CHAPTER II.

ATTRIBUTES OF COLOURS.

13. Utility of a Knowledge of the Qualities of Colours--14. Qualifications of the Textile Colourist--15. Functions of Pure Colours in Design--16. Red: its Characteristics--17. Methods of Modifying Colours--18. Derivatives of Red: their Qualities and their Province in Textiles--19. Blue: its Properties and Uses--20. Derivatives of Blue and their Application to Woven Textures--21. Shades and Tints of Blue mixed with Shaded and Tinted Reds and Yellows--22. Methods of obtaining Well-balanced Colourings--23. Uses of Blue in Twist Yarns--24. Points in the Application of Blue and Red to Textiles Summarized--25. Attributes of Yellow--26. Province of Yellow in Woven Fabrics--27. Derivatives of Yellow--28. Secondary Colours--29. Green: its Attributes and Derivatives--30. Tints of Green--31. Orange: its Shades and Tints--32. Purple.

13. _Utility of a Knowledge of the Qualities of Colours._--In order to apply colours artistically to woven fabrics, one must be conversant with the attributes of the tints, tones, and hues of colour the technologist uses in his work. More is requisite than a mere acquaintance with the technical details which lie at the basis of the construction of useful and decorative fabrics: this knowledge must be supplemented by practice and training in the blending of pure and other shades, and in the origination of novel schemes of colouring. Exact knowledge of the quality and application of colours, and of the laws which determine harmony of colouring, is indispensable to the successful textile designer. The pattern originator must display in his work a reliable conception of the province of colour in woven style; this is as essential as it is to the manufacturer to have regard to the chemical composition, physical structure, and clothing qualities of the materials used. As in blending wools and other fibres, the nature and properties of each are taken into account, so in colouring woven manufactures, the attributes of the several shades and the method of arrangement require to be carefully considered.

14. _Qualifications of the Textile Colourist._--One of the primary qualifications of a colourist is natural aptitude for his work. To “feel” or appreciate harmony and contrast of colour, the eye of the observer must convey to the mind an accurate impression of the _ensemble_ of shades visible. Two things are requisite--intuitive and acquired taste for colouring, combined with practice in textile designing. Yet these are insufficient. They may enable one to judge of the purity of colours, or of the degree in tone between two or more hues; but this faculty for matching of colours, or of colour discrimination, however acute, does not constitute that sense for harmony of colouring which would make it a transgression of nature for a designer to originate incongruous colour compounds. Another quality is needful. It may be said to be practically, if not wholly, an intuitive talent, for it may be displayed in the work of those who possess but slender knowledge of the laws and theories of colour. There must be taste or genius for colouring. Such is the perfection in which some designers have this natural faculty for colour blending and application, that they are a law in themselves. Natural talent is the source of inspiration. This faculty is invariably the better for culture. As a capacity for music may be developed by training, so a power for colouring may be augmented by studying harmony and contrast, and the general principles of the science as they relate to the development of patterns in the loom; consequently, though culture may not create that acuteness of conception exercised by those who have an intuitive bent for harmonious assortments of hues, yet it may result in producing a passable, if not a proficient colourist, and is, moreover, calculated to direct even the naturally talented to a judicious selection and use of materials.

15. _Functions of Pure Colours in Design._--Before treating of the attributes of the primary and secondary colours, namely, red, blue, yellow, green, orange, and purple, it may be useful to allude to the application of these colours to the various types of woven decoration. Some designers so rarely use such hues, unless tempered with either white or black, that they seem to entertain an idea that they can only be made to yield strong and harsh contrasts. Certainly this is likely to occur if they are not combined with due regard to intensity and quantity of hue, the methods of distributing the several colours, and the relative effect they have on each other in the woven fabric. Bright colours should always be applied to textures for the purpose of imparting tone and character of pattern. Though, generally, they do not form the groundwork of the style, yet they should give additional lustre to the design. What such hues are in decorative and pictorial art, they are also in loom productions when skilfully employed.

Showy styles in which the primaries or bright colours are present, result more from the system of combination practised than from excessive brightness. The Indian shawl--or the Paisley imitation--and the Turkey or Persian carpet, not infrequently consist of designs composed of the most brilliant shades producible in the dye vat. In the former, in addition to a play on certain figures, which are generally unique in arrangement and ingeniously grouped, there is a depth and fulness of tinting that seems to possess all but a permanent freshness. As to the Eastern carpet, it contains a large diversity of colours, and mostly of a bright tone, but still the general effect is pleasing and cheerful. To what are the congruity of tone and richness of colouring due in these textures? This law is observed in their composition: the quantity of each colour used, depends entirely on the position it occupies in the pattern and on its intensity and quality; while the several shades are so blended that when the carpet or shawl is viewed in its entirety the whole is harmonious in result. This is the general effect sought after in tweeds and all classes of fancy fabrics. If scarlet, blue, green, crimson, or orange were applied to a woven design,--though decidedly stronger in hue than the shades forming the bulk of the fabric--while tingeing the pattern with a freshness of tone, they should not be allowed to unduly attract the eye. The use of twist yarns very largely facilitates the production of congruous combinations, in which bright colours play a prominent part in the composition of the pattern. By employing these threads, the colours may be broken up, in which form they do not produce that continuity of effect which necessarily results from the use of self-coloured yarns. Success in effective colouring with pure hues lies, however, in a proper distribution of the shades combined, incongruity of effect being as largely due to defective balancing of colour as to injudicious and distasteful combinations; in a word, there is as much dependent on the arrangement, as on the selection and blending of shades in pattern origination.

