FABRIC IDENTIFICATION

Burn Test - CAUTION. WARNING. BE CAREFUL! This should

only be done by skilled burners! Make sure there is a bucket of water nearby and that you burn in a metal bucket or non-plastic sink. To identify fabric that is unknown, a simple burn test can be done to determine if the fabric is a natural fiber, man made fiber, or a blend of natural and man made fibers. The burn test is used by many fabric stores and designers and takes practice to determine the exact fiber content. However, an inexperienced person can still determine the difference between many fibers to "narrow" the choices down to natural or man made fibers. This elimination process will give information necessary to decide the care of the fabric. WARNING: All fibers will burn! Asbestos treated fibers are, for the most part fire proof. The burning test should be done with caution. Use a small piece of fabric only. Hold the fabric with tweezers, not your fingers. Burn over a metal dish with soda in the bottom or even water in the bottom of the dish. Some fabrics will ignite and melt. The result is burning drips which can adhere to fabric or skin and cause a serious burn. Cotton is a plant fiber. When ignited it burns with a steady flame and smells like burning leaves. The ash left is easily crumbled. Small samples of burning cotton can be blown out as you would a candle. Linen is also a plant fiber but different from cotton in that the individual plant fibers which make up the yarn are long where cotton fibers are short. Linen takes longer to ignite. The fabric closest to the ash is very brittle. Linen is easily extinguished by blowing on it as you would a candle. Silk is a protein fiber and usually burns readily, not necessarily with a steady flame, and smells like burning hair. The ash is easily crumbled. Silk samples are not as easily extinguished as cotton or linen. Wool is also a protein fiber but is harder to ignite than silk as the individual "hair" fibers are shorter than silk and the weave of the fabrics is generally looser than with silk. The flame is steady but more difficult to keep burning. The smell of burning wool is like burning hair. Man Made Fibers Acetate is made from cellulose (wood fibers), technically cellulose acetate. Acetate burns readily with a flickering flame that cannot be easily extinguished. The burning cellulose drips and leaves a hard

ash. The smell is similar to burning wood chips. Acrylic technically acrylonitrile is made from natural gas and petroleum. Acrylics burn readily due to the fiber content and the lofty, air filled pockets. A match or cigarette dropped on an acrylic blanket can ignite the fabric which will burn rapidly unless extinguished. The ash is hard. The smell is acrid or harsh. Nylon is a polyamide made from petroleum. Nylon melts and then burns rapidly if the flame remains on the melted fiber. If you can keep the flame on the melting nylon, it smells like burning plastic. Polyester is a polymer produced from coal, air, water, and

1. Nylon is a synthetic polymer, a plastic, invented on February 28, 1935 by Wallace Carothers at the E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company of Wilmington, Delaware, USA. The material was announced in 1938 and the first nylon products; a nylon bristle toothbrush made with nylon yarn (went on sale on February 24, 1938) and more famously, women's stockings (went on sale on May 15, 1940). Nylon fibres are now used to make many synthetic fabrics, and solid nylon is used as an engineering material. Chemically, nylon is a condensation polymer made of repeating units with amide linkages between them: hence it is frequently referred to as a polyamide. It was the first synthetic fibre to be made entirely from inorganic ingredients: coal, water and air. These are formed into two intermediate chemicals, most commonly hexamethylene diamine and adipic acid (a dicarboxylic acid), which are then mixed to polymerise. The most common variant is nylon 6,6, also called nylon 66, which refers to the fact that both the diamine and the diacid have 6 carbon backbones. The diacid and diamine units alternate in the polymer chain. Therefore, unlike natural polyamides like proteins, the direction of the amide bond reverses at each bond. There is no evidence for the popular belief that "nylon" is a contraction of "NY" (for "New York") and "Lon" for "London", the two cities where the material was first manufactured. In 1940 John W. Eckelberry of Du Pont stated that the letters "nyl" were arbitrary and the "on" was copied from the names of other fibres such as cotton and

rayon. A later publication by Du Pont (Context, vol. 7, no. 2, 1978) explained that the name was originally intended to be "No-Run" ("run" in this context meaning "unravel"), but was then modified to avoid making such an unjustified claim and to make it sound better. The story goes that Carothers changed one letter at a time until Du Pont's management were satisfied. Another popular belief is that nylon stands for "now you, lazy old nippon," as nylon was developed in the 1930s. In this sentence nippon stands for Japan, as in the 1930s, the decade in which nylon was developed, a chemical "war" was taking place between the US and Japan. Even though the word nylon was coined, it was never trademarked. During World War II, nylon replaced Asian silk in parachutes. It was also used to make tires, tents, ropes, ponchos, and other military supplies. It was even used in the production of a high-grade paper for US currency. At the outset of the War, cotton accounted for more than 80 percent of all fibres used, and manufactured and wool fibres accounted for the remaining 20 percent. By August, 1945, manufactured fibres had risen to 25 percent, and cotton had dropped to 75 percent. Some conspiracy theorists surmise that cannabis was made illegal because the fibres from the hemp plant, used for fabrics and ropes, were in strong competition with nylon. However, nylon fiber is more than twice as strong as hemp fiber and weighs 25% less. While hemp was originally used in climbing rope, it is now virtually unused in modern climbing, including countries where cannabis is legal. 2. A tartan is a specific woven pattern that often signifies a particular Scottish clan in the modern era. The pattern is made with pre-dyed threads woven to form alternating stripes. The resulting blocks of color repeat vertically and horizontally in a pattern of squares and lines. Kilts almost always have tartans. Tartan is also known as plaid in North America. Tartan patterns have been used in Scottish weaving for centuries. For many centuries, the patterns were associated with the weavers of a particular area. The naming and registration of official clan tartans did not begin until the Highland romantic revival of the 19th century was fostered by Walter Scott and spurred by the pageantry he invented for the visit of King George IV of Great Britain to Edinburgh. The tartan of a Scottish clan is a sequence of colors and shades unique to the material, authorised by the clan society for use by members of that clan for kilts, ties, and other garments and decorations. Every clan with a society, has at least one distinct tartan. While "heraldic" in the sense of being visual representation of blood relation, they are not "Scottish heraldry", strictly speaking. In Scotland, heraldry is protected under the law by the court of the Lord Lyon, King of Arms, and there are penalties for bearing an unauthorised Coat of arms. On the other hand, there is no blanket legal prohibition against wearing the "wrong" tartan. It is considered proper to wear a clan tartan if the wearer is associated with the clan by name, by blood or by legal adoption.

In addition to the clan tartans, tradition reserves some patterns for use by Scottish Highland military units of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth countries. Those associated with the British Royal Family use the Royal Stewart tartan regardless of whether they are affiliated by blood to the Stewart clan. This is because of the Royal Family's Stewart ancestry through James VI of Scotland. However tartan is pretty inclusive. There are tartans for military forces like the Royal Canadian Air Force, commercial companies, special interest groups like Amnesty International, cities, football clubs, commemorations and regions of the world where people of the Scottish Diaspora live. As a result most people, whether of Scottish ancestry or not, can find some tartan which is significant for them. There are also general fashion tartans for those who do not care about the significance.

3. A textile is any kind of woven, knitted, knotted (as in macrame) or tufted cloth, or a non-woven fabric (a cloth made of fibers that have been bonded into a fabric, e.g. felt). Textile also refers to the yarns, threads and wools that can be spun, woven, tufted, tied and otherwise used to manufacture cloth. The production of textiles is an ancient art, whose speed and scale of production has been altered almost beyond recognition by mass-production and the introduction of modern manufacturing techniques. An ancient Roman weaver would have no problem recognizing a plain weave, twill, or satin. Many textiles have been in use for millennia, while others use artificial fibers and are recent inventions. The range of fibers has increased in the last 100 years. The first synthetics were made in the 1920s and 1930s. Textiles can be made from a variety of materials. The following is a partial list of the materials that can be used to make textiles. Animal origin

Alpacca Angora rabbit hair Camel hair Cashmere Mohair Silk Vicuana hair Wool : divided into woollen and worsted

Vegetable

Bark cloth has various uses, and is used in sheets.

Coir: the fibre from coconuts. Cotton Grass, rush and straw Hemp (mostly used in rope making) Jute Kapok Linen, made from flax Nettle: processed in a similar manner to flax. Ramie Seaweed: a water soluble fibre (alginate) is produced. This is used as a holding fibre in the production of certain textiles: when the cloth is finished the alginate is dissolved, leaving an open area. Sisal

Derived from plant products

Paper

Mineral

Asbestos: now has very limited uses. Glass fibres can be used in the manufacture of textiles for insulation and other purposes. Metal fibre, metal wire and metal foil have some uses in textiles, either on their own or with other materials (see, for example, goldwork embroidery).

A vast range of man-made fibers can be used in textile manufacture, including:

Acrylic fiber Lurex Spandex, tactel, lycra and other 'stretch' fabrics Nylon fiber Polyester fiber Polypropylene (comes under various common trade names such as Olefin or Herculon) Rayon fiber

Ways of making textiles

Braiding/Plaiting Crochet usually by hand. Embroidery threads which are added to the surface of a finished textile.

Felt fibres are matted together to produce a cloth. Knitting by hand or on knitting machines. Knotting, including macrame: used in making nets. Lace again both hand made and machine made. Pile fabrics carpets and some rugs Velvet, velveteen, plush fabrics and similar have a secondary set of yarns which provide a pile. Weaving the cloth is prepared on a loom, of which there are a number of types. Some weaving is still done by hand, but the vast majority is machine made.

Textile Industry Definition

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5. The Textile industry (also known in the United Kingdom and Australia as the Rag Trade) is a term used for industries primarily concerned with the design or manufacture of clothing as well as the distribution and use of textiles .

Cottage stage
Before the maufacturing processes were mechanized, textiles were produced in the home, and excess sold for extra money. Most cloth was made from either wool, cotton, or flax, depending on the era and location. For example, during the late mediaeval period, cotton became known as an imported fibre in northern Europe, without any knowledge of what it came from other than that it was a plant; noting its similarities to wool, people in the region could only imagine that cotton must be produced by plant-borne sheep. John Mandeville, writing in 1350, stated as fact the now-preposterous belief: "There grew there [India] a wonderful tree which bore tiny lambs on the endes of its branches. These branches were so pliable that they bent down to allow the lambs to feed when they are hungrie." This aspect is retained in the name for cotton in many European languages, such as German Baumwolle, which translates as "tree wool". By the end of the 16th century, cotton was cultivated throughout the warmer regions in Asia and the Americas. In Roman times, wool, linen and leather clothed the European population: the cotton of India was a curiosity that only naturalists had heard of, and silk, imported along the Silk Road from China, was an extravagant luxury. The use of flax fibre in the manufacturing of cloth in northern Europe dates back to Neolithic times. Cloth was produced in the home, and the excess woven cloth was sold to merchants called clothiers who visited the village with their trains of pack-horses. Some of the cloth was made into clothes for people living in the same area and a large amount of cloth was exported. The process of making cloth depends slightly on the fiber being used, but there are three main steps: preparation of fibers for spinning, spinning, and weaving or knitting. The preparation of the fibers differs the most depending on the fiber used. Flax requires

retting and dressing, while wool requires carding and washing. The spinning and weaving processes are very similar between fibers though. Spinning evolved from twisting the fibers by hand, to use of a drop spindle, to a spinning wheel. Spindles or parts of them have been found in very, very old archaeological sites; they may represent one of the earliest pieces of technology available to humankind. was invented in India between 500 and 1000 A.D. It reached Europe via the Middle East in the European Middle Ages. Weaving, done on a loom has been around for as long as spinning. There are some indications that weaving was already known in the Palaeolithic. An indistinct textile impression has been found at Pavlov, Moravia. Neolithic textiles are well known from finds in pile dwellings in Switzerland. One extant fragment from the Neolithic was found in Fayum at a site which dates to about 5000 BCE. There are many different types of looms, from a simple inkle loom that dates back to the Vikings, to the standard floor loom.

