Glossary – Scroop

Posted on 2018-01-21 by Jonathan

Remember when Rhett Butler comments on Mammy’s new red taffeta petticoat when he hears it rustling? That sound is called ‘Scroop’ and is the distinct crisp, scraping sound made by silk taffeta. The sound is achieved by the silk being treated with a dilute acid that hardens the protein filaments. The sound is also achieved in rayon taffeta by using a similar treatment that hardens cellulose filaments.

About Jonathan

Jonathan Walford is a fashion historian and co-founder of the Fashion History Museum in Cambridge, Ontario. The FHM maintains a collection of nearly 12,000 artifacts dating from the mid 17th century to the present. Jonathan has authored various books and museum catalogues, including The Seductive Shoe, Shoes A-Z, Forties Fashion, 1950s American Fashion, and Sixties Fashion.
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2 Responses to Glossary – Scroop

  1. Anne Denoon says:
    2018-02-06 at 1:54 pm

    This is my new word of the day (& week, month, year). I’d never heard it before, but it’s delightful and precise. Thanks!

    Reply

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