[Illustration: Plate III

PRIMARY, SECONDARY AND TERTIARY COLOURS]

In addition to thus acting as the brightening elements in woven design, these colours are also used in some classes of textures as ground shades. For instance, they are the principal colours employed in dress fabrics of a Scotch tartan class, certain kinds of shawls, silk neckties, handkerchiefs, and wraps; but generally, in worsted and woollen textures they are used sparingly, and for giving lustre to a sombre mixture of colours. Pure colours have therefore two distinct functions in textile patterns: first, they constitute a kind of supplementary colouring which imparts lustre and intensity of hue to the style to which they are applied; and, second, they may be the principal colours comprised in the design.

16. _Red: its Characteristics._--Red (No. 1, Plate III.) is designated a simple or primary colour in both the light and pigment theories of colouring. Of all hues it is the most showy, brilliant, and gorgeous. Intense red is so powerful that when used in large quantities it neutralizes the effect of adjacent hues. On this account, its distribution in textiles should always be accomplished in accordance with the depth of the other colours entering into the style; that is to say, its intensity, as well as its quantity, must be varied in the same proportion as the general colouring of the pattern is diminished or augmented in tone. An otherwise satisfactorily coloured pattern may be destroyed by using a red too potent in hue, or by using this colour too profusely. Yet red is decidedly one of the most useful colours at the command of the decorative designer and the textile producer. Whether employed as a pure, or as an adulterated colour, it is of extensive utility in textile designing. When judiciously applied, it adds brightness and cheerfulness to woven effects. Its true sphere in textiles is to impart freshness. Red in these compositions is the brightening or toning hue. In applying red tints to worsted and woollen fabrics, they should seldom occur in patches or in continuous lines of a check arrangement, but they should be more or less intermittent in effect.[7] It should be borne in mind that in these fabrics it is not loudness or showiness, but neatness of style, that is sought after, yet the quality of brightness must not be lacking. In the form of twist yarns, reds and scarlets may be made to produce exactly the general toning required. This mode of applying this colour is particularly well adapted to textures of a cheviot and tweed description. Worsteds require different treatment. One method of introducing reds into these fabrics consists in using silk yarns, and simply bringing them on to the surface to form a bright spot or minute line of colour. In silk, cotton, and some kinds of linen textures, this primary is used in larger quantities, and more liberally displayed in patterns composed of these materials, than in the ordinary run of woollen and worsted fabrics.

Being such a potent and bright colour, it is of utility in the blending process of manufacturing, when several shades of materials are combined to produce a mixture yarn. Some mixtures or blends of this class contain scarlet wools, which, in whatever form they occur give tone and quality to the combination of which they form a part. A variety of tints and shades results from mixing red in different quantities with black or white, and also an extensive range of hues from combining it with other colours. Still, pure red is not so liberally used in textile work as its derivatives: thus, it unites with yellow and blue in the production of orange and purple. Should a small quantity of yellow be added to red, it gives scarlet, while the addition of a small quantity of blue produces crimson. The richness and luminosity of the scarlet are determined by the proportion of yellow added; and the depth of the crimson by the amount of blue entering the mixtures. Both in scarlets and crimsons, a considerable diversity of hues is obtainable. Before either of these colours is produced, red undergoes a series of gradations of hue. In the rose, there is displayed to perfection the various modifications in tint and shade of which this colour is susceptive. Scarlets, crimsons, maroons, russets, and browns are all hues employed by the weaver that obtain their prevailing tint from this primary.

17. _Methods of Modifying Colours._--All pure colours, such as red, blue, yellow, orange, green, and purple, may be subjected to three kinds of modification: first, they may be darkened in _tone_; second, lightened in _tint_; and third, changed in hue. If, for example, black is mixed with red in various proportions, it produces _tones_ or _shades_ of this colour, while an admixture of white with red yields different _tints_ of red. To alter the hue, it is necessary to blend it with some other colour, such as blue, when various shades of full-toned crimsons result. In blending, and also in the arrangement of colours in the warp and weft of the woven fabric, the phenomena underlying the changes producible in the tone and tint of a colour have to be taken into consideration. Black and red wools when scribbled together give a dark brown or reddish-brown mixture, according to the quantities of the respective shades entering into the combination; on the other hand, if white and red wools are blended, a mixture of a pinkish character is obtained. Hence it is clear that the same principles which determine the alteration in the shade, tint, or hue of a colour when pigments are combined, also regulate the results due to mixing several colours of textile fibres.