History during the industrial revolution

Main article: Textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution The key British industry at the beginning of the 18th century was the production of textiles made with wool from the large sheep-farming areas in the Midlands and across the country (created as a result of land-clearance and inclosure). Handlooms and spinning wheel were the tools of the trade of the weavers in their cottages, and this was a labourintensive activity providing employment throughout Britain, with major centres being the West Country; Norwich and environs; and the West Riding of Yorkshire. The export trade in woolen goods accounted for more than a quarter of British exports during most of the 18th century, doubling between 1701 and 1770. Exports of the cotton industry centred in Lancashire had grown tenfold during this time, but still accounted for only a tenth of the value of the woollen trade. The textile industry grew out of the industrial revolution in the 18th Century as mass production of clothing became a mainstream industry. Starting with the flying shuttle in 1733 inventions were made to speed up the manufacturing process. In 1738 Lewis Paul and John Wyatt patented the Roller Spinning machine and the flyer-and-bobbin system. Lewis Paul invented a carding machine in 1748, and by 1764 the spinning jenny had also been invented. In 1771, Richard Arkwright used waterwheels to power looms for the production of cotton cloth, his invention becoming known as the water frame. In 1784, Edmund Cartwright invented the power loom. With the spinning and weaving process now mechanized, cotton mills cropped up all over Great Britain. Textile mills originally got their power from water wheels, and thus had to be situated along a river. With the invention of the steam engine, in the 1760s to 1800's, mills no longer needed to be along rivers.

Post industrial revolution

Many of the cotton mills, like the one in Lowell MA, in the US originally started with the intention of hiring local farm girls for a few years. The mill job was designed to give them a bit more money before they went back to the farm life. With the inflow of cheap labor from Ireland during the potato famine, the setup changed, as the girls became easily replaceable. Cotton mills were full of the loud clanking of the looms, as well as lint and cotton fiber. When the mills were first built a worker would work anywhere from one to four looms. As the design for the loom improved so that it stopped itself whenever a thread broke, and automatically refilled the shuttle, the number of machines a worker could work increased to up to 50. Originally, power looms were shuttle-operated but in the early part of the 20th century the faster and more efficient shuttleless loom came into use. Today, advances in technology have produced a variety of looms designed to maximize production for specific types of material. The most common of these are air-jet looms and water-jet looms. Industrial looms can weave at speeds of six rows per second and faster. By the latter 20th Century, the industry in the developed world had developed a bad reputation, often involving immigrants in illegal "sweat shops" full of people working on textile manufacturing and sewing machines being paid less than minimum wages. This trend has resulted due to attempts to protect existing industries which are being challenged by developing countries in South East Asia, the Indian subcontinent and more recently, Central America. Whilst globalisation has seen the manufacturing outsourced to overseas labor markets, there has been a trend for the areas historically associated with the trade to shift focus to the more white collar associated industries of fashion design, fashion modeling and retail. Areas historically involved heavily in the "rag trade" include London and Milan in Europe, SoHo district in New York City and the Flinders Lane and Richmond districts in Melbourne and Surry Hills in Sydney.

See also
A) The manufacture of textiles is one of the oldest of human technologies. To make textiles, the first requirement is a source of fibre from which a yarn can be made, primarily by spinning. (Both fibre and fiber are used in this article.) The yarn is processed by knitting or weaving, which turns yarn into cloth. The machine used for weaving is the loom. For decoration, the process of colouring yarn or the finished material is dyeing. For more information of the various steps, see textile manufacturing. ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ External links

[edit] A
Absorbency A measure of how much water a fabric can absorb. Acetate Acetate is a synthetic fiber. Acrylic Acrylic fiber is a synthetic polymer fiber that contains at least 85% acrylonitrile. Aida cloth Aida cloth is a coarse open-weave fabric traditionally used for cross-stitch. Alnage Alnage is the official supervision of the shape and quality of manufactured woolen cloth. Alpaca Alpaca is a name given to two distinct things. It is primarily a term applied to the wool of the Peruvian alpaca. It is, however, more broadly applied to a style of fabric originally made from alpaca fiber but now frequently made from a similar type of fiber. Angora Angora refers to the hair of the Angora rabbit, or the fabric made from Angora rabbit fur. (Fabric made from angora goat is mohair.)[1] Appliqu Appliqu is a sewing technique in which fabric shapes, lace or trim, are sewn on to a foundation fabric to create designs.[2] Aramid Aramid fiber is a fire-resistant and strong synthetic fiber Argyle An argyle pattern is one containing diamonds in a sort of diagonal checkerboard pattern.

[edit] B
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Backstrap loom Backstrap looms, as the name implies, are tied around the weaver's waist on one end and around a stationary object such as a tree, post, or door on the other. Tension can be adjusted simply by leaning back. Backstrap looms are very portable, since they can simply be rolled up and carried. Baize Baize is a coarse woollen or cotton cloth, often coloured red or green. Ballistic nylon Ballistic nylon is a thick, tough synthetic fabric used for a variety of applications. Batik Batik is an Indonesian traditional word and refers to a generic wax-resist dyeing technique used on fabric.

Bedford-Cord Combination of two kinds of Weave, Namely Plain and Drill. Bias The bias direction of a piece of woven fabric, usually referred to simply as "the bias", is at 45 degrees to its warp and weft threads. Every piece of woven fabric has two biases, perpendicular to each other. Binding In sewing, binding is used as both a noun and a verb to refer to finishing a seam or hem of a garment, usually by rolling or pressing then stitching on an edging or trim. Blend A Blend is a fabric or yarn made up of more than one type of fiber. Bobbin lace Bobbin lace is a delicate lace that uses wound spools of thread (the bobbins) to weave together the shapes in the lace. Bobbinet Bobbinet is a tulle netting with hexagonal shaped holes, traditionally used as a base for embroidery and lingerie. Bombazine Bombazine is a fabric originally made of silk or silk and wool, and now also made of cotton and wool or of wool alone. It is twilled or corded and used for dressmaterial. Braid To braid is to interweave or twine three or more separate strands of one or more materials in a diagonally overlapping pattern. Broadcloth Broadcloth -material of superior quality. Brocade Brocade is the term for forming patterns in cloth with a supplementary weft. Buckram Buckram is a stiff cloth, made of cotton or linen, which is used to cover, and protect, a book, and although is more expensive than its look-a-like, Brella, is stronger and resistant to cockroaches eating it. Buckram can also be used to stiffen clothes. Burlap Burlap is a type of cloth often used for sacks.

[edit] C
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Calico Calico is a type of fabric made from unbleached, and often not fully processed, cotton. Also referred to a type of Printing. Cambric Cambric is a lightweight cotton cloth used as fabric for lace and needlework. Camel's Hair

Camel's Hair is a natural fiber from the camel. Camel hair can produce a variety of different coarseness of yarn. This fiber is a novelty fiber spun by handspinners. Canvas Canvas is an extremely heavy-duty fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, and other functions where sturdiness is required. It is also popularly used on fashion handbags. Canvas work Canvas work is embroidery on canvas. Carding Carding is the processing of brushing raw or washed fibers to prepare them as textiles. Carpet A carpet' is any loom-woven, felted textile or grass floor covering. Cashmere Cashmere is wool from the Cashmere goat. Cellulose Cellulose; this fiber processed to make cellophane and rayon, and more recently Modal, a textile derived from beechwood cellulose. Cheesecloth Cheesecloth is a loosewoven cotton cloth, such as is used in pressing cheese curds. Chiffon Chiffon is a sheer fabric made of silk or rayon. Chino cloth Chino cloth is a kind of twill fabric, usually made primarily from cotton. Chintz Chintz is calico cloth printed with flowers and other devices in different colors. It was originally of Eastern manufacture. Coir Coir is a coarse fibre extracted from the fibrous outer shell of a coconut. Colorfast (Colourfast) A term used to describe whether the colors bleed or not in washing. Cord Cord is twisted fibre, usually intermediate between rope and string. It is also used as a shortened form of corduroy. Corduroy Corduroy is a durable cloth. Cotton Cotton is a soft fibre that grows around the seeds of the cotton plant, a shrub native to the tropical and subtropical regions of both the Old World and the New World. The fibre is most often spun into thread and used to make a soft, breathable textile. Crepe Crepe is a silk fabric of a gauzy texture, having a peculiar crisp or crimpy appearance.

Crazy quilt Crazy quilting is often used to refer to the textile art of patchwork and is sometimes used interchangeably with that term. Crinoline Crinoline was originally a stiff fabric with a weft of horse-hair and a warp of cotton or linen thread. The fabric first appeared around 1830. Cross-stitch Cross-stitch is a popular form of counted-thread embroidery in which X-shaped stitches are used to form a picture. Crochet The word crochet describes the process of creating fabric from a length of cord, yarn, or thread with a hooked tool. Crochet hook A crochet hook is a type of needle, usually with a hook at one end, used to draw thread through knotted loops. Cro-hook The cro-hook is a special double-ended crochet hook used to make double-sided crochet. Because the hook has two ends, two colours of thread can be handled at once and freely interchanged.

[edit] D
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Damask Damask is a fabric of silk, wool, linen, cotton, or synthetic fibers, with a pattern formed by weaving. Today, it generally denotes a linen texture richly figured in the weaving with flowers, fruit, forms of animal life, and other types of ornament. Darning mushroom A darning mushroom is a tool which can be used for darning clothes, particularly socks. The sock can be stretched over the top of the (curved) mushroom, and gathered-tightly-around the stalk. Denim Denim denotes a rugged cotton twill textile. Dimity Dimity is a lightweight, sheer cotton fabric having at least two warp threads thrown into relief to form fine cords. Dobby loom Dobby loom is a loom in which each harness can be manipulated individually. This is in contrast to a treadle loom, where the harnesses are attached to a number of different treadles depending on the weave structure. Double weave Double weave is a type of advanced weave. It is done by interlacing two or more sets of warps with two or more sets of filling yarns. Dowlas Dowlas is the name given to a plain cloth, similar to sheeting, but usually coarser. Durability

how durable a fabric or yarn is. Dyes Dye is used to color fabric. There are two main types: Natural dyes and synthetic dyes. The process is called dyeing. Dye lot Dye lot is a number that identifies yarns dyed in the same vat at the same time. Subtle differences can appear between different batches of the same color yarn from the same manufacturer.

