Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1896-06-18
ARTIFICIAL FLOWERS.


and lis Effect on 6uslnsss---How the
Flowers Are Made.
Fashion has ordained that women
shall wear an abundance of artificial
flowers on their hats. 1t is a popular
style, as you may observe by strolling
through the shopping districts on any
bright day.
The artificial flower manufacturing
industry has been extensively pursued
in this city, but this year 1t has boom,
1t is carried on particularly in the great
wholesale millinery district, north OF
Grand Street, on Broadway, and the
streets west Of 1t. The people engaged
In 1t are mostly French, Germans and
Italians who, considering the skill de-
manded by the artistic nature of their
work, are very poorly paid. In fact,
artificial fiower-makers are among the
most unfortunate of artisans, as they
are chiefly dependent for employment
upon the caprices of fashion. Now that
flowers are so extensively used In dec
Grating hats they have more work than
they can do; but next year flowers may
give place to plumes and birds wings
and their occupation will be gone for
q time at least.
A visit to mandatory where artifi-
cial flowers are made reveals many
novelties. The materials used are mus
lin, French cambria, satin, silk and
velvet. The first process Is to cut these
fabrics into leaves and petals. This
work Is done exclusively by men. In a
long, narrow room in the rear of the
building occupied by the factory,
found on q recent tour about a dozen
artisans standing ut board tables work.
ing industriously with cutting knives
and heavy mallets. The knives are
shaped like chisels, furnished at one
end with blades Of various formation,
and at the other with straight iron
handle. For every leaf and flower there
is different cutting knife. The blades
Of one may be shaped to cut out ivy
leaves, of another daisies, of third
violets, and SO on.
Before each workman was q large
slab Of lead, upon which was placed
the material folded into many thick
nesses. With a powerful blow Of the
mallet the cutting knife was driven
clean through the fabric into the lead.
These blows were repeated with mar
velous quickness and regularity. The
machinery, making such deafening
clamOr as to render conversation
among the workmen impossible. l was
told that the workman, who, from a
piece Of material of given size, could
cut out the most flowers with the least
waste was accounted the most skilled
and received the highest wages. The
cutters in this factory are paid from so
to $12 week.
/ observed that as the leaves and pc
ais fell from the cutting knives they
were pushed aside into separate boxes
according to their form. Whenever a
box was filed, an empty one was sub
stituted in its place.
The leaves came from the cutting
knife perfect in formation, but without
any of the veins that are characters
tic of the natural leaf. These must be
impressed upon it. This is done by
means of an iron press operated by
hand on the screw lever principle.
A bunch containing twenty or thirty
leaves, is placed In mould underneath
the press. Then the handles of the
press are turned slowly round until the
stamp that fits the mould is screwed
down into place, leaving its impress Of
veins upon all the leaves. In this fac
tory the presses are all operated by
women, who receive So week for their
services.
1t was not until l entered the dyeing
room and saw the third process of arti-
fetal flower making that / began to
realize the artistic nature of the work.
On long board table stood two or
three dozen pots containing n variety
of brilliant colors that had been care
was filled with delicate purple
liquid intended to give the exact hue
to the fabric that had been cut out for
yiolets.
"See," said the dyer approaching me
and holding out bunch of natural vio-
let's for my inspection, "have l not
caught the exact shade Of coloxing that
characterizes these little flowersT'
In truth he had. One might easily
have believed that the flowers he held
i'm his hand had received their exquisite
colored from the dye in the pot.
''Some dyers trust to their memory
in mixing colors," he continued, "but
1 never do that. l procure specimens
OF natural flowers whenever it is prac-
ticable, and mix my dyes until they
exactly correspond with them in shade.
ut Is necessary to soak the material
in alcohol first" said the dyer further,
''in order that it may the more readily
absorb the color and allow 1t to pene-
trate through every piece. Again, when
/ dip the pieces into the dye press my
thumb and forefinger together. This
prevents the color from reaching the
center Of the pieces, and results in the
same gradual shading, from deep pur-
pie at the rim Of the petals to white at
the heart Of the flower, which is char
acteristic of the natural bloom"
But all flowers cannot be shaded thus
easily he explained. Take the pansy
for example, the petals Of which are
marked by sharp contrasts of color. In
another room l was shown how these
were produced. Several men were bust
ly working, n palette in one hand and
a delicately-pointed paint brush in the
other, putting little dabs of purple and
yellow on petals Of muslin cut into the
shape of pansies. The petals had al
ready received ground coloring of dye
and one or two deft strokes of the
hrlleh WINS sufficient To nroduco Tho