Dyes, Inks, Pigments and Resins
Fabric Construction – Foams and Poromeric Material
Knitting
Hosiery
Glossary of Fabrics, Fibers, Finishes, Garments and Yarns
Weaving and the Loom
Similarities and Differences in Woven Fabrics
The Three Basic Weaves - Plain Weave (Part I)
The Three Basic Weaves - Plain Weave (Part II)
The Three Basic Weaves - Twill Weave
The Three Basic Weaves - Satin Weave
Figured Weaves - Leno Weave
Figured Weaves – Piqué Weave
Figured Fabrics
Glossary of Art, Artists, Art Motifs and Art Movements
Crêpe Fabrics
Crêpe Effect Fabrics
Pile Fabrics - General
Woven Pile Fabrics
Chenille Yarn and Tufted Pile Fabrics
Knit-Pile Fabrics
Flocked Pile Fabrics and Other Pile Construction Processes
Glossary of Paper, Photography, Printing, Prints and Publication Terms
Napped Fabrics – Part I
Napped Fabrics – Part II
Double Cloth
Multicomponent Fabrics
Knit-Sew or Stitch Through Fabrics
Finishes - Overview
Finishes - Initial Fabric Cleaning
Mechanical Finishes - Part I
Mechanical Finishes - Part II
Additive Finishes
Chemical Finishes - Bleaching
Glossary of Scientific Terms
Chemical Finishes - Acid Finishes
Finishes: Mercerization
Finishes: Waterproof and Water-Repellent Fabrics
Finishes: Flame-Proofed Fabrics
Finishes to Prevent Attack by Insects and Micro-Organisms
Other Finishes
Shrinkage - Part I
Shrinkage - Part II
Progressive Shrinkage and Methods of Control
Durable Press and Wash-and-Wear Finishes - Part I
Durable Press and Wash-and-Wear Finishes - Part II
Durable Press and Wash-and-Wear Finishes - Part III
Durable Press and Wash-and-Wear Finishes - Part IV
Durable Press and Wash-and-Wear Finishes - Part V
The General Theory of Dyeing – Part I
The General Theory Of Dyeing - Part II
Natural Dyes
Natural Dyes - Indigo
Mordant Dyes
Premetallized Dyes
Azoic Dyes
Basic Dyes
Acid Dyes
Disperse Dyes
Direct Dyes
Reactive Dyes
Sulfur Dyes
Blends – Fibers and Direct Dyeing
The General Theory of Printing
There are currently eight data bases on this blogspot, namely, the Glossary of Cultural and Architectural Terms, Timelines of Fabrics, Dyes and Other Stuff, A Fashion Data Base, the Glossary of Colors, Dyes, Inks, Pigments and Resins, the Glossary of Fabrics, Fibers, Finishes, Garments and Yarns, Glossary of Art, Artists, Art Motifs and Art Movements, Glossary of Paper, Photography, Printing, Prints and Publication Terms and the Glossary of Scientific Terms, which has been updated to Version 3.5. All data bases will be updated from time-to-time in the future.
If you find any post on this blog site useful, you can save it or copy and paste it into your own "Word" document etc. for your future reference. For example, Safari allows you to save a post (e.g. click on "File", click on "Print" and release, click on "PDF" and then click on "Save As" and release - and a PDF should appear where you have stored it). Safari also allows you to mail a post to a friend (click on "File", and then point cursor to "Mail Contents On This Page" and release). Either way, this or other posts on this site may be a useful Art Resource for you.
The Art Resource series will be the first post in each calendar month. Remember - these Art Resource posts span information that will be useful for a home hobbyist to that required by a final year University Fine-Art student and so undoubtedly, some parts of any Art Resource post may appear far too technical for your needs (skip over those mind boggling parts) and in other parts, it may be too simplistic with respect to your level of knowledge (ditto the skip). The trade-off between these two extremes will mean that Art Resource posts will hopefully be useful in parts to most, but unfortunately may not be satisfying to all!
