AN IMPROVED PROCESS FOR RESTORING OR RENOVATING CRAPE, LACE, AND OTHER LIKE MATERIALS
Year: 1877

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Robert Lake at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 4th September 1877. A communication
from abroad by Eva Browne Reid, of the City and State of New York, United
States of America.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "AN IMPROVED PROCESS FOR RESTORING OR
RENOVATING CRAPE, LACE, AND OTHER LIKE MATERIALS." A communication from
abroad by Eva Browne Reid, of the City and State of New York, United States
of America.
This Invention relates to a new process for restoring crape, laces, and other similar
thin materials, and has for its object to renovate and restore such fabrics when the
same have become discolored or damaged by use, exposure, or otherwise.
The said Invention consists in immersing or saturating the fabric in a solution
composed of alcohol, shellac, vinegar, and water, and a suitable dye-stuff prepared
in the peculiar manner herein-after described, then drying such saturated fabric,
and afterwards subjecting it to the action of steam, whereby the color of the dye is
brought freshly out and the alcohol expelled. The shellac or other stiffening gum,
being insoluble in water, is left upon the surface of the fabric, and serves to preserve
the freshness of its color and texture.
In carrying out my process I first take about one gallon of alcohol, and add to it
about eleven ounces of English brown shellac, and permit the same to remain until
the shellac has been perfectly dissolved in the alcohol, which will be within the
course of one or two hours. I then prepare a second solution entirely independent
of the first solution mentioned, this solution consisting of about one and a half pints
of pure vinegar and soft water, and six packages of British ink powder, which latter
is composed of three parts of red oak bark, two parts of sulphate of iron, and two
parts of gum arabic. After this second and separate solution from the first has
been thoroughly and effectually dissolved and mixed together I add to it the first-
named solution of alcohol and shellac, whereby the constituent parts of all the ingre-
dients mentioned are thoroughly incorporated with each other, whereby I produce a
most suitable dye and bath for carrying out my improved process. I now take the
crape, lace, or other fabric to be restored or renewed, and immerse it in the liquid until
it is thoroughly saturated, and then wring it out and dry it in any convenient manner

page_text: and by any suitable means, after which I expose the dried fabric to a jet of steam
until every portion has been effectually subjected to the action of the same, by
which means I am enabled to completely restore and renovate faded crapes, laces,
and other analogous fabrics, to cleanse them, to permanently fix the desired colour,
restore their original freshness, and preserve their beauty.
As has been before stated, the shellac or other stiffening gum employed, which is
insoluble in water, is not affected by the action of the steam, and is left upon the
surface of the fabric, and serves to accomplish some of the important functions
set forth, namely, the freshness of its colour, and imparting a stiffness to the
fabric.
The drying of the fabric prior to the steaming action is an important feature, for
the reason that the shellac or stiffening gum while drying will run in spots over
the fabric, and the steam jets melt the same, and cause it to spread evenly and
uniformly over the fabric, and crimping the crape, and the shellac retaining it in
such crimped condition.
The important and essential feature of my process consists in first preparing the
solution of alcohol and shellac, and then preparing a second and independent solution
from the first named, composed of the dye stuff, vinegar, and water, thoroughly
dissolving the dye-stuff in the same, and then bringing the two solutions together,
whereby the alcoholic solution can be thoroughly incorporated with the dye-stuff
solution owing to the presence of the acid in the vinegar, such steps being essential
to form the immersing-bath, for otherwise the British ink powder or dye-stuff,
which contains a large per-centage of sulphate of iron, could not be dissolved and
incorporated with the alcohol.
If desired, when the dye-stuff is composed partly of a gum, I can dispense with
the shellac in the alcohol, but otherwise the process is the same.
It has heretofore been proposed to make a solution in which to immerse crape and
lace preparatory to subjecting them to the action of steam, composed of alcohol,
British ink-powder, and shellac, but it has been found by experiment that such is
not practical, for the reason that the British ink-powder, owing to the presence of a
large per centage of sulphate of iron, cannot alone be dissolved in alcohol.