Velvet (dog)

Velvet is a black lab/shepherd cattle mixed-breed dog, owned by Matty Bryant of Milwaukie, Oregon, who helped save three climbers, including Bryant, when they became stranded on Mount Hood, Oregon on February 18, 2007.

The three climbers and Velvet toppled off a ledge while descending from a climb of Mount Hood. Due to low visibility, they stepped off a ledge at about 8,300 feet (2,500 m) elevation during a storm, separating them from five other members of the party. The five reported the accident and were themselves soon rescued. The three fallen climbers activated Mountain Locator Units to let searchers find their position which was at about 7,400 feet (2,300 m) elevation in White River Canyon. Due to worsening conditions, they were forced to spend the night on the mountain while 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) winds blew with temperatures in the 20s (-1 to -7 C). Velvet spent the night going from person to person to ensure they kept warm as they huddled under two sleeping bags and a tarp. The climbers were rescued the next morning.

Velvet

Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed, with a short dense pile, giving it a distinctive feel. By extension, the word velvety means "smooth like velvet." Velvet can be made from either synthetic or natural fibers.

Construction & composition

Velvet is woven on a special loom that weaves two thicknesses of the material at the same time. The two pieces are then cut apart to create the pile effect, and the two lengths of fabric are wound on separate take-up rolls. This complicated process meant that velvet was expensive to make before industrial power looms became available, and well-made velvet remains a fairly costly fabric. Velvet is difficult to clean because of its pile, but modern dry cleaning methods make cleaning more feasible. Velvet pile is created by warp or vertical yarns and velveteen pile is created by weft or fill yarns.

Velvet can be made from several different kinds of fibers, traditionally, the most expensive of which is silk. Much of the velvet sold today as "silk velvet" is actually a mix of rayon and silk. Velvet made entirely from silk is rare and usually has market prices of several hundred US dollars per yard. Cotton is also used to make velvet, though this often results in a less luxurious fabric. Velvet can also be made from fibers such as linen, mohair, and wool. A cloth made by the Kuba people of the Democratic Republic of Congo from raffia is often referred to as "Kuba velvet". More recently, synthetic velvets have been developed, mostly from polyester, nylon, viscose, acetate, and from either mixtures of different synthetics or from combined synthetics and natural fibers (for example viscose mixed with silk produces a very soft, reflective fabric). A small percentage of spandex is sometimes added to give the final material a certain amount of stretch (hence "stretch velvet").

Velvet (Savoy song)

"Velvet" is a song by Savoy, a band fronted by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy from their first album, Mary Is Coming. Savoy's version was released as a single in the US, but got very little airplay.

A-ha's Version

A-ha's version of "Velvet" replaced Savoy's guitars with sitars. Their version, the third single from Minor Earth Major Sky, was released to radio stations in Germany (and in other European countries such as Sweden, Switzerland and Holland) in September 2000 and was released to German record stores on 6 November (one week later in other parts of Europe). Originally, "The Sun Never Shone That Day" was to be released in Norway instead of "Velvet", but it was later decided that "Velvet" would also be released in Norway.

The backing vocals were performed by Simone Larsen of the Norwegian band D'Sound.

Track listing

Velvet (disambiguation)

Velvet is a particular kind of soft fabric.

Velvet may also refer to:

Music

Other

Dogū

Dogū (土偶)(meaning "clay figures") are small humanoid and animal figurines made during the late Jōmon period (14,000–400 BC) of prehistoric Japan. Dogū come exclusively from the Jōmon period. By the Yayoi period, which followed the Jōmon period, Dogū were no longer made. There are various styles of Dogū, depending on exhumation area and time period. According to the National Museum of Japanese History, the total number found throughout Japan is approximately 15,000. Dogū were made across all of Japan, except Okinawa. Most of the Dogū have been found in eastern Japan and it is rare to find one in western Japan. The purpose of the Dogū remains unknown and should not be confused with the clay haniwa funerary objects of the Kofun period (250 – 538).

Origins

Some scholars theorize the Dogū acted as effigies of people, that manifested some kind of sympathetic magic. For example, it may have been believed that illnesses could be transferred into the Dogū, then destroyed, clearing the illness, or any other misfortune.

Dog in Chinese mythology

Dogs are an important motif in Chinese mythology. These motifs include a particular dog which accompanies a hero, the dog as one of the twelve totem creatures for which years are named, a dog giving first provision of grain which allowed current agriculture, and claims of having a magical dog as an original ancestor in the case of certain ethnic groups.

Myth versus history

Chinese mythology is those myths found in the geographic area called China, which of course has evolved and changed throughout its history. These include myths in Chinese and other languages, as transmitted by Han Chinese as well as other ethnic groups (of which fifty-six are officially recognized by the current administration of China). (Yang 2005:4)

In the study of historical Chinese culture, many of the stories that have been told regarding characters and events which have been written or told of the distant past have a double tradition: one which tradition which presents a more historicized and one which presents a more mythological version.(Yang 2005: 12-13) This is also true of some accounts related to mythological dogs in China.

Dog meat

Dog meat refers to the flesh and other edible parts derived from dogs. Historically, human consumption of dog meat has been recorded in many parts of the world, including East and Southeast Asia, West Africa, Europe, Oceania and the Americas.

In the 21st century, dog meat is consumed in many parts of China,Korea and Vietnam, parts of Switzerland, as well as parts of Europe, Americas, the African continent, such as Cameroon, Ghana and Liberia.

Today, a number of cultures view the consumption of dog meat to be a part of their traditional and day-to-day cuisine, while others - such as Western culture - consider consumption of dog to be a taboo, although they have been consumed in times of war and/or other hardships. It was estimated in 2014 that worldwide, 25 million dogs are eaten each year by humans.

Dog breeds used for meat

Nureongi

The Nureongi (Korean: 누렁이) is a yellowish landrace from Korea. Similar to other native Korean dog breeds, such as the Jindo, nureongi are medium-sized spitz-type dogs, but are larger with greater musculature and a distinctive coat pattern. They are quite uniform in appearance, yellow hair and melanistic masks. Nureongi are most often used as a livestock dog, raised for its meat, and not commonly kept as pets.