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First of all, we should differ structure from texture of the fabric.
Structure is a difficult to distinguish compound of fibres of different origin which form the whole weaving surface. It may be rough, flat, with patterned reliefs, or like thick felt, etc.
Texture is a visible structure of the fabric. This includes the structure itself, a coloured design or embroiderer and finishing. It may be flat, grainy, shining, mat, dense, homogeneous or contrast to the two latters. The needed texture may be given to any material though it were wool, silk, cotton, linen, etc. It may be done with the help of different combinations of various kinds of yarn, weavings, the methods of making designs or fabric finishing.
Nowadays the combination of threads and fibres, which a fabric contains, may be diverse. For example, cotton-and-polyester, acryl-cotton-viscose, wool-polyester, cotton-viscose-lycra and so on. Such a variety widens the choice, but makes it difficult when buying. Let's look into it together.
Cotton is a natural fibre which is used for spinning and weaving with or without other fibres. Cotton is a soft and hard-wearing fabric which is easy washed after soaking. It can loose its strength under the straight sun rays, that is why it needs protection. Synthetic threads are often used in combination with cotton to give some strength to the latter. The corellation of cotton and synthetics may be various: from 90/10 to 10/90 accordingly. The presence of cotton in fabrics gives them hygienic characteristics: the fabric let pass air through (hygroscopic property). Cotton and linen are always consider to be the best summer fabrics. They are strength, comfortable in wear, easy to wash, quickly get dry, but rumple easily.
Linen is the first fabric the people learned to produce. The quality of it depends on the kind of the plant. The best linen fabric is made from blue flax. It differs from the others in flexibility and elasticity. Linen fibres is used in textile manufacture in the form of complex fibres, consisting of longitudinally joint elementary fibres.
Though the modern technologies made better its basic caracteristics due to the addition of the synthetics, linen fabrics don't rumple, have unique textures and strength and look nice.
Silks are the fabrics often used for sewing dresses and blouses.
Silk is one of the most expensive and luxurious fabrics. It is made of silkworm cocoons. The silk threads are the complex and irregular in thickness threads, which consist of two elementary fibres, glued with sericin. After partial removing of sericin, the threads of natural silk become separate. It is valued due to its remarkable characteristics, such as elasticity, wrinkle resistance, unique shining. Besides, silk easily takes up water and cools in hot summer days.
The fabric quality depends much on climatic conditions of caterpillar living. In droughty regions threads have mat shining. To get the most expensive and the best silk it is used raw materials of high quality. The total length of silk thread in cocoon can be 4000m. To produce the best silks it is used the middle part of a cocoon, there are 300 to 800m.
Wool is a natural organic fibre which is used in spinning and weaving with or without other fibres. It has a tendency to change its original form. Wool is warm to touch and while it's new, it resists to get wet.
Viscose is easy mixed up with other fibres. It helps in coloration of mixed fabrics. The addition of viscose gives the fabrics silkiness and some weight. It is easy to drape, it let pass air through, but it rumples. The disadvantage of viscose is that the threads near the borders of cut details come out. The plus is that it has good hygienic characteristics. Viscose fabrics are fire-resistable. The fabrics which contain some viscose has the best results in cigarette test. Moreover, it is easy to wash, but it can loose its durability when it is wet. Viscose, as well as cotton, often used in combination with synthetics. It is better to choose the thin lining made from viscose for summer clothes. It is more hygienic and resistable to water.
On the whole, natural fabrics containing even 10 percents of synthetics become more durable and elastic.
The more synthetics in the fabrics the worse hygienic characteristics and its look (gloss appears). But beyond all questions, it has some pluses: the fabrics rumple a little and look as they are new for a long time. These advantages are very important because we wear our winter and and autumn clothes under upper clothes.
To sum it up, natural fibres in combination with synthetics get some additional characteristics.
Fabrics from polyether fibres (polyester, lavsan, etc.) don't rumple, don't loose its colour upon sun rays. They are notable for their durability and resistance to wearing into holes. They are also resistable to organic solvents. Nowadays polyester is the most widesread fibre. Polyester is often used as a kind of fabric, which is in no combination with natural fabrics. The technology of its manufacture has reached hygroscopic property of the synthetics. The fabric containing polyester gets durable, it is better keeps form when heating. Due to these characteristics the clothes made from polyester better keep pleats and tucks, and it doesn't fade in the sun. The fabric made from 100% polyester looks pretty and it is long-wearing.
Polyamid fibres, such as nylon, or kapron are durable, elastic, resistable to chemical reagents, to wearing to holes and to multiple bends. Polyamids practically don't soak up water.
Besides above, there are some other types of fibres, which characteristics allow to achieve the neede effect. For example, polypropylene is included in fabrics to add them some light and to make them water resistable. Acryl is produced from mineral oil derivatives. It is often mixed with expensive fibres to low the price for the fabric.Spandex and lycra is used to give a fabric such qualities as wrinkle resistance and possibility to make drapery. Textile designers can choose any quality they need for fabrics using these fibres.
To summarize all and above, it should be mentioned that today's technologies of fibre processing allow to achive natural qualities for synthetics, that may confuse customers as well as sellers. But you shouldn't be afraid of it. There are more advantages than disadvantages for synthetics. Linen and cotton are easy to rumple, silk is slippery to touch. Natural fabrics are easy to iron and keep form, but they are easy to contract. Synthetics don't keep form, they may melt upon ironing, but they are durable, overresistant, cheaper and easier in care. |