[edit] E
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Elasticity Elasticity Embroidery Embroidery is an ancient variety of decorative needlework in which designs and pictures are created by stitching strands of some material on to a layer of another material. See also: Machine embroidery. Epingl fabric A type of velvet fabric woven on a wire loom or pingl loom. The pingl velvet is specific by the fact that both loop pile and cut pile can be integrated into the same fabric. The art of pingl weaving in Europe originates from Lucca (Italy) and later Venice and Genua. Actually the term 'Genua velvet' is still in use. The Flemish region of Kortrijk and Waregem (Belgium) is the area whereupon today the technique of pingl weaving is still very actual. The fabric finds it application mostly in upholstery, although in medieval times is was used as apparel for princes and kings as well as for bishops, cardinals and the pope. Even-weave Even-weave or evenweave fabric is used in counted-thread embroidery and is characterized by Warp and weft threads of the same size. Eyelet Grommets and eyelets are metal, plastic, or rubber rings that are inserted into a hole made through another material. They may be used to reinforce the hole, to shield something from the sharp edges of the hole, or both.

[edit] F
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Facing Felt Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers. The fibers form the structure of the fabric. Felting The process of making felt is called felting. Fiber

Fiber or fibre (see spelling differences) is a class of materials that are continuous filaments or are in discrete elongated pieces, similar to pieces of thread. Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. They can be spun into filaments, thread, or rope. They can be used as a component of composite materials. They can also be matted into sheets to make products such as paper or felt. Filament A filament is a fine, thinly spun thread, fiber, or wire. Filling See weft Finishing Finishing refers to any process performed on yarn or fabric after weaving to improve the look, performance, or "hand" (feel) of the finished textile.[3] Fishnet Fishnet is a material with an open, diamond shaped knit. Flannel Flannel is a cloth that is commonly used to make clothing and bedsheets. It is usually made from either wool, wool and cotton, or wool and synthetic fabric. Flax Flax fiber is soft, lustrous and flexible. It is stronger than cotton fiber but less elastic. The best grades are used for linen fabrics such as damasks, lace and sheeting. Coarser grades are used for the manufacturing of twine and rope. Frieze Frieze is a coarse woollen cloth with a nap on one side, that was raised by scrubbing it to raise curls of fibre (French: fris). In the 19th century rough cheap frieze was made of wool mixed with shoddy (see Shoddy). Fulling Fulling is a step in clothmaking which involves the cleansing of cloth (particularly wool) to get rid of oils, dirt, and other impurities. Fustian Fustian is a term for a variety of heavy twilled woven cotton fabrics, chiefly prepared for menswear. Usually dyed in a dark shade. Declined in popularity from 1813, being replaced by harder wearing and better quality wool cloths.

[edit] G
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Gabardine Gabardine is a tough, tightly woven fabric often used to make suits, overcoats and trousers. The fibre used to make the fabric is traditionally worsted (a woolen yarn), but may also be cotton, synthetic or mixed. The fabric is smooth on one side and has a diagonally ribbed surface on the other. Gauge A gauge is a set number of rows per inch (in knitting) or the thread-count of a woven fabric that helps the knitter determine whether they have the right size knitting needles or a weaver if the cloth is tight enough. Gante

Gante is a cloth made from cotton or tow warp and jute weft. It is largely used for bags for sugar and similar material, and has the appearance of a fine hessian cloth. Gauze A very light, sheer, fine woven fabric. Genova velvet A type of velvet where in Jacquard patterns are woven into the ground fabric and where the pile is made of a combination of cut and uncut (loop) pile. This fabric is also known as Venetian velvet, or more generally, as pingl velvet. In the actual terminology of furnishing fabrics it is mostly named with its French name "velours de Gnes". This kind of fabric is made on a wire loom or pingl loom. Geotextile A geotextile is a synthetic permeable textile. Gingham Gingham is a fabric made from dyed cotton yarn. Glass fiber (fibre) Fiberglass is material made from extremely fine fibers of glass. It is widely used in the manufacture of insulation and textiles. Gossamer A gossamer is a very light, sheer, gauze-like fabric, popular for white wedding dresses and decorations. Grogram Grogram is a coarse fabric of silk mixed with wool or with mohair and often stiffened with gum.

[edit] H
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Heddle Common component of a loom used to separate warp threads for passage of the weft. Commonly made of cord or wire. Hem To hem a piece of cloth (in sewing), a garment worker folds up a cut edge, folds it up again, and then sews it down. The process of hemming thus completely encloses the cut edge in cloth, so that it cannot ravel. A hem is also the edge of cloth hemmed in this manner. Hemp The main uses of hemp fibre are rope, sacking, carpet, nets and webbing. Hemp is also being used in increasing quantities in paper manufacturing. The cellulose content is about 70%. Huckaback Huckaback is a type of coarse absorbent cotton or linen fabric used for making towels.

[edit] I

Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Ikat Ikat is a style of weaving that uses a tie-dye process on either the warp or weft before the threads are woven to create a pattern or design. A Double Ikat is when both the warp and the weft are tie-dyed before weaving. Intarsia Intarsia is a knitting technique used to create patterns with multiple colours. Interfacing Interfacing is a common term for a variety of materials used on the unseen or "wrong" side of fabrics in sewing.

[edit] J
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Jacquard Jacquard Jacquard loom The Jacquard loom was the first machine to use punched cards. It uses punched cards to control the pattern being woven. It is a form of dobby loom, where individual harnesses can be raised and lowered independently. Jamdani Jamdani is a kind of fine cloth made in Bangladesh. Jute Jute is a long, soft, shiny plant fibre that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. Jute is one of the cheapest natural fibres, and is second only to cotton in amount produced and variety of uses. Jute fibres are composed primarily of the plant materials cellulose and lignin.

[edit] K
Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Knit fabrics Knit fabrics are fabrics that were produced through the process of knitting. Knitting needle gauge A knitting needle gauge makes is used to determine the size of a knitting needle. Some also double for crochet hooks. Most needles come with the size written on the needle, but many needles (like double-pointed needles) tend to not be labeled. Also, with wear and time the label often wears off. Needle gauges can be made of any material, and are often made for metal and plastic. They tend to be about 3 by 5 inches. They contain holes of various sizes, and often have a ruler along the edge for determining the gauge of a sample.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Lace Lace-making is an ancient craft. A lace fabric is lightweight openwork fabric, patterned, either by machine or by hand, with open holes in the work. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often lace is built up from a single thread and the open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric. Lam Lam is a type of brocaded clothing fabric with inwoven metal threads, typically of gold or silver, giving it a metallic sheen. Lawn Lawn is a fine linen or cotton cloth. Linen Linen is a material made from the fibers of the flax plant. Linen produced in Ireland is called Irish linen. Linens are fabric household goods, such as pillowcases and towels. Lining Lining Loden Loden is water-resistant material for clothing made from sheep wool. Loom The Loom is a machine used for weaving fabric. Lucet Lucet is a method of cordmaking or braiding which is believed to date back to the Viking era. Lucet cord is square, strong, and slightly springy. It closely resembles knitted I-cord or the cord produced on a knitting spool. Lucet cord is formed by a series of loops, and will therefore unravel if cut.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Macram Macrame or macram is a form of textile-making using knotting rather than weaving or knitting. Its primary knots are the square knot and forms of hitching (full hitch and double half hitches). Mercerized cotton Mercerization is a treatment for cotton fabric and thread mostly employed to give cotton a lustrous appearance. Merino Merino is the Spanish name for a breed of sheep, and hence applied to a woolen fabric. Mesh A mesh is similar to fabric or a web in that it has many connected or weaved pieces. In clothing, a mesh is often defined as fabric that has a large number of closely-spaced holes, such as is common practice for modern sports jerseys. Metallic fiber (fibre)

Metallic fibers are fibers used in textiles which are either composed of metal, or fibers of other materials with a metal coating. Their uses include decoration and the reduction of static electricity. Microfibre (fiber) Microfibre is a term for fibres with strands thinner than one denier. Fabrics made with microfibres are exceptionally soft and hold their shape well. Millinery Millinery is women's hats and other articles sold by a milliner, or the profession or business of designing, making, or selling hats for women. Mocado Mockado is a woollen pile fabric made in imitation of silk velvet.[4][5][6] Modal Modal is a cellulose fiber made by spinning reconstituted cellulose from beech trees. Mohair Mohair is a silk-like fabric made from the hair of the Angora goat. It is durable, light and warm, although some people find it uncomfortably itchy. Mungo Fibrous woollen material generated from waste fabric, particularly tightly woven cloths and rags. See also: shoddy. Muslin Muslin is a type of finely-woven cotton fabric, introduced to Europe from the Middle East in the 17th century. It was named for the city where it was first made, Mosul in what is now Iraq.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Nainsook Nainsook is a fine, soft muslin fabric, often to used to make babies clothing. Nap Nap is a term for the raised surface of certain cloth, such as flannel. Needlepoint Needlepoint is a form of canvas work created on a mesh canvas. The stitching threads used may be wool, silk, or rarely cotton. Stitches may be plain, covering just one mesh intersection with a single orientation, or fancy, such as Bargello. Plain stitches, known as Tent stitches, may be worked as basketweave or half cross. Needlework Needlework is another term for the handicraft of decorative sewing and textile arts. Anything that uses a needle for construction can be called needlework. Net Net is a device made by fibers woven in a grid-like structure, as in fishing net, a soccer goal, a butterfly net, or the court divider in tennis Nonwoven fabric

Non-woven textiles are those which are neither woven nor knit, for example felt. Non-wovens are typically not strong (unless reinforced by a backing), and do not stretch. They are cheap to manufacture. Novelty yarn Novelty yarn Nylon Nylon is a synthetic polymer, a plastic. Nylon fibres are used to make many synthetic fabrics and women's stockings.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Oilcloth Oilcloth was, traditionally, heavy cotton or linen cloth with a linseed oil coating: it was semi-water-proof. The most familiar use was for brightly printed kitchen tablecloths. Dull colored oilcloth was used for bedrolls, sou'westers, and tents. By the late 1950's, oilcloth became a synonym for vinyl (polyvinyl chloride) bonded to either a flanneled cloth or a printed vinyl with a synthetic non woven backing. Organdy Organdy or organdie is the sheerest cotton cloth made. Combed yarns contribute to its appearance. Its sheerness and crispness are the result of an acid finish on greige (unbleached) lawn goods. Because of its stiffness and fiber content, it is very prone to wrinkling. Organza Organza is a thin, plain weave, sheer fabric traditionally made from silk, the continuous filament of silkworms. Nowadays, though many organzas are woven with synthetic filament fibers such as polyester or nylon, the most luxurious organzas are still woven in silk

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Paisley Paisley is a droplet-shaped vegetal motif, similar to half of the T'ai Chi symbol, the Indian bodhi tree leaf, or the mango tree. The design originated in India and spread to Scotland when British soldiers brought home cashmere shawls. Patchwork Patchwork is a form of needlework or craft that involves sewing together small pieces of fabric and stitching them together into a larger design, which is then usually quilted, or else tied together with pieces of yarn at regular intervals, a practice known as tying. Patchwork is traditionally 'pieced' by hand, but modern quiltmakers often use a sewing machine instead. Percale Percale refers to a closely woven, high thread count, cotton fabric often used for sheets and clothing.

