IMPROVEMENTS IN MANUFACTURING AND ORNAMENTING BRUSHES, PARTS OF WHICH ARE APPLICABLE TO ORNAMENTING BASKETS AND ARTICLES OF FURNITURE, AND TO PROTECTING SILVER ON GLASS
Year: 1861

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Wilkinson at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 11th July
1861.
I, WILLIAM WILKINSON, of Bayswater, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MANUFACTURING AND ORNAMENTING BRUSHES, PARTS OF WHICH ARE APPLICABLE TO
ORNAMENTING BASKETS AND ARTICLES OF FURNITURE, AND TO PROTECTING SILVER
ON GLASS," to be as follows:-
The primary object of my Invention is to ornament brushes, but it is
capable of extension to the ornamenting of furniture and other articles. By
way of example I will explain the manner in which I prefer to ornament the
backs of brushes:-I take two flat surfaces of, say, wood, coat each with
glue or other adhesive material, and press the two together until they are
firmly united, and further secure the same, if necessary, with rivets or other-
wise. When the back of the brush is made in the manner before described,
I prepare it to receive the ornament by brushing a cement over it composed
chiefly of glue or other adhesive, substance. I then take a piece of waterproof
cloth or other fabric, coat it with a similar adhesive substance, and lay it on
the back of the brush, where it is caused to adhere by pressure or otherwise.
The superfluous matter is then cut off, and the edges, with the other parts of
the brush, are stained or ornamented to correspond with or form a contrast to
the back. The cloth I prefer to employ for this purpose is made from a pulp
composed of cotton warp, hemp, wool, or other filamentous material.
My Invention also consists in inserting panels or plates of glass, china,

page_text: earthenware, metal, or other materials ornamented or not in the backs of
brushes; I also stain or silver the plates, and to ornament them remove or cut
the stain in those parts where the design is required. I sometimes engrave
the plates or panels and protect the silver with paint, cement, or other suitable
material. When I employ metal panels they are embossed or otherwise
ornamented. In some cases the back of the brush may be made wholly of
metal and fastened to the brush by screws, rivets, or otherwise.
My Invention also consists in attaching cut pile or other velvet fabrics to
two or more sides of brushes for cleaning silks and other materials. I also
make brushes in a similar manner, and insert bristles in them. I also employ
sponge and wool in their manufacture, and in some cases I make them of
leather, which I sprinkle with emery powder, ground glass, sand, or other
cleaning or polishing material or materials. Articles made in this manner are
applicable as files. In some cases I dispense with the leather or its equivalent,
and place the emery powder or other material on the wood or metal of which
the article is made. Brushes and files made in the manner just described are
applicable to machines for cleaning knives and forks.
My Invention further consists in ornamenting baskets as well as brushes
with silvered, stained, or otherwise ornamented glass, in combination or not
with prints, engravings, paintings, woven or textile fabrics, lace, embroidery,
or other ornamental materials. The ornamental parts are protected between
sheets or plates of glass in the following manner :-I brush over one plate a
transparent cement composed of varnish, gum, and oil (boiled or not); I then
place the design upon it, and by applying pressure it is caused to adhere. I
make use of a ruler covered with india-rubber, wool, or other material, which
I pass over the back of the design to remove the superfluous cement, air
bubbles, and other imperfections. When the cement is dry, I paint the edges
of the glass as well as the remaining sheet of glass with some opaque color,
which, when dry, I cover with a cement composed of white and red lead. In
a similar manner I insert the ornamental materials before described into the
backs of brushes made of papier maché.
This part of my Invention is also applicable to ornamenting articles of
furniture, such as tables, pianos, windows, panels, blinds, chairs, and other
articles.