Strictly speaking, white and black cannot be designated colours, being merely representative of the principles of light and darkness, and acting, in the multiplication of shades and tints, as the great modifiers of colour. Such is their province in the _rôle_ of colour production. In design, they are indispensable in mellowing certain combinations of hues, and in giving precision and clearness to specific sections of a pattern. As ground shades they are also useful. Light colours appear bright and distinct on black surfaces; while deep colours, such as blues, purples, and reds, appear intense and clear on white materials. So that by a proper use of these shades it is possible, in the first place, by the process of mixing them with bright colours, to produce a variety of hues; and, in the second place, by introducing them into the warp and weft of the pattern, to impart smartness and lustre to the colours employed.

18. _Derivatives of Red: their Qualities and their Province in Textiles._--By the derivatives of a colour, are signified those shades and tints which result from mixing it with various quantities of white or black. Those obtained from red are both numerous and important, being specially useful in the production of woven effects. They comprise both ground and fancy hues. First, in the category of the derivatives of this primary, are those shades produced by toning it with black. A few typical specimens of these are given in Nos. 1, 2, and 3, Plate IV. The brightest shade (No. 3) is compounded of three parts of red and of one part of black; the medium shade (No. 2) of equal quantities of red and black; while in the dark brown (No. 1) black preponderates, the proportions being one part of red to three parts of black. Such shades of brown may be used as ground colours, but the two latter are the most appropriate for this purpose. Shade 3 is, however, frequently employed with good results in dress fabrics for the foundation of the texture. Some excellent colourings ensue from their combination. The two extremes--Shades 1 and 3--when employed in the same style give a softly toned pattern. A less pronounced contrast ensues from a compound of Shades 1 and 2, or Shades 2 and 3. In combinations of this kind, there should usually be a larger quantity of one colour element than another. Another method of combining these shades consists in introducing the three into one pattern. For example, if twelve threads of Shade 1, eight threads of Shade 2, and four threads of Shade 3, were woven together and checked over in the weft by a similar arrangement of yarns, a neat design would be obtained. It might be changed by taking four threads of Shade 1 instead of twelve, and twelve threads of Shade 3 instead of four. In the former style the dark brown would preponderate, but in the latter the light brown, the quantity of the medium hue being the same in each instance. These illustrations demonstrate the utility of these shades and the systems on which they are amalgamated in pattern construction.

The tints Nos. 4, 5, and 6, on Plate IV., are characterized by brilliance and intensity of tone, making them adapted for imparting lustre and richness to design. Like the colour from which they obtain their specific tint, they are ostentatious and potent in effect. While the shades given in Nos. 1, 2, and 3 are all darker in tone than the original red, these tints are lighter on account of the entrance of white into their composition. Thus they are made up as follows:--

Tint 4, Plate IV.--1 part of red and 3 parts of white. Tint 5, „ „ --2 parts of red and 2 parts of white. Tint 6, „ „ --3 parts of red and 1 part of white.

Bright tints of this kind are extensively used in figured weaving, as in the manufacture of vestings, silk neckties, dress fabrics, and trimmings. Sometimes in the latter description of textures they form the pattern proper. In the ordinary run of woollen and worsted cloths they are, however, only sparingly employed, and that in the form of twist yarns. Amongst the varieties of twists which can be produced by combining two or more of these shades and tints of red, the following are selected as suggestive illustrations:--

I.--One thread of Shade 1 twisted with one thread of Tint 4, Plate IV. II.--One thread of Shade 1 twisted with one thread of Tint 6, Plate IV. III.--One thread of Shade 2 twisted with one thread of Tint 5, Plate IV. IV.--One thread of Shade 3 twisted with one thread of Tint 4, Plate IV. V.--One thread of Shade 1; one thread of Shade 3; and one thread of Tint 4, Plate IV., twisted together.

Each of these compound yarns, in worsted, woollen, or cotton materials, is capable, when judiciously applied, of contributing to the quality of woven pattern.

Another section of manufacturing in which these derivatives are employed is in the blending process, or in the production of fancy mixture yarns.

19. _Blue: its Properties and Uses._--Blue (No. 2, Plate III.) is one of the most valuable colours used by textile designers. In dark shades it is utilized for the ground of patterns; in medium shades it is employed for mellowing and toning purposes; while bright blues convey freshness and force of colouring; so that this primary has three distinct functions in textile designing. In each of these, it will be indicated what its properties are as a colour, and the relation it sustains to other shades with which it may be combined.

