A length of H.R. Mallinson's pure-dye "Pussy Willow" (trade name) Taffeta--a plain weave silk, cylinder (roller) printed with one of the company's 1915 "State flower" designs: Rhode Island Violets --colors: lavenders and greens on a plain white ground. The sprays of violets are scattered across the ground fabric, in a non-directional layout.
This series of State Flower designs was printed in limited colors and colorways - perhaps as a result of the dye shortages faced by American industry during World War I, as a result of the British blockade of German ports, and restriction of German exports. Germany was the world's most important producer of synthetic dyestuffs in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.