Persian weave Persian weave is a method of weave used in jewelry and other art forms. Pile knit Pile knit Pile weave Pile weave Pile Wire A steel rod which is inserted in between the base fabric and the pile ends in a pile fabric woven on a wire loom or pingl loom. The height and thickness of the rod determine the size of the loop. A pile wire can be a simple rod - in which case the pile yarns will form a 'loop' pile. If the pile wire is equipped with a blade holder and cutting blade at the tip it will cut the pile loops during extraction thus producing cut pile. Pill Pill Plaid From a Scots language word meaning blanket, plaid usually referring to patterned woollen cloth otherwise known as tartan. Plain weave Plain weave Plied yarn Plied yarn is yarn that has been plied, with the process called plying. Plush Plush is a fabric having a cut nap or pile the same as fustian or velvet. Polyester Polyester is a synthetic fiber Poplin Poplin is a heavy, durable fabric that has a ribbed appearance. It is made with wool, cotton, silk, rayon, or any mixture of these. The ribs run across the fabric from selvage to selvage. They are formed by using coarse filling yarns in a plain weave. Purl stitch a commonly used stitch in knitting

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Qalamkari Qalamkari is a type of hand-painted or block-printed textile, produced in various places in India. Qiviut Qiviut is the wool of the musk ox. Quilt Quilting is a method of sewing or tying two layers of cloth with a layer of insulating batting in between. A bed covering or similar large rectangular piece of quilting work is called a quilt.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Rayon Rayon is a transparent fibre made of processed cellulose. Cellulose fibres from wood or cotton are dissolved in alkali to make a solution called viscose, which is then extruded through a nozzle, or spinneret, into an acid bath to reconvert the viscose into cellulose. A similar process, using a slit instead of a hole, is used to make cellophane. Rib knit Rib knit Rib weave Rib weave Rolag A rolag is a loose woolen roll of fibers that results from using handcards. Roving A roving is a long rope of fibers where all of the fibers are going parallel to the roving. Rug A rug is a form of carpet. It is usually smaller than a carpet. See also: rug making

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Sailcloth Sailcloth Sateen Sateen is a fabric formed with a satin weave where the floats are perpendicular to the selvage of the goods. Satin A Satin is a cloth that typically has a glossy surface and a dull back. It is formed by a sequence of broken twill floats in either the warp or weft system, which respectively identify the goods as either a satin or a sateen. Satin weave A satin is a broken twill weaving technique that forms floats on one side of the fabric. If a satin is woven with the floats parallel to the selvedge of the goods, the corresponding fabric is termed a "satin." If the floats are perpendicular to the selvedge of the goods, the fabric is termed a 'sateen.'" Seam A seam, in sewing, is the line where two pieces of fabric are held together by thread. Seam ripper A seam ripper is a small tool used for unpicking stitches. Selvage or Selvedge The woven edge portion of a fabric parallel to the warp is called selvage.

Serge Serge is a type of twill fabric that has diagonal lines or ridges on both sides, made with a two-up, two-down weave. The worsted variety is used in making military uniforms, suits, great and trench coats. Its counterpart, silk serge, is used for linings. French serge is a softer, finer variety. The word is also used for a high quality woolen woven. Serging Serging is a sewing term, the binding off of an edge of cloth. Sewing Sewing is an ancient craft involving the stitching of cloth, leather, animal skins, furs, or other materials, using needle and thread. Its use is nearly universal among human populations and dates back to Paleolithic times (30,000 BC). Sewing predates the weaving of cloth. Shag Shag (fabric) is typically used to make a deep-pile carpets. This is the oldest use of the term. Shag carpet is sometimes evoked as an example of the aesthetic from the culture of the U.S. 1970s. Also used to make carpets for mariners. Shed In weaving, the shed is the gap between yarns on a loom when one or more, but not all, of the harnesses are raised. Sheer Sheer is a semi-transparent and flimsy cloth. Shoddy Recycled or remanufactured wool which is of inferior quality compared to the original wool. Historically generated from loosely woven materials. Benjamin Law invented shoddy and mungo, as such, in 1813. He was the first to organise, on a larger scale, the activity of taking old clothes and grinding them down into a fibrous state that could be re-spun into yarn. The shoddy industry was centred on the towns of Batley, Morley, Dewsbury and Ossett in West Yorkshire, and concentrated on the recovery of wool from rags. The importance of the industry can be gauged by the fact that even in 1860 the town of Batley was producing over 7000 tonnes of shoddy. At the time there were 80 firms employing a total of 550 people sorting the rags. These were then sold to shoddy manufacturers of which there were about 130 in the West Riding. Shot The opal effect achieved on a fabric by dyeing the warp and weft threads different colours. The yarns are dyed first and then woven. When looking at the fabric from various angles it appears to alter in colour, this is more obvious in lustrous fabrics and more so in certain types of weaves. Shuttle A shuttle in weaving is a device used with a loom that is thrown or passed back and forth between the threads of the warp to weave in the weft. Silk Silk is a natural protein fiber that can be woven into textiles. It is obtained from the cocoon of the silkworm larva, in the process known as sericulture, which kills the larvae. The shimmering appearance for which it is prized comes from the

fibres triangular prism-like structure, which allows silk cloth to refract incoming light at different angles. Sisal Sisal or sisal hemp is an agave Agave sisalana that yields a stiff fiber used in making rope. (The term may refer either to the plant or the fiber, depending on context.) It is not really a variety of hemp, but named so because hemp was for centuries a major source for fiber, so other fibers were sometimes named after it. Skein Skein is when a length of yarn is bundled in a loose roll rather than put on a cone (as you would purchase from store)- usually done if yarn is going to a dye vat or needs a treatment in a manufacturing/knitting mill environment. Solution-dyed Solution-dyed Spandex fiber Spandex or elastane is a synthetic fiber known for its exceptional elasticity (stretchability). It is stronger and more durable than rubber, its major plant competitor. It was invented in 1959 by DuPont, and when first introduced it revolutionized many areas of the clothing industry. Spinning Spinning is the process of creating yarn (or thread, rope, cable) from various raw fiber materials. Spread Tow Fabrics Spread Tow Fabrics is a type of lightweight fabric. Its production involves the steps of spreading a tow of higher count, e.g. 12k, into thin-and-wide spread tow tape (STT) and weaving them into a lightweight fabric by employing the novel tape-weaving technique. Staple Staple is the raw material, or its length and quality, of fiber from which textiles are made. Stitch A stitch is a single turn or loop of the thread or yarn in sewing, knitting, and embroidery.[7] Stuff Stuff is a coarse cloth, sometimes made with a linen warp and worsted weft. Super The Super grading system is used to grade the quality of wool fabric. The higher the number, the more yarn is packed in per square inch, therefore all things being equal a super 120s yarn is better than super 100s.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Tablet weaving Tablet weaving is a process of weaving where tablets, also called 'cards', are used to create the shed that the weft is passed through. It is generally used to make narrow work such as belts or straps.

Tactel Tactel is the brand name of a man-made fibre made from nylon. Taffeta Taffeta is a type of fabric, often used for fancy dresses. Tapestry Tapestry is a form of textile art. It is woven by hand on a weaving-loom. The chain thread is the carrier in which the coloured striking thread is woven. In this way, a colourful pattern or image is created. Most weavers use a naturally based chain thread made out of linen or wool. The striking threads can be made out of silk, wool, gold or silver, but can also be made out of any form of textile. Tarlatan Tarlatan is a starched, open-weave fabric, much like cheese cloth. It is used to wipe the ink off a plate during the intaglio inking process. The open weave allows for the tarlatan to pick up a large quantity of ink. The stiffness imparted by the starch helps prevent the fabric from taking the ink out of the incised lines. Tassel A tassel is a ball-shaped bunch of plaited or otherwise entangled threads from which at one end protrudes a cord on which the tassel is hung, and which may have loose, dangling threads at the other end. Tatting Tatting is a technique for handcrafting lace that can be documented approximately to the early 19th century. Terry cloth Terry cloth is a type of cloth with loops sticking out. Most bath towels are examples of Terry cloth. Thimble A thimble is a protective shield worn on the finger or thumb. Threads per inch (TPI) Threads per inch is the measurement of the number of threads per inch of material, such as fabric, or metal in the case of screws and bolts. Thread count The thread count is the number of warp threads per inch plus the number of weft threads. Tissue Tissue is a fine woven fabric or gauze. Trim Trim or trimming in clothing and home decorating is applied ornament such as gimp, passementerie, ribbon, ruffles, or, as a verb, to apply such ornament. Tulle Tulle is a netting, which is often starched, made of various fibers, including silk, nylon, and rayon, that is most commonly used for veils, gowns (particularly wedding gowns) and ballet tutus. Tweed Tweed is a type of fabric using the twill weave. Twill tape Twill tape is a flat twill-woven ribbon of cotton, linen, polyester, or wool.