Unlike red, which is decidedly a warm colour, the quality of blue is cold and retiring: this distinguishes it from yellow, orange, and red, which produce a sensation of warmth. Resembling violet and purple, it is indistinct and neutral in a declining light, but strong and brilliant in a bright light; hence, when applied to light grounds, it is not only pronounced in hue, but is quite distinct from other shades, while on a dark or black surface it is both mellow and lustrous in effect.

Its property of “coldness” renders it a useful shade for subduing the redness of tone of some colourings; for it in some degree neutralizes the warm hue of the browns, maroons, russets, or other shades forming the pattern in which red is prevalent. This does not, however, indicate that red and blue harmonize; on the contrary, whenever these two colours are associated in large quantities, the resultant composition is somewhat incongruous; but that when combined with browns and russet olives, or shades in which the red tint is assimilated by the quantity of black they contain, blue can be made to yield excellent coloured effects. Pure blue, like pure red, is not so largely used as its derivatives, still it has a place in textile designing. This is principally as a fancy yarn, when it gives freshness and bloom to the pattern. It is also employed as a ground colour in the manufacture of fine silk fabrics, and as the figuring colour in certain makes of fancy worsteds.

[Illustration: Plate IV

TONES AND TINTS OF THE “PRIMARIES” 1. 2. 3. Tones of Red 4. 5. 6. Tints of Red 7. 8. 9. „ „ Blue 10. 11. 12. „ „ Blue 13. 14. 15 „ „ Yellow 16. 17. 18. „ „ Yellow]

20. _Derivatives of Blue and their Application to Woven Textures._--If blue is mixed with black, shades of an indigo character result; but, if mixed with white, peacock blues, lavenders, and pale blues are formed. Some few examples in both these types of derivatives may be considered. From the series of dark or shaded blues three examples have been selected, namely, those in Nos. 7, 8, and 9, Plate IV. The first consists of one part blue and three parts black; the second (No. 8) of two parts blue and two parts black; and the third (No. 9) of three parts blue and one part black. Shade 1 (indigo) is a useful colour for piece-dye goods, as well as for the grounds of fancy fabrics. By studying this method of mixing, it will be observed how a pure and intense colour may be gradually darkened in shade, or--if white is added--gradually lightened in tint, until it closely resembles black or white, as the case may be. This system of varying the tone of a colour makes it feasible, by a proper assortment of hues, to produce stripes or checks in light or dark shades. Take, for example, the three blues given in Nos. 7, 8, and 9 on this Plate. If these are put together thus: eight threads of Shade 7, eight threads of Shade 8, and eight threads of Shade 9, a shaded blue check will result, which in worsted, woollen, or cotton yarns gives a satisfactory pattern. Let the warp thus arranged be crossed with similar quantities of the respective shades, and checks of the several blues will be formed in the fabric. This plan of colouring produces checks of equal proportions of the different shades; but, if needful, these might be easily got in various dimensions, say, for instance, the darkest check about three-quarters of an inch in size, and the remaining two checks half an inch.

A few of the principal tints of blue, got by mixing this primary with white, in the same proportions as the shades just described were produced by mixing it with black, are Nos. 10, 11, and 12, Plate IV. The white has given them a softened and mellowed tone, having neutralized that forcible and striking attribute which characterizes pure blue. On comparing them with the original colour from which they result (No. 2, Plate III.), the degree to which white subdues and mellows bright hues with which it is blended will be evident. Tints of this class are used in various ways in designing. Some styles in silk handkerchiefs are producible by the exact depth of hues seen in the illustration--these weights of colours forming congruous and evenly-balanced patterns. They are also largely employed in cotton textures. One example of this type of combination is given in No. 1, on Plate VII. This is a sketch of a fabric made of cotton yarns. The warp is light blue--Tint 10, Plate IV.--and the weft a deeper blue, or Tint 12. The neatness of this colouring is due to the soft contrast between the tints of the warp and weft yarns.

21. _Shades and Tints of Blue mixed with Shaded and Tinted Red and Yellow._--In the styles in which blue is employed for ground purposes, indigo shades are invariably used. Blue, however, is not a foundation colour that admits of much diversity of tinting. To succeed in its application to the grounds of patterns, a good range of browns, olives, and greys is important. With shades of the olive class it gives the most marked contrasts. This is due to yellow being the prevailing tint of this compound hue. But it also mingles harmoniously with certain tints of grey and brown. Patterns in which these shades are arranged as in Tables V. and VI., in woollen, worsted, cotton, or silk yarns, illustrate the methods of combining blue effectively with different shades and tints of red and yellow. In Table I. the combinations of shades are included; but in Table II. will be found the tints of red, blue, and yellow. The colours are given in groups of six threads, and would, providing the arrangements appended were carried out in the weft, produce a series of clearly developed check effects.

