Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1891-03-05
In W0MAN'S BEHALF.
WOMEN AS DESIGNERS.
An Employment Which Is Remunerativc AS
Well as Pleasant.

Well as Pleasant.
Eight years ago wished to become
a designer for carpets, having made mp
my mind to the effect by seeing an ugly
carpet, and wondering why more beau
tiful ones could not be made"
The speaker was lady who has taken
up practical designing as a means of
support. As at present 1.-THE most val
liable gift which can be bestowed on
woman is something to do which they
can do well and worthily and thereby
maintain themselves, - any one who has
opened an avenue that offers protita-
BILE and adaptable employment for wom-
en- must have something TO say that is
interesting and probably helpful to 9th
ers. BY her own personal research and
labor this woman obtained the practical
knowledge necessary to enable her to
compete with men in technical educa-
ton in art and design. She visited n
representative factory of nearly every
art industry in the United States, study
ing in each the technicalities of the ma
chinery and practical requirements of
the design of various industries, thus
qualifying herself for the work she had
chosen.
Many women of refined taste and good
general artistic culture waste their
energies and health in the vain endeavor
to make decorations upon silk, satin,
Christmas and Easter cards, panels and
plaques, reasonably profitable, who
might easily perfect themselves in some
one of the many forms of industrial de-
sign, and thus secure a steady income
"Will you give me some idea of the
opening that seems to you to exist in
this direction for employment for wom-
en-" was question | put to the wom-
an mentioned.
1T is one of the best openings for
woman's labor in the country. 1t is
remunerative; it is easy work; it is as
easy as for lady to sit down and paint
for her own amusement There is de-
mand for patterns which can not be
filled by the designers already in this
country. Almost every manufacturer
of any consequence sends abroad for
hundreds, and some for thousands, of
dollars worth of patterns yearly.
These designs are brought from Eng
land, Scotland, France and all over Eu-
rope. Manufacturers send men over
there, pay their expenses and pay for
the designs These designs could be
made as well in our own country and
| by women. Designs are needed fol
other industries-for instance, stained
glass, rugs, marbles, tiles tablecloths
calicoes, towels, repousse work in sill
yer, gold, brass and copper, designs fol
furniture, gas fiXtures-almosta anything
YOU look at that is ornamental, is made
in this country, and there is Il demand
| for designs Some factories require
more than others.
las to remuneration. frst-class de
sigucr for body Brussels will receive
about $4,000 to $1,000 a year. An in
grain designer receives less, or abou
81. 800. moquette designer receives |
little more than body Brussels de
signer. Six thousand dollars is gooC
salary for any designer for any purpose
These salaries of course, apply only t.
the most skillful workers. In one car
pet factory in this city, for instance
they have one man designer, and unde
him anywhere from fourteen to siXteel
men and boys. The boys are employees
at the rate of about 50 week whel
they begin. All they have to do is t
grind colors If they are at all compe
tent they get to copying, that is, wit
simple patterns. They are then pai
from 81 to so a week. Laying on tn
ground is the next step; and finally the
work on the higher patterns if the
have taste. BY that time they hav
picked up great deal from seeing other
work, and finally become designer
themselves That is the way men be
come designers.
For young women a school for teacl
ing technical designing has been estal
lished within the last few years. TIL
course of instruction extends over tw
years. Geometrical arrangement, th
drawing of flowers and adapting thel
to simple designs-that is-prints, etc
are included in the first years course
The technicalities are simple. The SCI
ond year the technicalities of machiner
and designing for all Fabrics upo
which the design is brought to the SUI
face by the jacquard loom; tablecloth
carpets, silk, or any fabrics in whic
design is brought to the surface. II
struction is given by lectures; for il
stance, lecture may be given on il
grains. The machinery is explained g
well as the requirements for maxim
the design, even to the minutest detail
Only one kind of fabric, or one kin
of industry, is given at time.
"As to the demand for designers
there are from seventy-five to one hun
bred carpet factories in this countr.
Some of these employ only one or tw
, designers and buy many outside design
, others employ fifteen to sixteen. Twel
ty would be large number of desigl
ers for any one carpet firm to emplo
When you come to silk, wall paper an
: other industries, it is about the sam
r Designs are in demand for tides, piar
and table covers or similar articles mat
by machinery, for which the usu
= weekly salary for designers is twent
five dollars. Then the furniture trat
e takes great many designers. To d
sign for furniture, however, one mu
be something of a joiner and understaI
carpentering. You might make a bea
> tiful design, say for a dressing case, b
:, you must make a practical working
|, sign as well, drawn to scale.
: Il know very little about the salari
T earned by young women as designer
), A young girl of fourteen, while studyil
this art, sold two designs, one for
the other for $40. She also received {
twenty-dollar prize offered at t
), school. Two other young women, o
designer, the other colorist, recei
salaries of so and SIS respectively. y
| N Y Star