Textile Fabrics and
Finishes
Objectives:
Identify most common fabric constructions
 Describe main fabric finishing procedures
 Recognize importance of quality and
performance standards
 Summarize aspects of the textile industry
 Explain how fabrics are sold down the
chain
 Cite textile industry trade information
 Tell about future predictions for textiles

Fabric Design and
Construction

Two forms of design

Structural Design



“Building in” texture
or interest during
manufacturing process
Weaving and knitting
most common
Applied Design


Adding color, pattern,
or other features to the
structural design
Printing on fabric
Fabric Construction
Methods

Weaving

Knitting
Plain: crosshatch
 Weft
pattern
 Warp
 Twill: diagonal
 Nonwoven
wale
 Fused
 Satin: floating
 Felted
yarns
 Films

Fabric Terms

Grain – direction
yarns run in the
fabric
Lengthwise - warp
 Crosswise - weft
 Diagonal - bias
SELVAGE
WARP


WEFT
BIAS
Selvage

“Finished” weft
edge of fabric
CUT EDGE
SELVAGE
Variations of Weaves





Stripes
Checks
Plaids
Jacquard
Pile fabrics
 Terry cloth
 Corduroy
 Velvet
Knitting


Looping yarn together
Made using one yarn





Built-in stretch
Wrinkle resistant
Does not ravel like
woven material, but may
run
Weft (filling) stretches
in both directions
Warp stretches one
direction; run-proof
Nonwoven Fabrics

Compact web of
fibers (not yarns)
constructed using
Moisture
 Heat
 Chemicals
 Friction
 Pressure


No grain
Other Construction Methods

Laces and Nets



Braids



Decorative trims
Bonded fabrics
Fusible web


Made by knotting
Decorative trim
Interfacing and hem tape
Quilted fabrics
Fabric Finishing

Converters


Mills that change
greige goods into
finished fabrics
Applying colors,
designs, or surface
treatments




Bleaching
Dyeing
Printing
Finishes
Dyeing




Fiber
 Adding color to fibers
before spinning into
yarns
Yarn
 Placing yarns in dye bath
before making into fabric
Piece
 Fabrics dyed after
weaving or knitting
Garment
 Dyed after construction
Printing




Adding color, pattern, or
design to surface of
fabric
Overall prints
 Same across fabric
Directional prints
 Specific direction to
pattern
Plaids
 Even - same in warp
and weft
 Uneven - different in
warp or weft
Printing
Methods

Roller


Applies color
design by roller
Screen

Heat Transfer

Design on printed
paper transferred to
fabric by heat and
pressure
Similar to stenciling  Digital
 Rotary Screen
 Computer method
uses ink-jet printing
 Applies color
design by cylinder-  Flocking
shaped nylon
 Fibers attached by
screens
patterned glue

Fabric Finishes

Mechanical finishes affect
size and appearance



By heat, moisture,
stretching, singeing
Example: preshrinking
Chemical finishes affect
performance






Permanent press
Waterproof
Water repellent
Flame resistant
Antistatic
Stain and soil resistant
Standards

Quality


Rate textiles
according to
levels of defects
Performance

Rate textiles for
specific end-use
suitability
The Textile
 Specialized companies
Industry



perform stages of the
textile segment of the
chain
Technology necessary
 CAD/CAM
Fashion
 Tracking designs,
trends, forecasts
Marketing
 Planning, pricing,
promoting, distributing
Selling Finished Fabrics

Staple fabrics


Novelty fabrics


Sold each year with
little or no change in
construction
Fashion fabrics that
change with style
trends
Overruns

When a mill makes
more fabric than was
ordered by customers
Trade Information



American Textile
Manufacturers Institute, Inc.
(ATMI)
 Industry-wide marketing,
government relations,
trade policies
American Printed Fabrics
Council, Inc. (APFC)
 Printing achievements
American Association of
Textile Chemists and
Colorists (AATCC)
 Wet processing aspects
Future of Textiles




Continued U.S. innovation
Stay internationally
competitive
 Update plants
 Continued automation
 Flexibility and versatility
for shorter production
runs of different fabrics
Increased knit production
Textile firms need more
sophisticated marketing
techniques
Do You Know . . .


A finishing term that
ends in “proof” means
complete protection
(as in waterproof).
Hand is the term used
for textiles that refers
to the way fabrics feel
to the touch. Hand may
apply to drape,
softness, firmness,
crispness, or elasticity.