TABLE V.

COMPOUNDS OF SHADES OR TONES OF COLOUR.

_(a) Shades of Blue and Red (Plate IV.)._

Ex. 1. Dark shades. Black preponderating. 6 threads of dark blue (Shade 7). 6 threads of dark brown (Shade 1).

Ex. 2. Medium shades. Black and Blue, and Black and Red equally mixed. 6 threads of medium blue (Shade 8). 6 threads of medium brown (Shade 2).

Ex. 3. Lightish shades. Blue and Red preponderating. 6 threads of toned blue (Shade 9). 6 threads of light brown (Shade 3).

_(b) Shades of Blue and Yellow (Plate IV.)._

Ex. 1. Dark shades. Black preponderating. 6 threads of dark blue (Shade 7). 6 threads of dark olive (Shade 13).

Ex. 2. Medium shades. Black and Blue, and Black and Yellow equally mixed. 6 threads of medium blue (Shade 8). 6 threads of medium olive (Shade 14).

Ex. 3. Lightish shades. Blue and Yellow preponderating. 6 threads of toned blue (Shade 9). 6 threads of toned olive (Shade 15).

TABLE VI.

COMPOUNDS OF TINTS OF COLOUR.

_(a) Tints of Blue and Red (Plate IV.)._

Ex. 1. Very light tints. White preponderating. 6 threads of pale lavender (Tint 10). 6 threads of pale salmon (Tint 4).

Ex. 2. Light tints. Blue and White, and Red and White equally mixed. 6 threads of lavender (Tint 11). 6 threads of bright salmon (Tint 5).

Ex. 3. Deep tints. Blue and Red preponderating. 6 threads of tinted blue (Tint 12). 6 threads of tinted red (Tint 6).

_(b) Tints of Blue and Yellow (Plate IV.)._

Ex. 1. Very light tints. White preponderating.

6 threads of very pale yellow (Tint 16). 6 threads of pale lavender (Tint 10).

Ex. 2. Light tints. Blue and White, and Yellow and White equally mixed. 6 threads of lavender (Tint 11). 6 threads of pale yellow (Tint 17).

Ex. 3. Deep tints. Blue and Yellow predominating. 6 threads of tinted blue (Tint 12). 6 threads of tinted yellow (Tint 18).

22. _Methods of Obtaining Well-balanced Colourings._--From these Tables it will be evident that if the shade of blue is modified, that of the combining colour is also changed. Unless this rule is adhered to, the arrangement adopted will give incongruous results. Only a certain depth of blue harmonizes with a corresponding depth of brown and olive; if one predominates over the other, the colouring becomes deficient and displeasing to the eye. For example, if Shades 1 and 9 and Tints 4 and 12 were blended, the result would not be so mellow as if Shades 1 and 7 and Tints 4 and 10, as in the Tables, were combined. The reason for this is that, in the first instance, a shade of red in which black preponderates is used with a shade of blue in which blue preponderates; while, in the second instance, a tint of red in which white preponderates is associated with a tint of blue in which blue preponderates; whereas, to produce a perfect balance of colour--that is, providing the quantities of the respective colours are equal--it is necessary for the shades or tints combined to contain exactly the same quantities of black and white, as in the combinations of Shades 1 and 7, and Tints 4 and 10 of Plate IV.

In no combination given in Tables V. and VI. is there a lack of harmony; indeed, considering the principle on which they have been obtained, this is almost impossible. Thus, take Ex. 1 in Table V. Here, dark shades of blue and brown are associated. In both colours black preponderates; that is to say, the former is composed of three parts of black and two parts of blue, and the latter of three parts of black and two parts of red. Providing the primaries blue and red (Nos. 1 and 2, Plate III.) harmonize, these shades, which are their derivatives, will also mix well together. A test to which they can be submitted is to view them side by side. If slips of these shades are thus combined, they do not appear incongruous and harsh in tone, but possess a soft and mellow aspect, and in this consists the true characteristics of harmonious colourings. As the tints are worked out on the same system as the shades, they form useful compounds. In order that this important element of congruous colour effects may be clearly understood, let Ex. 1 of Table VI. be also briefly examined. Such a combination can only yield an agreeable pattern. Whether these tints are blended in the wool or in the yarn, the resulting mixture is satisfactory. This arises from the weight or depth of colour of the respective tints being identical; in other terms, the intensity of the tinted red is precisely the same as that of the tinted blue. In dress stuffs, tennis flannels, fabrics for trimmings, silks, and extreme fancy textures, this blend of tints is invariably pleasing. Equally harmonious results may be arrived at by combining tinted red (No. 4) with tinted yellow (No. 16), or tinted blue (No. 10, Plate IV.) with tinted yellow. In each of these compounds, delicacy of tint and mellowness of hue are the prevailing qualities.

