Jargon of the Week - Crocking

Crocking is our term in this week's edition of "Jargon of the Week".

Dictionary.com defines crocking as:

crock [krok]

–noun
1. a person or thing that is old, decrepit, or broken-down.
2. Slang. a person who complains about or insists on being treated for an imagined illness.
3. an old ewe.
4. an old worn-out horse.

–verb (used with object)
5. British Slang. to disable or injure.

Origin:1300–50; ME crok old ewe, perh. akin to crack (v.) and obs. crack whore; cf. LG krakke broken-down horse

When dealing with fabric, the term crocking refers to the transfer of a color from one fabric to another. This can happen when the fabrics rub together during handling or use. It can also occur if the fabrics bleed during washing.

Edited to add this:
How appropriate that I had scheduled this "Jargon of the Week" for this week.

I have been working on a table runner for a Christmas gift for Jason's grandmother. The majority of it is pieced triangles in dark blues. On each end, there is an appliqued angel. The angel has white wings and a yellow halo.

After I finished appliqueing all the angel pieces on each end, I used a little steam in the iron to really make things nice and flat. Well, after I pulled the iron away, I noticed that the blue from under the wings and halo had bled through or crocked. I've tried everything I can think of to get it out, but nothing is working. I'm assuming that since I used the iron, the heat set the color in and I'm just going to need to rip off the affected parts and redo them. It's a bummer, but I thought I'd share my very recent experience with this week's term.

Note: I always pre-wash. I guess the blue fabric that bled through was just super over-dyed and didn't all come out in the wash. Bummer.

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