Textiles

Fibres and Yarns

Fibres are all either stable (short) fibres, or filament (long) fibres. There are two main types of fibres:

Natural fibres come from either animals (wool, angora) or from plants (cotton, linnen).

Synthetic fibres are man-made from the by-products of oil. Eg. polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Microfibres are extremely small synthetic fibres eg. polyester.

Regenerated fibres are made from a combination of chemicals and cellulose waste. Eg, Viscose.

Yarns

Individual fibres are weak, but when they are combined to make yarns, their propertis change completely. Yarns are made by spinning or twisting fibres together.The WORSTED spinning system produces a smooth yarn, whereas the WOOLEN  spinning system produces a hairy yarn. 

Yarns can be spun in two ways: S-twist (anticlockwise) or a Z-twist (clockwise). More complex yarns combine equal amounts of s-twists and z-twists to prevent distortion. 

The different types of yarn are:

• spun yarns
• multi-filament yarns
• monofilament yarns
• assembled yarns
• folded yarns
• piled yarns
• complex yarns
• fancy yarns
• BULK YARNS are heavier and are often used to make hats, scarves and sweaters.

 Knitted Fabrics

Knitted fabrics are made from a yarn in a series of interlocking loops. Due to the loops, the knitted fabrics are stretchy. Further elasticity can be added by adding elastane.

Knitted fabrics are warm. This property can by improved by adding a finishing process called napping or brushing, which gives a fluffy effect, as in fleeces.

WEFT KNITTED FABRICS...

Have horizontal rows of knitted…