23. _Uses of Blue in Twist Yarns._--Having now treated of blue as a ground colour, and also as a shade for blending with other hues to tone down a style or subdue its coloured aspect, it only remains to indicate its utility as a colour for twist yarns. It is a valuable shade for this purpose. As it is a bright but not a showy colour, it is particularly suitable for fancy two- or three-ply yarns. Twists in which red, yellow, or orange are used, have a tendency to overpower the general colouring of the pattern in which they appear, but this is not the case in fancy yarns in which blue is the principal colour. Such twists, while imparting lustre and freshness to the design, in no wise detract from its beauty of colouring, though that may be of a comparatively subdued character. The following are a few examples in two-ply yarns in which blue threads are employed: black and blue; white and blue; brown (No. 1) and tinted blue (No. 10); dark blue (No. 7) and tinted red (No. 4); blue and yellow; dark blue and shaded red (No. 3, Plate IV.); and medium blue and white.

24. _Points in the Application of Blue and Red to Textiles Summarized._--The analyses which have been made of the use of blue and red in woven designs, have demonstrated that, whenever primary colours are applied to textile fabrics in their purity and natural intensity, it is in comparatively small quantities. Brilliance of hue causes the application of primaries in large patches to textile surfaces to be undesirable. In dress fabrics, bright blue, red, and yellow have an important place. Mantlings, shawls, wraps, and travelling rugs also provide scope for a liberal use of these shades; but in treating designs with colour for fabrics of the coating and trousering class, subdued and indefinite shades prove the most useful. Red and blue are valuable to impart tone and newness of character to the style. The groundwork of the pattern should first have attention--the intensity and strength of the bright colours depending on the mode of application. Should the ground colouring of a pattern be strong and harsh, the addition of green or blue will, in some cases, give it a mellow quality; or should it lack brightness, then red, orange, or yellow, if applied in small quantities and properly distributed, will relieve the heaviness of the colouring and impart the requisite freshness of aspect. Success in the use of pure colours is determined by the quantities in which they occur, and by the nature of the shades with which they are associated. Bright red, however sparingly employed, if applied to a mixture of brown or russet shades, cannot but form an incongruous colouring; but if applied to an assortment of shades in which soft-tinted blues and greens are conspicuous, both harmony and contrast of composition would result.

[Illustration: Plate V

PLAID IN WHICH YELLOW IS THE BRIGHT OVER CHECKING COLOUR

(5013)]

25. _Attributes of Yellow._--This colour (No. 3, Plate III.) is generally understood to be emblematical of purity and brightness. It is the most luminous tint in the spectrum. Purple is its complementary and contrasting hue. Intense yellow--rich, bright, and cheerful--has the same relation to light or whiteness as blue has to darkness. It lacks the lustrous quality of red and the retiring, mellow characteristic of blue, but possesses vividness and lustre. Luminosity and brilliance of hue limit its application to textile design; yet it has a sphere which no other colour can occupy. Thus, in patterns in which white yarns and light or delicate shades are employed, it is one of the most important fancy colours it is possible to introduce into the fabric. Mingled with such shades, it loses a degree of that prominence and individuality of tint which characterizes it when applied to patterns possessing dark and sombre grounds.

Another quality of this primary is vividness--no colour being comparable with it in this sense. Orange possesses this attribute, but not so largely as positive yellow. Its characteristic freshness, but comparative lightness of hue, imparts to it a clear and decided tone on black or dark surfaces. Hence it is found that when yellow is blended with light and medium greys and lavenders, its property of lustre suffers in intensity; whereas, if it is applied to dark blue, dark brown, or black materials, its vivid attributes are forcibly distinguished. When these modifications, which this and other bright colours undergo according to the qualities of the several shades with which they may be combined, are clearly understood, the possible effect of their application to any pre-arranged scheme of ground colours may be estimated. Obviously there are three factors to be carefully considered when employing primary hues: first, the nature of the contrast resultant when the colours are placed on light materials; second, on medium-toned grounds; and third, on textures composed of dark yarns. Yellow is somewhat lessened in distinctiveness on the first, but improves in intensity on the dark grounds, being only slightly changed when arranged side by side with shades of a medium depth.

26. _Province of Yellow in Woven Fabrics._--Pure yellow is but sparingly used in textile designing. In tweeds and worsteds it is combined, to a limited extent, with other shades in the construction of fancy twist and mixture yarns. It is the principal colour in the following two- and three-ply yarns: black and yellow; blue and yellow; indigo blue and yellow; dark grey and yellow; black, purple, and yellow; black, medium grey, and yellow; and black, red, and yellow. When used in this form it may add lustre and freshness to an otherwise sombre style. It possibly gives the best results in tweeds, where the fibrous nature of the texture helps to minimize its excessive brightness. Yellow is also applied as a self-coloured yarn to certain styles of check patterns for woollen travelling mauds, shawls, and rugs. An example of a plaid pattern of this description is given in Plate V. There are contrasts of dark green and red, dark green and blue, black and red, and also yellow as an intermediate colour between green and red, and as a checking colour on the black. Yellow is thus used for two purposes: first, as a divisible hue; contrasting with the green, and harmonizing with the red; and second, as the strongest contrast possible on the black. It gives what may be termed the chief checking lines to the plaid, and produces freshness and lustre in the style. These lines are of sufficient width considering the brightness and vividness of the colour, which are two qualities to be taken into account when using colours in combination with other bright shades.

