Crape

Crape, a thin fabric made of silk, which has been tightly twisted, without removing the natural gum with which it is covered when spun by the worm. It is woven as a thin gauze, then boiled to extract the gum, which causes the threads partially to ntwist, and thus gives a waved and rough appearance to the fabric. It is usually dyed black, and used for mourning apparel. The nature of the finishing processes in the making of crape is kept secret by European manufacturers. In Japan, crape is manufactured by using alternately weft threads twisted in opposite directions, and these are of a much closer twist than ordinary threads. When the piece is woven it is dipped in cold, then in hot, and again in cold water in rapid succession, and afterwards rolled and dried. The effect of these operations on the weft threads produces the crisp surface. Chinese and Japanese crapes are often white, with coloured designs, or in single colours, and used for shawls, scarfs, &c.