Twill weave Twill is a type of fabric woven with a pattern of diagonal parallel ribs. It is made by passing the weft threads over one warp thread and then under two or more warp threads. Examples of twill fabric are gabardine, tweed and serge.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Velour Velour is a textile, a knitted counterpart of velvet. It combines the stretchy properties of knits such as spandex with the rich appearance and feel of velvet. Velvet Velvet is a type of tufted fabric in which the cut threads are very evenly distributed, with a short dense pile, giving it its distinct feel. Velvet can be made from any fiber. It is woven on a special loom that weaves two piece of velvet at the same time. The two pieces are then cut apart and the two lengths of fabric are wound on separate take-up rolls. Velveteen Velveteen is a cotton cloth made in imitation of velvet. The term is sometimes applied to a mixture of silk and cotton. Some velveteens are a kind of fustian, having a rib of velvet pile alternating with a plain depression. The velveteen, trade varies a good deal with the fashions that control the production of velvet. Viscose Viscose is an artificial cellulose-based polymer, sometimes used as a synonym for Rayon

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Warp The warp is the set of lengthwise threads attached to a loom before weaving begins, and through which the weft is woven. Warp knit Knit fabric in which intermeshing loops are positioned in a lengthwise, or warp, direction. The fabric has a flatter, closer, less elastic structure than most weft knits and is run-resistant. Waterproof Waterproof Water repellent Water repellent

Weaving Weaving is an ancient textile art and craft that involves placing two sets of threads or yarn made of fibre called the warp and weft of the loom and turning them into cloth. This cloth can be plain (in one color or a simple pattern), or it can be woven in decorative or artistic designs, including tapestries. Weft The weft is the yarn that is woven back and forth through the warp to make cloth. Weft knit Weft knit Wilton Carpet Wilton carpet is produced on a specific type of weaving machine called wire loom. Wilton carpets are pile carpets whereby the pile is formed by inserting steel rods in the pile warps of the fabric. After extraction of the rods the pile is looped (in case straight wires have been used) or cut (in case cutting wires are used). Wilton carpet is generally considered as high quality and is used for heavy duty applications. Wire loom, Weaving machine for pile fabrics or velvets whereby the pile is made by weaving steel rods or wires into the fabrics. When the wires are extracted the warp ends that have been woven over the wires remain as loops on top of the fabric or will form cut pile if the wire is equipped with a cutting blade. This technique is also known as "pingl weaving". A wire loom in a much wider version (up to 5 meters of width) and in heavier construction is used for the manufacturing of carpets is called a "WILTON" loom, and the carpets made on such a loom are known as "Wilton Carpets" Woof The woof is the same thing as the weft. Wool Wool is the fiber derived from the hair of domesticated animals, usually sheep. Woolen Woolen or woollen is the name of a yarn and cloth usually made from wool. Worsted fabric Worsted is the name of a yarn and cloth usually made from wool. The yarn is well twisted and spun of long staple wool (though nowadays also medium and short fibres are used). The wool is combed so that the fibres lie parallel. Woven fabric A woven fabric is a cloth formed by weaving. It only stretches in the bias directions (between the warp and weft directions), unless the threads are elastic. Woven cloth usually frays at the edges, unless measures are taken to counter this, such as the use of pinking shears or hemming.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Yarn Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibers, suitable for use in the production of textiles, sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving and ropemaking. Yarn can be made from any number of synthetic or natural fibers.

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Top A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z External links Zibeline Zibeline is a thick, soft fabric with a long nap.

6. Lace-making is an ancient craft. A lace fabric is lightweight openwork fabric, patterned, either by machine or by hand, with open holes in the work. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often lace is built up from a single thread and the open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric.

Needle lace o The most time-consuming but the most flexible of the lace-making arts, needle lace is regarded by purists as the height of lace-making. There are many types of needle lace i.e. lace made using a needle and thread. Some of these laces can be made much more quickly than the finest of bobbin laces. On the other hand, some antique needle lace is made from a very fine thread that is not manufactured today. Bobbin lace o As the name suggests, bobbin lace is made with bobbins and pillows. The bobbins, turned from wood, bone or plastic, hold threads which are woven together and held in place with pins stuck in the pattern on the pillow. The pillows contain straw, preferably oat straw or other materials such as sawdust, insulation styrofoam or ethafoam. Bobbin lace can also be made using copper or silver wire instead of thread. Cutwork o Cutwork, or whitework, is lace which is constructed by removing threads from a woven background, and the remaining threads wrapped or filled with embroidery. Crocheted lace o This includes Irish crochet. o Knit lace

Knit lace includes Shetland lace, such as the "wedding ring shawl", a lace shawl so fine that it can be pulled through a wedding ring. Tatted lace is made with a shuttle.

Tatting

7. A ribbon is a thin band of flexible material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily for binding and tying. Cloth (esp.silk) ribbons are often used in connection with dress, but also applied for innumerable useful, ornamental and symbolical purposes; cultures around the world use this device in their hair, around the body, or even as ornamentation on animals, buildings, and other areas. Ribbon is also sometimes used as a package sealer, on par with twine. A typewriter uses a cloth or plastic ribbon to hold the ink. Along with that of tapes, fringes and other smallwares, the manufacture of cloth ribbons forms a special department of the textile industries. The essential feature of a ribbon loom is the simultaneous weaving in one loom frame of two or more webs, going up to as many as forty narrow fabrics in modern looms. To effect the conjoined throwing of all the shuttles and the various other movements of the loom, the automatic action of the power-loom is necessary; and it is a remarkable fact that the self-acting ribbon loom was known and extensively used more than a century before the famous invention of Cartwright. A loom in which several narrow webs could be woven at one time is mentioned as having been working in Dantzig towards the end of the 16th century. Similar looms were at work in Leiden in 1620, where their use gave rise to so much discontent and rioting on the part of the weavers that the states-general had to prohibit their use. The prohibition was renewed at various intervals throughout the century, and in the same interval the use of the ribbon loom was interdicted in most of the principal industrial centres of Europe. About 1676, under the name of the Dutch loom or engine loom, it was brought to London; and, although its introduction there caused some disturbance, it does not appear to have been prohibited. In 1745, John Kay, the inventor of the fly-shuttle, obtained, conjointly with Joseph Stell, a patent for improvements in the ribbon loom; and since that period it has benefited by the inventions applied to weaving machinery generally. Ribbon-weaving is known to have been established near St. Etienne (dep. Loire) as early as the 11th century, and that town has remained the headquarters of the industry. During the Huguenot troubles, ribbon-weavers from St. Etienne settled at Basel and there established an industry which in modern times has rivalled that of the original seat of the trade. Crefeld is the centre of the German ribbon industry, the manufacture of black velvet ribbon being there a specialty. In England Coventry is the most important seat of ribbon-making, which is also prosecuted at Norwich and Leicester.

Ribbon symbolism

Black ribbon Red ribbon White ribbon Yellow ribbon Blue ribbon Green ribbon Orange ribbon Pink ribbon

8. Cloth or fabric is a flexible artificial material made up of a network of natural or

artificial fibres (thread or yarn) formed by weaving or knitting (textiles), or pressed into felt. Cloth is most often used in the manufacture of clothing, household furnishings, and art such as tapestry. Before the advent of woven cloth, the functions of textiles were fulfilled by furs and skins. In the past, all cloth was made from natural fibres, including plant sources such as such as as cotton, flax, and hemp, and animal sources such as wool, hair, and silk. In the 20th century, these were supplemented by artificial fibres such as polyester and rayon. Cloth is most often dyed, with fabrics available in every colour. Coloured designs in fabric can be created by weaving strands of different colours (plaid) and adding coloured stitches to finished fabric (embroidery), but also by using various printing processes on finished fabric. Cloth is made in many varying strengths and degrees of durability, from the finest gossamer fabrics to sturdy canvas sailcloths. The relative thickness of fibres in cloth is measured in deniers. Microfiber refers to fibers made of strands thinner than one denier.

9. Flannel is a fabric that is commonly used to make clothing and bedsheets. It is usually made from either wool, wool and cotton, or wool and synthetic fabric. The term "flannel" is also often used to refer directly to the clothing created from the fabric. Clothing made from it is usually worn in cold weather climates due to the warmness that the fabric is known for. For much of its history, flannel was commonly thought to be the fabric of woodsmen, lumberjacks, and farmers. However, due to the fact that many people in the Pacific Northwest of the United States (especially in Seattle, Washington) have had a tendency to wear it, flannel has become associated with grunge music. This idea was even further

popularized by the fact that many grunge musicians (such as members of Nirvana) often wore clothing made from it. For a short time in the early 1990s flannel was thought by some to be a fashion statement (or in some cases an anti-fashion statement).

10. he term fur refers to the fine, soft body hair of non-human mammals. True fur comes from animals where the coat consists of short ground hair and long guard hair. Fur served as an important source of clothing for humans, especially in cold countries, where it remains a popular luxury item. Producers and wearers of fur have recently been criticized because of mounting beliefs that animal trapping and fur farms are cruel, and that the killing of animals for clothing is made unnecessary by modern natural and synthetic fibers. Sources of fur include:

beaver ermine fox mink otter rabbit sable seal

Contrast the use of sheepskin and wool. The fur trade played an important economic role in the past. Fur trappers explored and opened up large parts of North America, and the fashion for beaver hats led to intense competition for supplies of raw materials. The popular name of fur fetishism refers to a fetishistic attraction to people wearing fur, or in certain cases, to the fur garments themselves. "Fake fur" designates any synthetic material which mimics the appearance and feel of real fur, without the use of animal products. Animals without fur may have the epithet "naked", as in The Naked Ape and naked mole rat

11. Down is the fine undercoat of birds under the feathers, and is often used as insulation in clothing. Mammals have an undercoat called downhair. 12. Leather is a material created through the tanning of hides, pelts and skins of animals. Leather was a very important clothing material, and its other uses were legion. Together with wood, leather formed the basis of much ancient technology. Leather with the fur still attached is simply called fur. Leather is decorated by leather carving, leather stamping, leather embossing, pyrography, beading, dying of leather or painting on leather. Today, most leather is made of cow hides, but many exceptions exist. Lamb and deer skin are used for soft leather in more expensive apparels. The leather made from some more exotic skins has during different times in history been considered very beautiful. For this reason certain snakes and crocodiles have been hunted to near extinction. In the 1990s, farming of ostriches and emus for their meat became popular. As a side product, ostrich leather became a fad for a while. Ostrich leather has a characteristic "goose bump" look because of the large follicles from which the feathers grew. In Thailand, sting ray leather is used in wallets and belts in the same way as regular cow leather. Sting ray leather is as tough and durable as hard plastic, even a metal file cannot leave a scratch. The leather is often dyed black and covered with tiny round bumps in the natural pattern of the back ridge of an animal. These bumps are then usually dyed white to highlight the decoration. Leather fetishism is the name popularly used to describe a fetishistic attraction to people wearing leather, or in certain cases, to the garments themselves. A number of rock groups, particularly Heavy Metal groups such as the Scorpions and Judas Priest are known for wearing leather clothing. Ethical vegetarians and vegans avoid the use of leather for moral reasons. Patent Leather Suede Definition Buckskin / Buckskins - clothes Shearling Definition

Chaps Definition Leather Jackets 2. Patent leather is leather that has been given a high gloss finish. The original process was developed by Newark, New Jersey based inventor Seth Boyden in 1818 with commercial manufacture beginning September 20, 1819. His process used a linseed oil based lacquer coating. Modern patent leather usually has a plastic coating. Patent leather is sometimes confused with poromeric imitation leathers such as DuPont's Corfam and Kuraray Co.'s Clarino which are manmade materials with a similar glossy appearance. Patent leather and poromerics are cleaned in a similar way. Dirt adhering to the coating can be removed with a damp cloth, using a mild soap if needed. Minor scratches and scuff marks in the coating itself can be removed using one of several special purpose patent leather and poromeric cleaners on the market. Patent leather and poromerics are used in applications where an eye-catching glossy appearance is the main consideration. Examples include fashion items such as wallets and handbags, dance and uniform shoes, professional wrestling boots and fetish clothing.