27. _Derivatives of Yellow._--These are both numerous and important. When blended with blue, as previously explained, hues of green are formed, comprising myrtle green, sea green, emerald green, and grass green, all of which vary in tint according to the intensity of the bluish and yellowish elements entering into their composition. Yellow with red, on the other hand, yields an assortment of scarlet and orange hues. Yellow with white gives delicate tints of a straw, lemon, and primrose class (see Nos. 16, 17, and 18, Plate IV.); while with black it forms many shades of an olive character, such as those supplied in Nos. 13, 14, and 15 on the same Plate. If it should be mixed with grey, it produces various tints of drab; so that this primary is a very useful colour for blending with other hues in the production of compound shades.

28. _Secondary Colours._--The attributes and functions of the primaries in textiles have now been defined. The secondaries--colours resulting from mixing two primaries--possess quite distinct properties from the hues of which they are composed. Compared with the primaries red, yellow, and blue, they lack intensity and strength of hue. Still, they are potent colours, and, as a consequence, only produce harmonious combinations when judiciously employed. As a rule, the stronger and the more intense a colour, the greater the skill required in its application to pattern or design. To use the secondaries in large quantities with success, some practice in textile colouring is essential.

Of these compound shades, orange is the most ostentatious, being tinged with red; purple possesses depth and fulness of hue; and green is suggestive of freshness. Each colour is largely used in woven manufactures, the methods of application depending on the type of the texture. In silk ribbons and neckties, they are used as pure colours, and are also applied to cotton and flannel shirting styles, linen vestings, and fancy worsted shawls; but when employed in the ordinary types of woollens and worsteds, they are somewhat subdued by mixing with white or black, or they may form one of the threads in a fancy twist yarn. The qualities of each colour will be considered separately.

29. _Green: its Attributes and Derivatives._--This is a useful secondary colour. In the Light Theory of Colouring, it is a primary hue; but it is already understood that, according to the Pigment Theory, green is not a simple, but a compound colour resulting from the admixture of the pigment yellow with the pigment blue. Greens may also be obtained by the same process in the dye vat. Thus the texture or material may primarily be treated with the blue colouring matter, such as indigo, and subsequently with the yellow dye-ware, such as weld or old fustic.

In Nature, green is the most extensively distributed colour, but in the decorative arts, unless modified, it has not a wide application. As a colour it combines the qualities of its component hues--blue and yellow--for it is at once fresh, bright, and cheerful. When associated with the various shades and tints of red, harmonious and contrasting combinations ensue. Amongst the shades used in textiles derived from this secondary, are myrtle greens, olive greens, slate greens, and dark greens. Colours of this description are useful in textile work.

The spectrum green is only applied to extreme fancies, and then chiefly as an extra, spotting, or figuring yarn; in tweeds and worsteds, however, it forms an appropriately coloured yarn for twisting with other threads of such shades as will neutralize a degree of its intensity and lustre. In fact, green is one of the most useful colours for twisting purposes employed in textile designing: such twists as black and green, scarlet and green, and white and green illustrating its utility in the production of fancy yarns for tweeds.

Derivatives of green, due to its admixture with black, comprise a fair diversity of medium and dark shades which are employed as ground colours, and also for piece-dye textures. Three examples in such shades are Nos. 1, 2, and 3, Plate VI. In the first, black is the preponderating element, but in the third, green is the prevailing hue. With the red browns given in Nos. 1, 2, and 3 on Plate IV., they form perfect contrasts. The most pleasing combinations are those in which the greenish derivatives are blended in equal quantities with the reddish browns as follows: dark green (No. 1, Plate VI.) with dark brown (No. 1, Plate IV.); medium green (No. 2, Plate VI.) with medium brown (No. 2, Plate IV.); and toned green (No. 3, Plate VI.) with light brown (No. 3, Plate IV.). An endless variety of striped and checked patterns in woollen, worsted, and cotton materials is got by combining these shades on the lines just indicated. Some excellent ground twists result from combining dark brown (No. 1, Plate IV.) and toned green (No. 3, Plate VI.); dark green (No. 1, Plate VI.) and light brown (No. 3, Plate IV.); and medium green (No. 2, Plate VI.) and medium brown (No. 2, Plate IV.).

