| Subject | : | This and that |
| Author | : | Mike Tschebull mailto:%20tschebull@cshore.com |
| Date | : | 01-15-2001 on 07:51 a.m. |
| Regarding rugs which have colors "softened" by alleged sunlight, the dirty little secret is that that softening is more often due to a caustic soda bath than anything else. |
| Subject | : | Re:This and that |
| Author | : | Sara Wolf mailto:%20sjcenik@aol.com |
| Date | : | 01-15-2001 on 09:21 a.m. |
| Chemicals are only a part of it. The general procedure is to do the chemical wash and then put the piece in the sun for days or weeks to speed up the fading process. |
| Subject | : | Re:This and that |
| Author | : | Steve Price mailto:%20sprice@hsc.vcu.edu |
| Date | : | 01-15-2001 on 09:55 a.m. |
| Dear People, While I was in Turkey last July, I visited Mehmet Ucar in Konya. He took me to his "rug farm". It's a large open area in the Taurus Mountains, where he has people who spread rugs and kilims out in the sun for several weeks to several months, to soften the colors. The people who take care of this also walk around with hoses, watering the rugs. I'm not sure exactly what the watering does, but I suspect that it facilitates absorption of light (textiles look darker when wet, so they may be more light-absorbing). I wrote a little traveler's report for HALI that includes a photo of the rug farm, and I think it is scheduled for publication in the next issue. Steve Price |
| Subject | : | Re:This and that |
| Author | : | Mike Tschebull mailto:%20tschebull@cshore.com |
| Date | : | 01-15-2001 on 06:47 p.m. |
| Regarding sun helping caustic soda or chlorine fade rugs, the only way to control a finish wash effectively is for it to take place in a dedicated facility, without sun, and it is and was usually done in urban Western wash plants. Of course, some village rugs get and got the rooftop treatment, but it is too hit-or-miss. |