1. Suede is a type of leather with a napped finish. However, it can also refer to a similar napped or brushed finish on many kinds of fabrics. The term comes from the French "gants de Su de", which literally means "gloves of Sweden". Suede leather is made from the under side of the skin, primarily lamb, although goat, pig, calf and deer are commonly used. Splits from thick hides of cow and deer are also sueded but due to the fiber nature have a shaggy nap. Because suede does not include the tough exterior skin layer, suede is less durable but softer than standard ("full-grain") leather. Its softness, thinness, and pliability make it suitable for clothing and delicate uses; suede was originally used for women's gloves. Suede leather is also popular in upholstery, shoes, bags, and other accessories, and as a lining for other leather products. Due to its textured nature and open pores, suede may become dirty quickly and may adsorb liquids quickly. Suede should be cleaned as per manufacturer's directions. Modern tanning improvements have made waterproof and stain-proof suede leather available.{Fact|date=September 2007}} Suede fabrics are manufactured with a brushed or napped finish, resembling suede leather. Ultrasuede is a trademarked term for a microfiber plush with a hand resembling the softest suede, but which is more durable, and can be made resistant to liquid, stains, and crushing. It is commonly used in upholstery and fine accessories, or in clothing and

shoes. Persons who enjoy suede's texture but who prefer a non-animal product, or an easier-care fabric, find Ultrasuede an expensive but luxurious alternative. Microsuede is a newly popular microfiber knit blend fabric; it has a soft finish, but is easily distinguishable from actual suede leather. It has a great deal of stretch, and is very popular in upholstery as well as garments. Microsuede is less durable than suede leather but is commonly found in accessories and especially shoes. Sueded silk, sueded cotton and similar sueded fabrics are brushed, sanded or chemically treated for extra softness. 'Suede' yarns are generally thick and plush, intending to resemble suede leather cord.

2Chaps (pronounced 'shaps', and short for chaparajos) are sturdy leather coverings for the legs. They hang from one's belt, but unlike trousers they are not joined at the crotch. The most sturdy kind are made from single pieces of leather that wrap around to protect the fronts and sides of each leg. Since they need not be joined at the back of the leg they are considerably cooler than one might imagine. Their purpose is to protect the legs of cowboys and other people who work with cattle and horses from contact with daily environmental hazards. They help to protect riders from the thorns of cacti and other thorny vegetation on the open range, the horns of cattle being herded or rounded up, and other such environmental hazards. They protect the legs of farriers from getting scratched or cut up in the process of shoeing or otherwise treating the hooves of horses.

13.

Apparel

Humans often wear articles of clothing (also known as dress, garments or attire) on the body . In its broadest sense, clothing includes coverings for the trunk and limbs as well as coverings for hands (gloves), feet (shoes, sandals, boots), and head (hats, caps). Articles carried rather than worn (like purses and umbrellas) normally count as accessories rather than as clothing. Humans also decorate their bodies with makeup or cosmetics, perfume, jewelry and other ornament; cut, dye, and arrange their head and body hair (hairstyle), and sometimes their skin (tattoo, scarifications, piercing). All these decorations contribute to the overall effect and message of clothing, but do not constitute apparel per se. People wear clothing for functional and/or social reasons. Clothing protects the body; it also delivers social messages to other humans.

Function includes protection of the body against strong sunlight, extreme heat or cold, and precipitation; protection against insects, noxious chemicals, weapons, contact with abrasive substances -- in sum, against anything that might injure an unprotected human body. Humans have shown extreme inventiveness in devising clothing solutions to practical problems. See: armor, diving suit, bee-keeper's costume, motorcycle leathers, high-visibility clothing. Social messages sent by clothing, accessories, and decorations can involve social status, occupation, ethnic and religious affiliation, marital status and sexual availability, etc. Humans must know the code in order to recognise the message transmitted. If different groups read the same item of clothing or decoration with different meanings, the wearer may provoke unanticipated responses. Social status: in many societies, people of high rank reserve special items of clothing or decoration for themselves. Only Roman emperors could wear garments dyed with Tyrian purple; only high-ranking Hawaiian chiefs could wear feather cloaks and palaoa or carved whale teeth. In other societies, no laws prohibit lower-status people wearing high status garments, but the high cost of status garments effectively limits purchase and display. In current Western society, only the rich can afford haute couture. The threat of social ostracism may also limit garment choice.

Occupation: military, police, firefighters usually wear uniforms, as do workers in many industries. School-children often wear school uniforms, college and university students wear academic dress. Members of religious orders may wear uniforms known as "habits". Sometimes a single item of clothing or a single accessory can declare one's occupation and/or status -- for example, the high toque or chef's hat worn by a chief cook. Ethnic, political, and religious affiliation: In many regions of the world, styles in clothing and ornament declare membership in a certain village, caste, religion, etc. A Scotsman declares his clan with his tartan; an Orthodox Jew his religion with his (non-clothing) sidelocks; a French peasant woman her village with her cap or coif. Clothes can also proclaim dissent from cultural norms and mainstream beliefs, as well as personal independence. In 19th century Europe, artists and writers lived la vie de Boh me and dressed to shock: George Sand in men's clothing, female emancipationists in bloomers, male artists in velvet waistcoats and gaudy neckcloths. Bohemians, beatniks, hippies, Goths, and punks continued the ( counter-cultural) tradition in the 20th century West. Now that haute couture plagiarises street fashion within a year or so, street fashion may have lost some of its power to shock, but it still motivates millions trying to look hip and cool. People such as inventor Dean Kamen or film director Peter Jackson wear simple functional clothing to distance themselves from the establishment (and possibly to attract additional attention).

14. A loom is a machine or device for weaving thread or yarn into textiles. Looms can range from very small hand-held frames, to large free-standing hand looms, to huge automatic mechanical devices. In practice, the basic purpose of any loom is to hold the warp theads under tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads. The precise shape of the loom and its mechanics various, but the basic function is the same.

Weaving
See Weaving for more information. See Textile manufacturing terminology for more terms connected with looms. Weaving is done by intersecting the longitudinal threads, the warp, i.e. "that which is thrown across" (Old English wearp, from weorpan, to throw, cf. German werfen) with the transverse threads, the woof or weft, i.e. "that which is woven" (Old English wefta, from wefan, to weave, cf. German weben). The Old English geloma and Middle English lome meant an implement or tool of any kind. The earliest example with its specific meaning quoted by the Oxford English Dictionary is from the Nottingham Records of 1404, but handwoven cloth existed much earlier, perhaps as far back as 8000 B.C.

Types of looms
Warp-weighted
The earliest looms were probably vertical warp-weighted looms, with the warp threads suspended from a branch or piece of wood and weighted or attached to the ground. The weft threads would be pushed into place by hand or a stick that would eventually become the shuttle. At first, it was necessary to raise and lower every warp thread one at a time, which was a time-consuming and laborious process. Basic techniques, such as the insertion of a rod, were developed to produce a shed, the space between warp threads (perhaps every other thread would be alternately raised and lowered), so that the weft thread or shuttle could pass through the entire warp at once.

Ground looms
On a horizontal ground loom, the warp would be strung between two rows of pegs. The weaver would have to lean over in order to work, so pit looms were developed, with the

warp strung over a pit, so the weaver could sit with his or her legs underneath and would then be on a level with the loom.

Frame looms
Frame looms followed basically the same principles as ground looms. The loom was constructed out of sticks and boards attached at right angles (producing a box-like shape), which meant that it was portable and could even be held in the weaver's lap. Frame looms are still in use today, usually as a portable, less expensive, and compact alternative to a table or floor loom.

Backstrap looms
Backstrap looms, as the name implies, are tied around the weaver's waist on one end and around a stationary object such as a tree, post, or door on the other. Tension can be adjusted simply by leaning back. Backstrap looms are very portable, since they can simply be rolled up and carried.

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Foot-treadle floor looms

Handweavers today tend to use looms with at least four shafts or harnesses. Each shaft contains a set of heddles through which yarn can be threaded (and attached, through a variety of mechanisms, to the front and back beams of the loom), and by raising the harnesses in different combinations, a variety of patterns can be achieved. Looms with two such shafts are called rigid heddle looms and variants with eight or more shafts are available. The shafts on a floor loom are controlled by a series of foot pedals (called treadles). This is an important development, since it keeps the weaver's hands free to manipulate the shuttle and it is easy to raise and lower warp threads in selected combinations. As the material is woven, it can be wrapped around the front beam, as unwoven yarn is unrolled from the front beam, so length is not limited by the size of the loom. A table loom is similar, but, as the name suggests, it is smaller and equipped with levers rather than treadles, since it is made to sit on a stand or on top of a table.

Haute lisse looms

Looms used for weaving traditional tapestry are classified as haute lisse looms, where the woof is suspended vertically between two rolls, and the basse lisse looms, where the woof extends horizontally between the rolls.

Power looms
The first power loom was built by the Englishman Edmund Cartwright in 1785. Originally, powered looms were shuttle-operated but in the early part of the 20th century the faster and more efficient shuttleless loom came into use. Today, advances in technology have produced a variety of looms designed to maximize production for specific types of material. The most common of these are air-jet looms and water-jet looms. Computer-driven looms are now also available to individual (non-industrial) weavers.

The Jacquard loom

The Jacquard loom was the first machine to use punch cards. It uses punched cards to control the pattern being woven.

Reference

"The Art and History of Weaving" (http://www.faculty.de.gcsu.edu/~dvess/ids/fap/weav.html) Warping and weaving on a warp-weighted loom (http://vt.essortment.com/warpingweaving_rkpp.htm)

Dobby Loom

15. Weaving is an ancient textile art and craft that involves placing two threads or yarn made of fibre onto a warp and weft of a loom and turning them into cloth. This cloth can be plain (in one color or a simple pattern), or it can be woven in decorative or artistic designs, including tapestries. There are many kinds of weaves, starting with a basic single layer plain weave and evolving into infinitely complex weave structures. Many traditional weave patterns are well known to weavers by their traditional names such as overshot and twill. The majority of commercial fabrics are woven on computer controlled Jacquard looms. In the past, simpler fabrics were woven on dobby looms and the Jacquard looms were reserved for more complex patterns but as computer controlled Jacquard looms have become more popular it is more economical for mills to weave all of their fabrics on Jacquard looms so that one setup may be used for all of their designs. There are a variety of loom styles for hand weaving and tapestry. In tapestry, the image is created by only placing weft in certain areas, rather than in the weave structure itself. Fabric in which the warp and/or weft is tie-dyed before weaving is called ikat. Fabric decorated using a wax resist method is called batik.