Progressive Shrinkage and Methods of Control[1]
Thermoplastic Fibers
Thermoplastic fibers are stabilised by heat-setting. If properly heat-set fabrics will exhibit no progressive shrinkage and relaxation shrinkage will have been controlled also.
Wool Fibers
Washable wool is important in children's clothing, in skin-contact clothing, bed covers and in blends with washable fibers.
If wool fabrics are to maintain their position in the competitive market with fabrics made from wool-like fibers that have easy-care characteristics, they must be finished to keep their original size and surface texture with home cleaning methods. It might be assumed that people who can afford professional care will not be interested in washing wools. Another assumption might be that washable wools (those given a felting shrinkage control treatment) are poor-to-medium quality wools. Whether or not these assumptions are true, felting shrinking is important today, as evidenced by that fact that 250 patents for felt proofing wool were issued prior to 1957 and many more have been issued since.
Woolen felt proof hat.
To prevent felting shrinkage, the finish must alter the scale structure by "smoothing off" the free edges and thus reduce the differential friction effect that prevents wool fibers from returning to their original position in the cloth. The effectiveness of felting shrinkage treatments depends on the kind and amount of finish used, and on the yarn and fabric construction. Worsteds need less finish than woollens. Low-count fabrics and low-twist yarns need more finish to give good washability.
Treated wool fabrics are usually considered machine washable, but care should be taken to use warm, not hot, water and a short agitation period. Hand washing is preferable, since soil is easy to remove from the fiber and the hand washing process ensures lower temperatures and less agitation. Machine washing may cause more loosening of fibers, which results in fuzzy or slightly pilled surface.
Two methods are used to smooth off the free edges of scales; halogenation treatments and surface coatings.
Halogenation
Halogenation treatments are the most widely used - primarily chlorine. They are low in cost, can be applied to large batches of small items such as wool socks, do not require padding or curing equipment and are fairly effective. The processes are quite delicate and if not carefully done, are apt to damage the fibers. The scales are more resistant to damage than the interior of the fiber and should not be completely removed or there will be considerable reduction. in the wearing properties, there will be a loss of weight, and change in hand. The fabric will fell harsh and rough. To maintain the strength of the fabric, 18% nylon fiber is blended with the wool before weaving.
Surface coatings of a polyamide-type solution are applied to mask the scales. This is a very thin, microscopic film on the outside of the fiber. In addition to controlling shrinkage, the coating tends to minimise pilling and fuzzing (one of the greatest problems in wash-and-wear wools), give the fabrics better wash-and-wear properties and increases resistance to abrasion. This process carries the trade name Wurlan. It was developed in the USA.
Rayon Fibers
The shrinkage of regular rayon varies with the handling of the fabric when et. While it is wet, it can be stretched and it is difficult to keep from overstitching during the process. If it is dried in this stretched condition, it will have a high potential shrinkage and shrink when wet again and dried without tension, because the moisture in the fabric adds enough weight yo stretch it.
Shrinkage control treatments for rayon reduce the swelling property of the fiber and make it resistant to distortion. Resins are impregnated inside the fiber to form cross-links that prevent swelling and keep the fiber from stretching. The resin also fills up spaces in the amphora's regions of the fiber, making it less absorbent.
The non nitrogenous resins (the aldehydes) are superior to the other resins because they do not weaken the fabric and are non chlorine retentive and have excellent wash fastness. Treated rayons are machine washable, but the wash cycle should be short. High-wet-modulus rayon is also resin treated, primarily for wash-and-wear purposes, since its shrinkage can be controlled by the relaxation shrinkage control method of Sanforization.
Reference:
[1] N. Hollen and J. Saddler, Textiles, 3rd Edition, MacMillan Company, London (1968).
Title: Spinifex Circle.
Title: Clutter in the Window.
Title: After the Party.
Title: Deep Windows.
Title: Double Image.
Title: The Rose Wall (detail view).
Title: Richard Grows Dahlias (detail view).
