File: Types of fabrics and design of materials in clothing

Disclaimer: Alexandra and Pierre are the founders of Sauver le Monde des Hommes , a young brand based in Paris. Their goal ? To offer men who love beautiful things a real bastion, in which they will find clothes, books and accessories.

After discovering certain brands and developing their own lines, the two creators offer us an overview of the principles of construction of textile materials. The floor is theirs!

The basic principles of textile

When we want to shine in society, we like to show off our knowledge and the attention paid to the details of our wardrobe. From selvedge jeans, to cross-stitched buttons, to cleanliness bands, BonneGueule readers are already well-equipped to make a statement.

However, fabric often remains a little-known subject . We can feel that an Italian fabric is a beautiful fabric, that it has a beautiful “hand” (to pretend we know it) but in the end, we often have difficulty understanding how we go from a sheep, a goat, or a bale of cotton, in the fabric of those jeans that we haven't taken off all week.

The textile industry has four essential sectors:

1. raw materials and their extraction , with on the one hand natural materials (plants and animals), on the other hand artificial materials (= generally based on recycled natural molecules) and synthetic materials (= based on hydrocarbons ),
2. spinning ,
3. weaving (and knitting the stitch, which will not be covered here),
4. ennoblement (which is, in fact, not a feudal ceremony).

Raw materials in clothing

For raw materials, BonneGueule has already done a lot of work for us. We can only advise you to refer to the comparison of natural / synthetic materials .

Spinning of textile fibers

Spinning natural materials is quite a program. This involves cleaning, parallelizing, stretching and twisting fibers to form a yarn.

Without going into too much detail, the successive operations are as follows (despite these barbaric names, no animal was harmed during the process):

• opening, which consists of opening the flakes of cotton, wool, silk fibers ,

• beating (for cotton), or washing (for wool), which aim to rid the raw material of its impurities by giving it a dirty quarter of an hour (for example seeds in cotton),

• carding, which allows, using a brush, to untangle and aerate the textile fibers . It is also at the time of carding that certain mixtures are produced, such as the wool/mohair or wool/cashmere mixture, among the most famous,
  

  Most spinning processes are automated today. However, some still opt for artisanal carding, which is done by placing the fibers between these two enormous combs.

• the spindle bed, on which the ribbon formed during carding will pass, will stretch the fibers and give them a slight twist before placing them on spools.

• It is during the final stage, winding, on a machine called continuous spinning, that the grandmother's bobbin is created. This machine twists the threads together to give them strength and regularity .

An additional step is often added: combing. This involves removing even more short fibers for a more uniform appearance. For example, you will find cotton or combed wool, for a clean effect on you; or, conversely, cotton or carded wool, for a truly rustic piece.

For chemical fibers (like polyester or viscose), the process is different : a kind of paste formed by a chemical process passes through the holes of a die (a strainer, with smaller holes) to obtain filaments to which we give the length or shape we want.

We see it in this recycling of polyester bottles:

At this point, your wool or cotton has already made a nice trip around the world, in addition to a certain number of turns on itself. We therefore obtain a thread, which can take a large number of shapes, weigh more or less heavy, and be more or less wide.

Weaving and different types of fabrics

The spools of thread ready, it is now time to make the fabric.

Weaving, as regular readers may already know, is an operation which allows two sets of threads to be crossed in a perpendicular manner : the warp threads (in the length direction), and the weft threads (in the direction the transverse direction).

You understand, we don't want to come across as badgers. To be sure, it may be interesting to review a few basics:

We talk about picking (yourself) to qualify a weft thread, and all of these picks constitute the weft of the fabric . When we describe a fabric, we talk about width to describe the width, and selvage to describe the edge . So far so good.

The interweaving of the warp and weft threads (picks, therefore) forms what we call a weave .

The weave therefore simply corresponds to the way in which these threads are superimposed to form a fabric . It will define, in addition to the very composition of the starting thread, the rigidity, the hand, the brightness and the patterns of the final fabric.

However, before moving on to weaving, the thread must still undergo three important operations:

• warping, which consists of unwinding the spools of wire on what is called a beam (a long metal roll) in order to align them in a parallel manner,

• sizing, during which the warp threads are soaked (then dried) in a mixture of starch, water and wax to prevent it from breaking during weaving . The fabric will subsequently undergo desizing in order to get rid of this mixture,

• tucking, which consists of connecting each warp thread to a blade in a very specific order , according to the desired weave and texture.

