CHRISTMAS TERM 2020
TEXTILES, CLOTHING AND FASHION
WEEK 3
Fabric construction
Methods used to construct fabric
There are two basic ways of combining fibres to produce fabrics. These are:
Fibres- Fabrics
Fibres- Yarns- Fabrics
Non-woven Fabrics (Fibres- Fabrics)
Non-woven fabrics are those produced as a result of method (1). Fabrics that are
made directly from fibres. Textile fibres are bonded or interlocked by mechanical
means using heat or chemicals, to form flat layers.
Felt and pelon are two examples of non-woven fabrics.
Felt is made by applying moisture, heat and pressure to short wool fibres.
This process interlocks them in a matted layer. The technique used here is
known as felting. Felting is said to be the first method used by man to
produce fabrics.
Pelon is produced by a method slightly similar to that of felt. The fibres used
are cotton or rayon, which do not matt naturally like wool, so a bonding
agent has to be used. This technique is known as fusing.
Woven, knitted and other types of fabric structures are formed from fibres spun
into yarns then made into fabrics. Fabrics made as a result of the weaving process
are the only ones which are really woven, but the name non-woven is only used to
describe fabrics made directly from fibres.
Yarns Fabric
Terms related to Fabric
Yarns- yarns are fibres that are combined to form a continuous strand that
can be made into a textile yarn.
Staple- staple fibres are measured in inches or centimeters and range in
length from 2 cm to 46 cm. Staples may be straight, crimped or curled.
Filament- these are long fibres or yarns measured in yards or metres
Count- refers to the number of yarn per square inch in a woven fabric.
Denier- this relates to fibre or yarn size and is defined as weight in grams
per 9000 metres of filament yarn.
Nap- is the raised (fuzzy) surface on certain kinds of cloth, such as velvet
or moleskin.
Rib- Fabric covered in rows of raised lines (vertical Lines). These lines
alternate between being raised and sunken.
Course- In loop of knitted fabric, it is the total amount of horizontal rows
Blends-Whenever two different types of fibres are combined, the yarns
produced are said to be blended. e.g. cotton and polyester, or rayon and
polyester will produce cotton/polyester or rayon/ polyester blends.
Mixtures-Whenever two different yarns are used fabric produced is said
to be mixture e.g. warp yarns are cotton and weft yarns are rayon.
Types of Yarns
Simple or single yarn
These are the simplest and are made from strands or filament fibres twisted
together. They require no additional processing once the yarn has been
formed. Single Yarns has one strand of twisted fibre.
Ply yarn
Ply yarn is created when two or more single yarns twisted together. These
yarns are called two-ply, three-ply etc. according to the number of yarns used
in the construction.
Complex or cabled yarn
Complex yarns are regular in their length but have several dissimilar
components. They have both staple and filament components. Complex yarns
include covered Yarns, core-spun, filament-wrapped yarns and molten-polymer
yarns. It consist of two or more plied yarns twisted together.
Weaving
Weaving is one of the early techniques used in fabric manufacture. A History of
dress informs us that weaving was in use long before man knew to cut and
shape garments for sewing. Woven lengths of fabrics were some of the early
pieces of clothing. Weaving is a process of forming fabrics on a loom by
interlacing lengthwise and crosswise yarns with each other. The lengthwise
yarns are called warp yarns or ends. The crosswise yarns are called weft yams
or picks.
The weaving process consists of three basic operations.
Shedding- Forming of sheds between the warp yarns to allow the
insertion of weft yarns.
Picking- Inserting weft yarns between the warp shed formed.
Beating-up- Beating up each individual weft yarn as it is woven across
the warp
Types of weaves
There are three basic weaves. These are:
Plain weave- This is the simplest form of weave and is most frequently
used. One weft yarn passes over and under one warp yarn alternately. It
produces a firm and strong fabric ranging from light weight to coarse.
Twill weave- This forms diagonal lines across the fabric. This weave is
used to provide surface decoration, greater weight and better draping
quality. This is a weave in which the weft yarn passes over two warp yarn
and under one in each row of weaving.
Satin or sateen weave- This has weft and warp yarns floating on their
surfaces. This results in smooth and lustrous fabrics. Sateen fabrics are
those with the weft faced floats. Satin are those with the warp faced
floats. In this weave each warp yarn floats over four or more weft (filling)
yarns and interlaces with the fifth weft yarn. The wrap may float over as
many as 12 filling yarns.
