Sample of Collins & Aikman Corporation mercerized cotton figured upholstery velvet, 1929. Cut pile in a diamond grid with an open center voided to a plain weave ground. The grid pattern is dark brown and white with a bright green dot at each intersection. The ground alternates red and yellow warps, with a dark brown weft. Non-directional design.The green and white pile warps are sheared away on the back of the cloth, and not continuos from one area of use to another. Half width. Machine overlocked on three sides; no selvage.
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.