Sample of Collins & Aikman Corporation figured upholstery velvet, 1929. Cut pile geometric pattern of arcs and angles, late Art Deco styling, in light gray, pink, orange, dark red, blue. Pile in cotton rayon, varying lusters. Ground weft is tan cotton. Some areas of the pattern are highlighted by a voided outline. The ground is tied in twill weave, and the pile warps are woven into the ground on the reverse. Half Width. Machine overlock stitching finished three edges.
Collins & Aikman Corporation was founded in 1891 and incorporated in 1929. The company made high end upholstery fabrics, including velvets and plushes in cotton, mohair, and silk, and beginning in the 1910s, artifical silk (rayon). Early on the firm competed successfully in the market for automotive and aviation fabrics. In the 1920s the company had mills in Astoria (Queens), New York; Philadelphia, PA; and North Carolina.