History of Weaving
There are some indications that weaving was already known in the Palaeolithic. An indistinct textile impression has been found at Pavlov, Moravia. Neolithic textiles are well known from finds in pile dwellings in Switzerland. They are made of flax or tree bast, wool has only been attested since the Bronze Age. Plain weaves and tabbies predominate.

Enslaved women worked as weavers during the Sumerian Era. They would wash wool fibers in hot water and wood-ash soap and then dry them. Next, they would beat out the dirt and card the wool. The wool was then graded, bleached, and spun into a thread. The spinners would pull out fibers and twist them together. This was done by either rolling fibers between palms or using a hooked stick. The thread was then placed on a wooden or bone spindle and rotated on a clay whorl which operated like a flywheel. The slaves would then work in three-woman teams on looms, where they stretched the threads, after which they passed threads over and under each other at perpendicular angles. The cloth was then taken to a fuller.

Weaving in Colonial America

Weaving was not allowed by the British in Colonial America. Colonists were supposed to send unfinished goods like cotton and flax to Britain and buy finished cloth back from England. Nonetheless, many people wove cloth in Colonial America. In Colonial times the colonists mostly used cotton and flax for weaving because the English would not send them sheep or wool. They could get one cotton crop each fall. Flax was harvested in the summer. In preparing wool for weaving, colonists would first shear the sheep with spring back clippers. This was done while keeping the sheep's feet from touching anything so it would not try to break free. They would try to cut the wool off the sheep in one big chunk because that way they would get long fibers. Sheep-shearing was done in the spring so that the fleece would regrow in time for the winter.

16. Knitting is one of several ways to turn thread or yarn into cloth (cf weaving, crochet). Unlike woven fabric, knitted fabric consists entirely of parallel courses of yarn. The courses are joined to each other by interlocking loops in which a short loop of one course of yarn is wrapped over the bight of another course. In practice, knitting is usually begun (or "cast on") by forming a base series of twisted loops of yarn on a knitting needle. A second knitting needle is then used to reach through each loop (or stitch) in succession in order to snag a bight of yarn and pull a length back through the loop. This forms a new stitch at the top of the current wale of stitches (or loops). Work can proceed in the round (circular knitting) or by going back and forth in rows. Knitting can also be done by machines.

Originally a male-only occupation, the first knitting trade guild was started in Paris in 1527. Knitting became a household occupation with the growing popularity of knitted

stockings and by the end of the 1600s, one to two million pairs of stockings were exported from Britain to other parts of Europe. The two basic stitches are knit (or "plain") and purl (or "wrong"). These two nominal stitches are actually identical, however, being the obverse and reverse of the same stitch. A knit stitch is formed by inserting the needle in the back of the loop and pulling a loop of yarn through to form a new loop, while a purl stitch is formed by inserting the needle in the front of the loop and pushing a loop of yarn through to form a new loop. If only knits or only purls are used when working back and forth in rows, the result is called garter stitch. Alternating rows of knits and purls result in stockinette or jersey stitch, the stitch most often used in commercial garments such as T-shirts. Different combinations of stitches can be used to form ribbing, cables, or other textures. Complex patterns can be formed by knitting with multiple colours in either intarsia or Fair Isle techniques. There are many regional styles of knitted garments with long histories, such as guernsey sweaters, jerseys, aran sweaters, and Fair Isle patterning. 17. Warp are the lengthwise threads attached to a loom before weaving begins. Warp is spun fibre. Initially the fibre would have been wool, flax or cotton, and then later artificial or man-made fibres such as nylon or rayon were employed. The weft is woven back and forth through the warp to make fabric. Warp means "that which is thrown across" (Old English wearp, from weorpan, to throw, cf. German werfen, Dutch werpen). Each individual warp thread in a fabric is called a warp end. 18. Weft is the term for the yarn which is shuttled back and forth across the warp to create a woven fabric. It can also be referred to as woof or fill. The weft is a thread or yarn of spun fibre. The original fibre was wool, flax or cotton. Nowadays man-made fibres are used in weaving. Because the weft does not have to be stretched in the way that the warp is, it can generally be less strong. The weft is threaded through the warp using a shuttle. Hand looms were the original weaver's tool, with the shuttle being threaded through alternately raised warps by hand. Inventions during the 18th century spurred the Industrial Revolution, and the hand-loom became the more robust spinning frame with the flying shuttle speeding up production of cloth, and then the water frame using water power to automate the weaving process. The power loom followed in the 19th century, when steam power was harnessed.

19. Drill is a strong, durable cotton fabric with a strong bias (diagonal) in the weave. It can be used unbleached, although it is more often bleached or dyed. The lighter weights are used in such clothing items as shirts, safari jackets, blouses, playwear, and martial arts wear. Khaki drill is made into uniforms; boatsail drill is made into sails for sailing craft and is unbleached; drill is also made into pocket linings.

19. Fiber (American English) or fibre (International English) is elongated stringy natural, man-made or manufactured material. In the case of natural fibers, they often tie together the parts of natural creatures. Natural vegetable fibers, generally consist of cellulose, examples include cotton, linen, and hemp. Cellulose fibers are used in the manufacture of paper and cloth. Natural animal fibers include spider silk, sinew, hair, and wool. There are naturally occurring mineral fibers such as asbestos. Man-made fibres are those that are made artificially, but from from natural raw materials (often cellulosic). Examples include fiberglass, rayon, acetate, cupro and the more recently developed Lyocell. Synthetic fibers include nylon, acrylic, polyester and graphite fiber. Synthetic fibers and man-made fibers are the result of an extensive search by scientists to increase and improve upon the supply of the naturally occurring animal and plant fiber. See also: textile, wood fibre, fiber crop

20. Madras is a lightweight cotton fabric with patterned texture, used primarily for summer clothing -- pants, shorts, dresses and jackets. The fabric takes its name from the former English name of the city of Chennai, India. One style popular during the 1960s was called bleeding Madras. It used dyes that were not colorfast in a typically plaid design, resulting in bleeding and fading colors that yielded a new look to the fabric each time it was laundered.

21. Fabric testing methods are designed as standard testing procedures with a purpose to help the textile industry and apparel industry monitor quality. The fabric testing methods allow clothing

manufacturers to follow uniformed test procedures to evaluate fabric, textiles, and apparel in a consistent manner. Utilizing pre-determined testing methods for conducting tests, is the only way to maintain a consistent and level playing field in regard to the testing of textiles. In order to properly measure quality, specific standards must be set and specific testing methods (testing procedures), must be followed. Following an exact and detailed method allows for testing to be consistent in multiple locations. Fabric can be tested in a factories own internal lab or with an independent testing laboratory. Typically, a retailer will require that testing be conducted at a third party laboratory so that factories are not tempted to manipulate the testing results. In addition to avoiding test altering, using a qualified third party lab will help insure that the "proper" fabric testing method are used. If an inexperience person or lab conducts the testing, it is possible that they would not use the proper fabric testing method. This would result in an inaccurate testing report. It is important to use a qualified textile lab. Fabric testing is conducted so that apparel manufacturers, clothing retailers, and fashion wholesalers can evaluate the quality of the garments that they sell. This issue is important to members of the fashion industry as well as consumers of fashion. The apparel industry wants to make sure that the garments that they manufacturer and sell meet international quality standards. Textile testing standards are set and the fabric testing methods are in place to monitor that the standards developed are maintained. Testing can be performed both to improve product quality and achieve compliance to international, regional, or retailer specific standards It is important for the fashion industry to learn about fabric testing methods in order to stay compliant in regard to quality. In addition to knowing about testing methods, it is important to also understand the specific testing result requirements set forth by retailers. If a clothing company does not know the retailers testing standard requirements, that company may run into problems such as receiving a charge back or returned merchandise. Fabric Testing Labs are vital for the fashion industry and textile industry. Learn more about fabric testing labs, fabric testing methods and fabric testing standards...

 Learn about fabric testing methods. Find fabric testing labs. Apparel Industry fabric test methods help laboratories review various types of fabric conditions including crocking, color fast properties, fabric shrinkage, fabric torque, fabric chemical testing, fabric composition etc. Statistical analysis from testing can help industry standard development and standard compliance. Clearly fabric testing is extremely important to the fashion industry. You may also want to check out our apparel quality testing section. Learn about the following: AQL Inspections Chart Quality Control Managers Piece Good Inspection Cutting Room Quality Control Fabric Defects In-Process Quality Control Quality Assurance ML73009 - Fabric Testing Methods Return to the Apparel Search main page.

22. Lace-making is an ancient craft. A lace fabric is lightweight openwork fabric, patterned, either by machine or by hand, with open holes in the work. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often lace is built up from a single thread and the open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric.

Needle lace o The most time-consuming but the most flexible of the lace-making arts, needle lace is regarded by purists as the height of lace-making. There are many types of needle lace i.e. lace made using a needle and thread. Some of these laces can be made much more quickly than the finest of bobbin laces. On the other hand, some antique needle lace is made from a very fine thread that is not manufactured today. Bobbin lace o As the name suggests, bobbin lace is made with bobbins and pillows. The bobbins, turned from wood, bone or plastic, hold threads which are woven together and held in place with pins stuck in the pattern on the pillow. The

pillows contain straw, preferably oat straw or other materials such as sawdust, insulation styrofoam or ethafoam. Bobbin lace can also be made using copper or silver wire instead of thread. Cutwork o Cutwork, or whitework, is lace which is constructed by removing threads from a woven background, and the remaining threads wrapped or filled with embroidery. Crocheted lace o This includes Irish crochet. o Knit lace Knit lace includes Shetland lace, such as the "wedding ring shawl", a lace shawl so fine that it can be pulled through a wedding ring. o Tatting Tatted lace is made with a shuttle.