Originally, weaving was done using manual looms. Although these jobs are now large automated machines for the vast majority, except for a few diehard Japanese, the principle always remains the same:

• The weft thread is wound on a spool, and inserted into a shuttle which will be projected from right to left and vice versa (according to different more or less modern processes, but unfortunately no nuclear reactors yet) in order to insert itself between the threads of chain.

• The blades (in which the warp threads are inserted) lift to allow the weft thread to pass through.

• Once the thread has passed, they lower, and another set of blades raises, to let the weft thread pass in the other direction.

• With each movement of the blade, a comb tightens the threads to ensure the regularity and maintenance of the fabric.

This alternating movement, which occurs at lightning speed (or almost) causes the threads to intertwine and the fabric to obtain its shape.

The machines are programmed to move the blades according to a predefined weave. Although there are thousands of variations of armor, there are always three basic armors that we recognize.

The Web

Known to everyone, it is the oldest, simplest and most used armor. The front and back of the fabric look the same. However, very different fabrics can be made in plain weave, depending on the material used, the count, and the twist of the threads.

For example, poplin - shirt fabric par excellence, well known to BonneGueule readers - is a derivative of canvas.

Twill

Twill is a weave with raised diagonals, separated by furrows. The weft is placed on two, three or four warp threads, then under a warp thread, with an offset at each pick.

Twill is often found on pants or coats; it is easily recognizable thanks to the diagonals that can be observed on the surface of the fabric . Denim, in particular, is a derivative of twill, as are herringbones.

The satin

It refers to a weave with a more or less shiny surface , produced by warp or weft floats, of varying length. The front is shiny, the reverse is matte. It is, for example, used in making ties.

We are especially familiar with its very shiny version in silk or polyester, but satin can also add a slight touch of luminosity, without being in bad taste . Because we cannot accept it.

Fake armor

In the beautiful world of textiles, we also talk about artificial armor , or armor with complicated names.

Among the latter, the three most famous in men's wardrobe are the houndstooth, the rooster's foot, as well as the Prince of Wales , which form patterns that are mainly found in tailoring.

Complex armor

Finally, the last major category is that of complex armor , because we understand them quickly, but they take a long time to explain.

Velvet (ribbed or plain)

If you have - like me - wondered for a long time how corduroy was made, it is a fabric made with a warp and two wefts: one for the base of the fabric, and another to form the pile of the velvet.

The excess hair is then shaved to give this famous velvet appearance . We advise you to write it down somewhere to bring it out to your literature teacher friend, who loves this refined material that makes you seem so intelligent.

The honeycomb

It is best known for its use in tea towels and napkins (which should not be mixed), and forms small cells. It's a texture that allows you to add a lot of relief , which explains why it came out of the kitchen to end up on some of our clothes.

The jacquard

Named after the inventor of the Jacquard loom (originally from Lyon, for the more chauvinistic among you), it is a patterned fabric. Unlike an embroidered fabric, the patterns are made in the weave , and not on top of the fabric.

Fabric finishing

Finishing corresponds to the final stage of fabric production. After weaving, the fabric must still undergo a certain number of operations before it can be used in the making of clothing (its crowning achievement, so to speak).

Within finishing, there are four main categories: pre-treatments, dyeing, printing and finishes.

Pre-treatments consist of preparing the freshly woven fabric to be dyed, printed or to receive finishes.

The dye

To begin with, an important point to know: dyeing can be done on thread, on fabric, or even on already made clothing (what we call ready-to-dye or PAT).

For each of these options, the rendering will be different . A dyed yarn will often have a darker color than a dyed fabric, and a PAT garment will have a more faded color.

However, this does not mean that the colors will hold less well, they are simply distributed differently on the fabric; rather, it corresponds to a stylistic choice.

The dye must be solid, resist the action of air, light, heat, friction, sweat, as well as the products used during washing and cleaning operations (a whole program ).

Printing in textiles

This technique will aim to create patterns, in relief or not, that a Jacquard loom or embroidery could not create .

Since there are many printing methods, there is no fabric that is not printable. However, it is preferable that the fabrics are tight and smooth for more regularity (unless otherwise chosen stylistically).

Finishes on fabrics

Finishes include all operations carried out on the fabric after dyeing and printing. This will involve modifying its technical properties (waterproofing, breathability, etc.) as well as its visual appearance and its feel (the fabric will be brushed for a peach skin feel, for example).

So, saved ?

Thanks to Pierre and Alexandra from Sauver Le Monde des Hommes for their article entirely in keeping with BonneGueule. For your part, do not hesitate to visit their website , because they have very good selections on the quality mid-range.