IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF MACHINE EMBROIDERY
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Alfred Barlow, of the Firm of Henry Bernoulli
Barlow, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Patent Agent, for
an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF MACHINE
EMBROIDERY." A communication from abroad by the Firm of Messieurs
Wetter Brothers, of St. Gall, in the Republic of Switzerland.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Alfred Barlow at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 6th December 1881.
CHARLES ALFRED BARLOW, of the Firm of Henry Bernoulli Barlow, of
Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Patent Agent. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF MACHINE EMBROIDERY." A communication from abroad by
the Firm of Messieurs Wetter Brothers, of St. Gall, in the Republic of Switzerland.
The object of this Invention is to gather all parts of the fabric not covered by
embroidery stitches, or which do not make part of the figure or design, and to
form of the said parts of the fabric combined with embroidery thread the outlines
of the figure or design.
To carry this embroidery into effect an ordinary embroidering machine fitted with
a perforating apparatus is used; a piece of fabric or cloth is placed in the machine
in the usual manner; the cloth is perforated for a short distance between two
figures, or where a space is to be between parts of the same figure; the embroidery
thread then gathers the cut cloth from the side of the perforation into the outline
of the design by the ordinary action of the machine; the outline of the design at
one side of the perforation is then connected by embroidery thread to the outline
of the design at the other side of the perforation; this auxiliary or connecting
thread is to take the place of the cloth that has been cut, so that the cloth may be
kept firm and even at the edge of the design during the process of embroidering;
the cloth is then further perforated, and the outlines of the design are connected
by additional auxiliary threads, and the cut cloth is gathered into the outlines of
the design, and these operations are repeated until all the superfluous cloth that
does not form part of the design is gathered into the outline of the design and the
embroidery is completed; the auxiliary threads are then cut and removed. The
embroidery manufactured according to this Invention has a very strong and clearly
defined outline. The auxiliary thread may be placed over the outline at one side
of the design in the form of a loop so as to be easily drawn out when the
embroidery is finished.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Charles Alfred Barlow in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
6th June 1882.
CHARLES ALFRED BARLOW, of the Firm of Henry Bernoulli Barlow, of
Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, Patent Agent. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
MANUFACTURE OF MACHINE EMBROIDERY." A communication from abroad by
the Firm of Messieurs Wetter Brothers, of St. Gall, in the Republic of Switzerland.
The object of this Invention is to gather all parts of the fabric not covered by
embroidery stitches, or which do not make part of the figure or design, and to
form of the said parts of the fabric combined with embroidery thread the outlines
of the figure or design.
To carry this Invention into effect an ordinary embroidering machine fitted with
a perforating apparatus is used, and to make this description moro intelligible
I will refer to the accompanying Drawing which represents a single design.
Other and more elaborate designs may be embroidered in a similar manner.
It is
The design shown is six times the size of the pattern to be embroidered. A
piece of fabric or cloth is placed in the machine in the usual manner.
required to bring the portion of the cloth X, Y, Z, (which may be of any shape
and size) into the outline of the design. The cloth is perforated from A to B,
for instance, and gathered with the ordinary embroidery thread by the ordinary
action of the machine on the outline from E to F; after that an embroidery
thread G, H, is placed in the manner hereafter described in order to keep the
cloth firm and even at the edge of the design; this thread is called an auxiliary
thread. In the same way is placed the embroidery thread I, K, the cloth from
B to O having been previously perforated; the cut cloth is then gathered from F
until the cut B, C, is no longer sufficient when the cloth is perforated from C to D,
and the embroidery thread L, M, is placed, after which the gathering of the cloth
can be continued until the starting point E is reached, and the whole cloth X, Y, Z,
is gathered in the outline of the design and replaced by the auxiliary threads
G, H, I, K, L, M, which serve to keep the fabric firm and even at the edges of
the design. In this manner the work will be continued until the whole design
is completed, after which the auxiliary threads, which can easily be cut off, are
removed.
The placing of the auxiliary threads can be done in two different ways, as
shown, in the projections I', K', and I", K". Suppose the cloth has been
perforated and gathered, as described above, the embroidery thread is placed, as
shown, in projection I, K¹. At the point I the needle is passed from the front
side of the fabric to the back; from the back at K' a stitch is made between the
outline and the design, which brings the thread again on the backsido; it is passed
again at I to the front and fastened, and so on; or the auxiliary threads may be
placed, as shown, on the projection I", K", which is preferable, as the thread has
to be cut off afterwards on one side only, and by forming a sling or loop on the
othor side it can easily be removed by drawing out as may be seen by the
projection I", K". The figure of the embroidery manufactured according to this
Invention has a very strong and clearly defined outline.
Having stated the nature of this Invention and described the manner of
performing the same,
I declare that I claim,―
1. The process of manufacturing embroidery consisting in the following steps:-
First, marking or indicating the outlines of a design; secondly, perforating the

page_text: thirdly, fastening to the fabric an auxiliary thread or threads extending across
said line or lines of perforations to keep the fabric firm and even at the edges of
the design; fourthly, in gathering into the outline of the design that part of the
cloth or fabric which is between the outline thereof and the lines of perforations
referred to; and, finally, in repeating these steps until all the material inside of
these perforated lines is gathered into the design, and then removing the auxiliary
throads, substantially as set forth.
2. The manufacture of embroidery by employing the improved process, in the
manner and for the purpose substantially as herein described.
.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Alfred Barlow, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifth day of June, One thousand eight hundred and
eighty two,
CHARLES ALFRED BARLOW. (L.S.)