23. Fitting issue of garments has impact on the customer's buying decision. The main concern of customers especially teenagers and women is to purchase garments that have proper fitting and yet fashionable. Although cuts and styles of the clothes we buy is important, the more important factor that influences the buying decision is the proper fitting which is according to the person's body structure. Clothes are not only for body protection and covering, but also have social and emotional aspects attached to them. For example - a petite girl wearing clean and proper fitted clothes that are not too tight and loose would look more flattering then another petite woman who wears tight fitting nonclean dress. The garments which after wearing does not show any wrinkles, pulls or unnecessary fluffiness is of proper fit. Also the clothes with right placed seams, darts and grain lines has good fitting. The importance of proper fit of garment varies with its type. Like in case of tight fitting dress smallest of misfit is quite visible and noticeable, whereas for loose fitting clothes 100% proper fit is not required and does not make much difference. Even if the fabric is of high quality, craftsmanship on the dress excellent, but if the fitting is not up to the mark then other things does not matter. Apart from the customers, the readymade garment manufacturers and retailers also bear the consequences in terms of loss of time, resource and damage to merchandise due to fitting issue problems. Although the problem might seem not so big, but in the form of return of purchased clothes, non-satisfaction towards the brand and time taken in trial rooms puts additional expenses on the seller. Whether a particular garment is purchased or rejected is decided on the bases of its fit. Customer satisfaction depends upon the designing, style and most important the fit & size of the garment. Apart from visual

attractiveness the comfort level of the well fitted clothes is more preferred. Generally garments with not so good fitting lie unused most of the time in our closets. Even if the garment is made of high quality fabric with excellent work on it and of latest style, the customer would not be enough motivated to buy it in absence of proper fit. Women and children are two segments of customers whose number of return of ill-fitting clothes is more than other age groups and sex. Due to it the sales declines and unnecessary costs build up on the retailer's head. However well fitted clothes do not imply that they have to be body hugging or tight, different types of dresses and garments need different degree of fitting, like the right fitting criteria for evening wear and nightwear is different. According to a survey done on teenage boys and girls, the readymade garments do require some alteration to be made and also one is ready to shell out few extra bucks for better fit. The most common criteria for judging the fitting size are, whether hemline is even or not, seams on vertical front should be straight, darts that are narrowed extending before the wide part of the body they are given to shape up, neckline comfortable and shoulder seam a & waistline seam in accordance. The different issues related to the fitting and sizing of the readymade garments are as follows: Sizing criterion Every brand before producing ready-made garments in bulk quantity, first examines the general types of fitting and sizing that could be given for a particular set of population. The main concern of the manufacturers and retailers about fit issue is which size should be made and how they are to be labeled. The customers are also included with the problem of proper fit as they are directly or indirectly connected to it. It is not possible to adopt particular sizing criteria for the clothes of women, children and men at an international level. Therefore the garment manufacturers set the sizing standards according to their customer database and the information of retail shops. The sizing standards vary from one brand to another therefore the customers generally face dissatisfaction due to this factor. Certain garment measurements are considered for fixing the sizing standards like length, waist measurement or chest measurement based on garment type. For example for trousers waist measurement is the main decisive factor for fixing the size, whereas for tshirt it is the chest measurement. Usually there are 4 main size options available for a garment i.e. small, medium, large and extra large. Most manufacturers comply the sizing and fitting system of the well known brands, whether it has been developed in their country or not. However, this concept is wrong as the physical measurements of people of different countries vary. This problem is mainly experienced in international brand. Hence sometimes poor fit is the result, which ultimately leads to customer's dissatisfaction.

In order to achieve better sizing in readymade garments, it should defined specifically for different countries, also should differ region-wise even in same country. The type of garment also decides the sizing parameters to be followed. This would roll out better customer satisfaction, boosting the sales. Problems of standard set for sizing The main problem of sizing standards lie in the age-old data compared to recent data about the human body measurements. The waist and hip ratio of different brand shows vast differences, this further leads to customer frustration and confusion at the time of purchase. Time is also wasted in trial many brands. The same size measurement varies in different brands can be easily unveiled. For example if we purchase 30" waist jeans of five different brands, the measurement would differ. The difference would be more than marginal. In India the multinational companies manufacturing garments do not consider the physical body structure of the Indians. The size charts are made according to the English and American standards which is not at all practical. However Indian standards for sizing are being developed. Body Variations The sizing standards should be prepared according to sexes and different age groups, for a shirt that fits a man of 30 years of age would not fit an old man of 60 years of age. According to the bust, hip, waist and stomach measurements body types have been classified as- spoon, rectangle, hour glass, pear shaped, diamond, triangle, inverted triangle and apple shaped. Such classification is there due to the distribution of flesh and fat in a person's body. Thus despite of preparing standard size charts, the problem of exact fit is going to remain in case of readymade garments. Method of size indication The ready-made garments usually contain a label indicating the size, so that customers can pick them up according to their preferred sizes and fitting. Generally the size is communicated on the label in the form of a letter or number, like S, M, L, XL, 30, 32, etc. But the label indicating the same size of different brands differ in fit and size. The repeated trial of garments during purchase time due to non-fitting of clothes sometimes causes damage to the merchandise which ultimately is the loss to the retailer. It is often seen that garments of different brands but of same size labels displayed together also differ in some proportion in sizes. These factors have discouraging and irritating effect on the customers. Fibre2fashion.com - Leading B2B Portal and Marketplace of Global Textile, Apparel and Fashion Industry offers Free Industry Articles, Textile Articles, Fashion Articles, Industry Reports, Technology Article, Case Studies, Textile Industry News Articles,

Latest Fashion Trends, Textile Market Trends Reports and Global Industry Analysis. To read more articles on Textile, Fashion, Apparel, Technology, Retail and General please visit http://www.fibre2fashion.com/industry-article If you wish to download/republish the above article to your website or newsletters then please include the "Article Source. Also, you have to make it hyperlinked to our site. Copyright 2006

***GARMENT WASHES: Profile : Established in 2005, Shalom Wet-Garments Processing specializes in garment washing and finishing services for the garment industry. We offer all types of wash, including prewash, stonewash, bleached wash, enzyme washes, antique, sandblasting finishes and more. We serve customers based on our philosophies of the Qualities and Speed. We turn your clothes to different styles, and make them the ones with Pride, Different, and Unique. Services : We offer our services with different types of washing. They are: . Water Wash . Softener Wash Silicon Softener Wash . Heavy Enzyme .Semi Enzyme Wash . Golf Ball Wash Wash . Heavy Enzyme Wash . Golf Ball Wash . Rubber Ball Wash . Denemax with . Denemax Blasting . Distress Wash Bleach Wash Whiskaring & Tinting . Acid Wash . P.P.T. Wash . Leather Finish . Stiffner Wash . Paper Touch Finish . Sersuccer Wash . Tone Adjustment . Crinckle Wash . Stone Enzyme with Grinding Wash . Heavy Distress . Stone Enzyme Wash . Heavy Sand Silk Wash Wash . Stain Removing . Streaks Covering . Shade Enhancer Wash Wash . Denemax with Tinting . Bio Polish Wash Ocean Wash A & F Ambercombi Fitch Ice Bleach Wash Raw Wash Magic Wash

 Vintage Wash Glitter Wash In Different Types of Fabric Like Cross Hatch Denim Ringspun Denim Rain Drop Denim Leather Special Washes Enzyme Wash Vintage Wash Heavy Faded Wash Reflected Wash Seam Effect Wash Button Grain effect Quality :

Crush Wash

Regular Denim Sulphur Denim Slub of Denim, etc.

Stone Enzyme Wash > Crinckle Wash Tye & Dye Sand Blasting & Silicon Softener Finish Magic Wash Patch Effect Wash

Quality is the key to customer satisfaction. Our manufacturing unit is fully equipped with modern machineries & techniques. We carry a modern state-of-the-art laboratory with well equipped with latest equipment. Our each and every product goes under a stringent quality checks.

Common meanings of quality:

1- Quality is fitness for use:

Quality means the product or service does what it is intended to do. Quality is what a product or service cost users if it doesnt do what it is supposed to do.

2- Quality is meeting customer expectations:

Quality is satisfying the customer. Quality is whatever the customer says it is.

The quality of a product or service is whatever the customer perceives it to be. 3- Quality is exceeding the customer expectations.

Quality is the extent to which the customers or users believe the product or service surpasses their needs and expectations. Quality is delighting the customer.

4- Quality is superiority to competitors: Quality is how a companys products and servicescompare to those of competitors or how they compare to those offeres by the company in the past.

Example of quality characteristics

For Products Performance Reasonable Price Durability Available Responsiveness Reliable Serviceability Ease of Use Simplicity of Design Safe For Service Credibility Safe Available Security Reliable Maintainability Aesthetics Ease of Disposal

Competence Completeness

Understan the Customer Timeliness

Accuracy Communication

Drivers of quality:

1-Customers. In a customer-driven organization, quality is established with a focus on satisfying or exceeding the requirements, expectations, needs, and preferences of customers. Customer-driven quality is a common culture within many organizations.

2-Products / services: A culture of product / service-driven quality was popular in the early stages of quality improvement. Conformance to requirements and zero defect concepts have roots in producing a product / service that meets stated or documented requirements. In some cases, product / service requirements originate from customer requirements , thereby creating a common link to customer-driven quality, but the focus of the culture is on the quality of the product / service. If thecustomerrequirements is accurately stated and designed into the production / service delivery process, then as long as rhe product /

service meet the requirements, the customer should be satisfied. This approach is common in supporting the ISO 9001-based quality management system.

3- Employee Satisfaction: This concept is that an organization takes care of employees needs so that they can be free to worry only about the customer. Employee satisfaction is a primary measure of success for this type of organization.

4- Organizational focus : Some organizations tend to focus on total organizational quality while others are quite successful at using a segmented approach to implementing quality.

Other Definitions Of Quality:

1- Quality of design versus quality of conformance The organizations values, goals, mission, policies, and practices reinforce designing into the product or service rather than inspecting it in. emphasis is placed on doing the right things right the first time. The organizations aim is to not only meet, to letter, customers

requirements, but to exceed them wherever possible. Conformance is the norm. The organizations overriding purpose is to excite the customers with extraordinary products and service.

2- Quality planning, control, and improvement The focus of this dimension is for organizations to continually improve their products, services, processes, and practices with an emphasis on reducing variation and reducing cycle time. This dimension implies extensive use of the quality management tools, including cost of quality, process management approaches, and measurement techniques.

3- Little q and Big Q Organizations focusing on quality control and inspection activities (little q) will fail to be fully effective they must transform their thinking to quality across organization (Big Q)

4- Quality is strategic Quality, or the absence of it, has a strategic impact on the organization. Consumers buy certain products and request services based on their knowledge and perception of the organization and what it provides. Few buyers knowingly buy poor quality. Accumulated experiences and perceptions of customers ultimately make or break an organization. The Baldrige Criteria doesnt mention the word quality

because every activity and decision contained in the structure of the criteriamust be a quality activity or decision. Under this assumption, quality is built in to the very fiber of the organization?the preferred way to conduct the business of the organization.

What Is 5S?
5S is a set of housekeeping rules conceptualized by the Japanese to instill discipline in the workplace for a cleaner and more organized manufacturing environment. It was later adopted in work settings other than the production shop floor, including offices in Japan and other continents. Five Japanese action words starting with the letter s have been coined to easily recall the housekeeping rules that must be regularly followed to sustain order, cleanliness, and efficiency in the workplace. The five action words are seiri, seiton, seiso, seiketsu, and shitsuke. Seiri means to sort. Parts and tools needed in the production line must be separated from the parts and tools that are not required and must therefore be disposed. Offices can mimic a production line and also sort office tools and materials to keep a lean working environment and make it easy for an office worker to locate the things he or she needs to complete a process or service. Creating a checklist of the things a production or office worker needs to do a job will streamline the process of eliminating unneeded tools and materials.