Grassing (textiles)

This article is about a method of bleaching. For other uses, see Grassing (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Gassing (textile process).

Grassing is one of the oldest methods of bleaching textile goods. The grassing method has long been used in Europe to bleach linen and cotton based fabrics.[1]

Method

The linens were laid out on the grass for over seven days after boiling with the ''lyes of ashes and rinsing''.[2] The atmospheric oxygen and the oxygen left by the grass provide the whitening action. The cloth becomes whiter day by day until it attains the full whiteness. It was a slow process, but safer for the subjected material. Chemical bleaching may harm the cloth, but in the grassing it hardly affects the cloth's strength.[1][3][4]

Bleachfield

The Bleachfield was an open area to spread cloth. It was a field near the watercourse used by a bleachery. Bleachfields were common in and around the mill towns during the British Industrial Revolution[5]

Chemical bleaching

With the discovery of Chlorine in the late 18th century, chemical bleaching took over from grassing, as it was quicker and could be done indoors.[1][5][2]

  • Linen Bleaching/ Grassing
  • Bleaching Ground
  • Market and washing place in Flanders

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Nystrom, Paul Henry (1916). Textiles. D. Appleton. p. 266. Grassing . — The oldest bleaching method is that of " grassing , " still used to a certain extent in Europe for bleaching linens. The linen fabrics are laid on the grass or ground for weeks . The oxygen of the air and that given off by green plants
  2. ^ a b Sansone, Antonio (1888). Dyeing: Comprising the Dyeing and Bleaching of Wool, Silk, Cotton, Flax, Hemp, China Grass &c. A. Heywood & son. p. 109.
  3. ^ Fraser, Grace Lovat (1948). Textiles by Britain. G. Allen & Unwin. p. 136.
  4. ^ England), Textile Institute (Manchester (1923). Journal of the Textile Institute. The Institute. p. 125.
  5. ^ a b Aspin, C. (Christopher) (1981). The cotton industry. Internet Archive. Aylesbury : Shire Publications Ltd. p. 24. ISBN 978-0-85263-545-2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
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