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From: Christie
Date: 12-01-2006, 01:00 PM (1 of 7)
| I bought some muslin colored cloth at a thrift shop that had a tag that said "Raw Silk". It has a nubby texture and feels like a natural fiber. Do you think it is really raw silk? Do you know when this fabric would have been popular? I have started to do some reenactment sewing (1860's era). Would it be a type of fabric that has been around that long? I just liked the feel and bought it not knowing what I would do with it later! : ) |
User: Christie
Member since: 09-16-2005 Total posts: 13 |
From: DorothyL
Date: 12-01-2006, 01:37 PM (2 of 7)
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Sounds like silk to me. It's a good strong fabric but it doesn't seem like it would be imported in the 19th century just because it would be expensive. For that kind of money it seems people would want a more luxurious feeling silk. But what do I know? Patty would probably have a good idea about this one. Dorothy |
User: DorothyL
Member since: 12-09-2002 Total posts: 3883 |
From: Magot
Date: 12-01-2006, 02:43 PM (3 of 7)
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In my understanding it would have been used as a material for the middle classes and above but they would not have used a silk which had any slub as that was considered to be of inferior quality. So I don't know if your nubby silk ( the way we like it today) will be of much use to you. You probably need to do more serious research on this rather than rely on our rather hazt memories!
love and kisses, Jan
Guts-R-Us Cells a Speciality DNA to order. |
User: Magot
Member since: 12-22-2002 Total posts: 3626 
|
From: kmccrea
Date: 12-01-2006, 03:36 PM (4 of 7)
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Raw silk is silk which has not been dyed or chemically treated (bleached, so on). It sounds like you do have a duipionni which was not popular during the era you specified, except in Japan and China. To determine if the fabric is really silk, do a burn test on a TINY bit of your fabric. Cut a piece where it will not be missed. As it is burning, smell the smoke. If it smells like burning hair, then it is very likely real silk. The ash it leaves behind is crispy, like if you did burn your hair or wool. If it melts and leaves a hard little ball then it's either nylon or polyester. Cotton smells like wood and it's ash is powdery. I hope this helps. Kate Katherine McCrea
Designer At Large |
User: kmccrea
Member since: 05-07-2006 Total posts: 173 
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From: DorothyL
Date: 12-01-2006, 03:43 PM (5 of 7)
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This is what I was thinking of. I've heard noil called raw silk before. It's great stuff. Duipionni is much stiffer and has a sheen. From Silk Road Textile Merchants Silk Noil -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fabric Description Silk Noil (sometimes incorrectly called raw silk) has a nubby feel and a low sheen. Noil somewhat resembles cotton in surface texture, and sews easily. The nubby texture of noil comes from the use of very short fibers (called, appropriately, 'silk noils') to weave the fabric. When these short fibers are spun into yarns, the resulting yarns have occasional slubs and loose ends. Nubs vary between different weaves. Noil which has not been completely de-gummed (had the natural sericin removed), may easily attract dirt and odors. Wash before sewing up (see below). |
User: DorothyL
Member since: 12-09-2002 Total posts: 3883 |
From: kmccrea
Date: 12-01-2006, 04:01 PM (6 of 7)
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I've forgotten about silk noil! I rarely use it because it's usually too thin for my purposes and the quality is often lacking. Real raw silk is untreated and comes in all the varieties of weaves available in silk, it's color is a light ivory. Kate Katherine McCrea
Designer At Large |
User: kmccrea
Member since: 05-07-2006 Total posts: 173
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From: AndreaSews
Date: 12-01-2006, 11:21 PM (7 of 7)
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As for when it might have been popular...well, do the 1990's count? haha I know you were hoping to dig deeper into history. In the late 80's "washable silk" blouses and button shirts for men became quite popular. That was when somebody realized that silk can stand up to the washing, and even if it got battered a bit in the wash, by the 1990's slothing styles weren't as enduring as they once had been, so folks didn't keep them long enough to really wear them out. Shortly after, they started to experiment with other silks in the wash-n-wear ready-to-wear market. That brings us to the mid 90's, when raw silk slacks in particular were pretty easy to come by in the department stores.
Andrea
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User: AndreaSews
Member since: 02-18-2005 Total posts: 1007 
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