30. _Tints of Green._--The admixture of green with white results in the formation of tints of pea-green. (See Nos. 4, 5, and 6, Plate VI.) These blend harmoniously with the tinted reds given on Plate IV. For example, the pea-green, No. 4, Plate VI., when blended with the whitish pink, No. 4 of Plate IV., the pale green, No. 5, Plate VI., with the rose colour, No. 5, Plate IV., and the tinted green, No. 6, Plate VI., with the tinted red, No. 6, Plate IV., all form satisfactory contrasts. As the tints of the respective couplets perfectly balance, being of the exact depth of hue, they constitute mellow and choice combinations. Though these tints are not extensively employed in fancy woollen and worsted fabrics, still there are some classes of these textures in which they are used for ground purposes. One illustration of this kind is pattern No. 2 on Plate VII. The twilled ground of the fabric is a similar tint to No. 4, Plate VI., while the spotting yarns are two-ply, namely, tan and white, and crimson and white twists. The white feature of the colouring serves a twofold purpose: first, it neutralizes and subdues the intensity of the crimson and tan threads; and, second, it imparts precision to the mottled figuring.

31. _Orange: its Shades and Tints._--Next to red, orange (No. 5, Plate III.) is the most intense, showy, and potent colour. It is closely allied to both red and yellow, of which hues it is composed. Orange is more luminous, but less intense than pure red, and is warmer, but not so bright in hue as yellow. Its potency of hue causes it to suffer little impoverishment either in lustre or intensity from juxtaposition with certain shades. With colours of a reddish or yellowish hue, it undergoes the most marked degree of modification; with blues and greens, and also with their derivatives, its quality is not perceptibly diminished. Whether distributed on dark or light surfaces, it stands out with lustre and freshness, and hence is one of the most appropriate colours for imparting brightness, or for giving to any combination of shades, lacking these qualities, a rich appearance.

Shades of orange (Nos. 7, 8, and 9, Plate VI.) are designated brownish olives, possessing warmer attributes than the shades derived from yellow, but wanting that strength and richness of hue characterizing the russet browns resulting from mixing red with black. As ground colours they are of utility to the textile colourist. With shades of green they form complementary combinations, as the following examples illustrate:--

I. Dark brownish olive (No. 7) with dark green (No 1, Plate VI.). II. Medium brownish olive (No. 8) with toned green (No. 2, Plate VI.). III. Light brownish olive (No. 9) with medium green (No. 3, Plate VI.).

These shades also combine satisfactorily with the dark and deep blues given in Nos. 7, 8, and 9 of Plate IV.

From the orange tints (Nos. 10, 11, and 12, Plate VI.) it will be noticed that by mixing white with this secondary, salmon and gold colours are obtained. They are useful in making twist threads, and are also employed, to a considerable extent, in silk yarns in the manufacture of vestings, spotted textures, neckties, and fancies. Satisfactory styles result from combining them with either tints of green or blue.

32. _Purple._--There is no colour comparable with purple (No. 6, Plate III.) as regards depth of hue. Its characterizing qualities are softness, bloom, and richness of tone. It is a composition of the warm and the cold, and the showy and the quiet elements of the spectrum, namely, of red and blue.

It only yields congruous combinations with a limited range of shades, and these generally belong to the derivatives of yellow. Purple and pure yellow form a very pronounced contrast--an example of which obtains in the common pansy. In this flower, the deep but lustrous tone of the purple opposes the luminous and pure hue of the yellow. From this natural combination of these tints, it is possible to learn with what class of colours purple will form the most effective contrasts. These are shades in which yellow preponderates, such as tans, light olives, and olive browns. To give bloom and richness of aspect to combinations of fawns, olives, and similar shades, purple, in conjunction with white, may be employed. Some excellent tapestries, bordered rugs, and travelling mauds are produced in which this hue is one of the principal colours.

[Illustration: Plate VI

TONES AND TINTS OF THE “SECONDARIES” 1. 2. 3. Tones of Green 4. 5. 6. Tints of Green 7. 8. 9. Tones of Orange 10. 11. 12. Tints of Orange 13. 14. 15. Tones of Purple 16. 17. 18. Tints of Purple]

The derivatives of purple are applied to dress fabrics, but are rarely used in textures for men’s wear, except for line striping and checking purposes. The examples given in the tints and shades of this colour, in Nos. 13 to 18, Plate VI., inclusive, show that its admixture with white produces hues of a lilac class, and with black, hues of a deep indigo blue character. Materials dyed alizarin blue possess a similar purplish bloom as these shades, being warmer and redder in tone than the pure indigoes they are dyed to imitate.

Though purple and its derivatives are not largely employed along with other colours in the construction of fancy patterns, yet they are of utility in the blending department of a woollen factory.

FOOTNOTES:

[7] Tartans are special forms of checks in the colouring of which this principle is not observed.