Appendix:Glossary of textile manufacturing terms
The manufacture of textiles is one of humanity's oldest technologies. In order to make textiles, the first requirement is a source of fiber 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.
A
[edit]- 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.
- 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 It is, however, more broadly applied to a style of fabric originally made from alpaca fiber but now frequently made from a similar type of fiber.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 either the angora goat or the angora rabbit, or the fabric made from angora rabbit; see angora wool. (Fabric made from angora goat is mohair.)
- angora wool
- Angora wool is a generic term for either mohair if the hair is from an angora goat or angora fabric if the hair is from an angora rabbit.
- applique
- Applique is a technique in which pieces of fabric are sewn onto a foundation piece of fabric to create designs.
- aramid
- Aramid fiber is a fire-resistant and strong synthetic fiber.
B
[edit]- 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.
- ballistic nylon
- Ballistic nylon is a thick, tough synthetic fabric used for a variety of applications.
- batik
- Batik is an Indonesian-Malay 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.
- 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 dress-material.
- 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 is material of superior quality.
- 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.
C
[edit]- calico
- Calico is a type of fabric made from unbleached, and often not fully processed, cotton. Also referred to a type of printing.
- 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 hand-spinners.
- 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.
- carpet
- A carpet is any loom-woven, felted textile or grass floor covering.
- cellulose
- Cellulose is a 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.
- chintz
- Chintz is calico cloth printed with flowers and other devices in different colors. It was originally of Eastern manufacture.
- colorfast
- 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.
- 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.
- crazy quilting
- 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
- Crochet is 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.
D
[edit]- 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.
- 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. Double weave is another type of advanced weaving. It is done by interlacing two or more sets of warps with two or more sets of filling yarns.
- durability
- how durable a fabric or yarn is.
- dye
- Dye is used to color fabric. There are two main types: Natural dyes, and synthetic dyes. The process is called dyeing.
E
[edit]- 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.
- epingle
- A type of velvet fabric woven on a wire loom or épinglé loom. The épinglé velvet is specific by the fact that both loop pile and cut pile can be integrated into the same fabric. The art of épinglé 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 where upon today the technique of épinglé 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 / evenweave
- Even-weave 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.
F
[edit]- felt
- Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers. The fibers form the structure of the fabric.
- fiber / fibre
- Fiber 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.
- 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.
- 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 woven cotton fabrics, chiefly prepared for menswear.
G
[edit]- 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 épinglé velvet. In the actual terminology of furnishing fabrics it is mostly named with its French name velours de Gêne.
- This kind of fabric is made on a wire loom or épinglé loom.
- geotextile
- A geotextile is a synthetic permeable textile.
- Glass fiber
- 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.
H
[edit]- 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%.
I
[edit]- 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.
- interfacing
- Interfacing is a common term for a variety of materials used on the unseen or "wrong" side of fabrics in sewing.
J
[edit]- Jacquard loom
- The Jacquard loom was the first machine to use punch 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.
K
[edit]- 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.
L
[edit]- 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.
- lamé
- Lamé is a type of brocaded clothing fabric with inwoven metal threads, typically of gold or silver, giving it a metallic sheen.
- 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.
- loden
- Loden is water-resistant material for clothing made from sheep wool.
- 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.
M
[edit]- macrame / macramé
- Macrame 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).
- mercerize
- Mercerization is a treatment for cotton fabric and thread mostly employed to give cotton a lustrous appearance.
- 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
- 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
- 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.
- 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.
N
[edit]- 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.
- nylon
- Nylon is a synthetic polymer, a plastic. Nylon fibres are used to make many synthetic fabrics and women's stockings.
O
[edit]P
[edit]- 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.
- 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.
Q
[edit]- qalamkari
- Qalamkari is a type of hand-painted or block-printed textile, produced in various places in India.
- 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.
R
[edit]- 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.
- roving
- A roving is along 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.
S
[edit]- satin weave
- A satin is a weaving technique that forms a minimum number of interlacings in a fabric. If a fabric is formed with a satin weave using filament fibers such as silk or nylon, the corresponding fabric is termed a "satin." If the yarns used are short-staple yarns such as cotton, the fabric formed is considered a "sateen."
- seam ripper
- A seam ripper is a small tool used for unpicking stitches.
- 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.
- 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 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 United States 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. Process invented by T.D.Lamb in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire. See also: mungo.
- 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 in order 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.
- spandex
- 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.
- staple
- Staple is the raw material, or its length and quality, of fiber from which textiles are made.
- 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 120’s yarn is better than super 100’s.
T
[edit]- tablet weaving
- Tablet weaving is a process of weaving where tablets, also called 'cards', are used to create the shed the weft is passed through. It is generally used to make narrow work such as belts or straps.
- 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 cheesecloth. 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 in a square inch of fabric.
- 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.
- twill
- 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.
U
[edit]V
[edit]- 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.
W
[edit]- 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 is a descriptor of textiles that resist water (do not allow it to soak through).
- water-repellent
- Water repellent is a descriptor of textiles that repel water.
- 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.
- 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 considerd 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 know as "épinglé 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".
- wool
- Wool is the fiber derived from the hair of domesticated animals, usually sheep.
- worst
- Worsted describes 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 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.
X
[edit]Y
[edit]- 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.