Portal:Clothing

The Clothing Portal

A garment factory in Bangladesh

Clothing (also known as clothes, garments, dress, apparel, or attire) is any item worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natural products found in the environment, put together. The wearing of clothing is mostly restricted to human beings and is a feature of all human societies. The amount and type of clothing worn depends on gender, body type, social factors, and geographic considerations. Garments cover the body, footwear covers the feet, gloves cover the hands, while hats and headgear cover the head, and underwear covers the private parts.

Clothing has significant social factors as well. Wearing clothes is a variable social norm. It may connote modesty. Being deprived of clothing in front of others may be embarrassing. In many parts of the world, not wearing clothes in public so that genitals, breast, or buttocks are visible could be considered indecent exposure. Pubic area or genital coverage is the most frequently encountered minimum found cross-culturally and regardless of climate, implying social convention as the basis of customs. Clothing also may be used to communicate social status, wealth, group identity, and individualism. (Full article...)

Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the only manufacturing method, and many other methods were later developed to form textile structures based on their intended use. Knitting and non-woven are other popular types of fabric manufacturing. In the contemporary world, textiles satisfy the material needs for versatile applications, from simple daily clothing to bulletproof jackets, spacesuits, and doctor's gowns. (Full article...)

Textile arts are arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects. (Full article...)

Selected articles -

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  Posthumous depiction of Ross, from 1893

  
  Elizabeth Griscom Ross (née Griscom; January 1, 1752 – January 30, 1836), also known by her second and third married names, Ashburn and Claypoole, was an American upholsterer who was credited by her relatives in 1870 with making the second official U.S. flag, accordingly known as the Betsy Ross flag. Though most historians dismiss the story, Ross family tradition holds that General George Washington, commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and two members of a congressional committee—Robert Morris and George Ross—visited Mrs. Ross in 1776. Mrs. Ross convinced George Washington to change the shape of the stars in a sketch of a flag he showed her from six-pointed to five-pointed by demonstrating that it was easier and speedier to cut the latter. However, there is no archival evidence or other recorded verbal tradition to substantiate this story of the first U.S. flag. It appears that the story first surfaced in the writings of her grandson in the 1870s (a century after the fact), with no mention or documentation in earlier decades.
  
  Ross made flags for the Pennsylvania Navy during the American Revolution. After the Revolution, she made U.S. flags for over 50 years, including 50 garrison flags for the U.S. Arsenal on the Schuylkill River during 1811. The flags of the Pennsylvania navy were overseen by the Pennsylvania Navy Board. The board reported to the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly's Committee of Safety. In July 1775, the President of the Committee of Safety was Benjamin Franklin. Its members included Robert Morris and George Ross. At that time, the committee ordered the construction of gunboats that would eventually need flags as part of their equipment. As late as October 1776, Captain William Richards was still writing to the Committee of Safety to request the design that he could use to order flags for the fleet. (Full article...)
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  A hemp field in Côtes-d'Armor, Brittany, France, which is Europe's largest hemp producer as of 2022

  
  Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a plant in the botanical class of Cannabis sativa cultivars grown specifically for industrial and consumable use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants on Earth. It was also one of the first plants to be spun into usable fiber 50,000 years ago. It can be refined into a variety of commercial items, including paper, rope, textiles, clothing, biodegradable plastics, paint, insulation, biofuel, food, and animal feed.
  
  Although chemotype I cannabis and hemp (types II, III, IV, V) are both Cannabis sativa and contain the psychoactive component tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), they represent distinct cultivar groups, typically with unique phytochemical compositions and uses. Hemp typically has lower concentrations of total THC and may have higher concentrations of cannabidiol (CBD), which potentially mitigates the psychoactive effects of THC. The legality of hemp varies widely among countries. Some governments regulate the concentration of THC and permit only hemp that is bred with an especially low THC content into commercial production. (Full article...)
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  ca. 1989, U. S. Department of the Interior photograph

  
  Alice Littleman (February 8, 1910 – May 26, 2000) was a Kiowa beadwork artist and regalia maker, who during her lifetime was recognized as one of the leading Kiowa beaders and buckskin dressmakers. Her works are included in the permanent collections of the National Museum of Natural History, the National Museum of the American Indian, the Southern Plains Indian Museum, and the Oklahoma Historical Society. (Full article...)
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  Woman knitting

  
  Knitting is a method for production of textile fabrics by interlacing yarn loops with loops of the same or other yarns. It is used to create many types of garments. Knitting may be done by hand or by machine.
  
  Knitting creates stitches: loops of yarn in a row; they can be either on straight flat needles or in the round on needles with (often times plastic) tubes connected to both ends of the needles. There are usually many active stitches on the knitting needle at one time. Knitted fabric consists of a number of consecutive rows of connected loops that intermesh with the next and previous rows. As each row is formed, each newly created loop is pulled through one or more loops from the prior row and placed on the gaining needle so that the loops from the prior row can be pulled off the other needle without unraveling. (Full article...)
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  Female (left) and male (right) cochineals

  
  The cochineal (/ˌkɒtʃɪˈniːl, ˈkɒtʃɪniːl/ KOTCH-in-EEL, -⁠eel, US also /ˌkoʊtʃɪˈniːl, ˈkoʊtʃɪniːl/ KOH-chin-; Dactylopius coccus) is a scale insect in the suborder Sternorrhyncha, from which the natural dye carmine is derived. A primarily sessile parasite native to tropical and subtropical South America through North America (Mexico and the Southwest United States), this insect lives on cacti in the genus Opuntia, feeding on plant moisture and nutrients. The insects are found on the pads of prickly pear cacti, collected by brushing them off the plants, and dried.
  
  The insect produces carminic acid that deters predation by other insects. Carminic acid, typically 17–24% of dried insects' weight, can be extracted from the body and eggs, then mixed with aluminium or calcium salts to make carmine dye, also known as cochineal. Today, carmine is primarily used as a colorant in food and in lipstick (E120 or Natural Red 4). (Full article...)
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  Ainu ceremonial dress on display under glass in the British Museum

  
  The conservation and restoration of textiles refers to the processes by which textiles are cared for and maintained to be preserved from future damage. The field falls under the category of art conservation, heritage conservation as well as library preservation, depending on the type of collection. The concept of textile preservation applies to a wide range of artifacts, including tapestries, carpets, quilts, clothing, flags and curtains, as well as objects which "contain" textiles, such as upholstered furniture, dolls, and accessories such as fans, parasols, gloves and hats or bonnets. Many of these artifacts require specialized care, often by a professional conservator. (Full article...)
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  Kimono for a young woman (furisode), Japan, 1912–1926

  
  The Khalili Collection of Kimono is a private collection of more than 450 Japanese kimono assembled by the British scholar, collector and philanthropist Nasser D. Khalili. It is one of eight collections assembled, published and exhibited by Khalili, each of which is considered to be among the most important collections within their respective fields.
  
  The Khalili Collection of Kimono includes formal, semi-formal, and informal kimono made for men, women, and children, illustrating the evolution of the kimono through cut, construction, materials, and decorative techniques from the 17th through the 20th centuries, with kimono representing the Edo period, the Meiji period, the Taishō period, and the Shōwa period. The kimono within the collection are not on permanent display, but are periodically lent or donated in part to cultural institutions; including the Kremlin Museums in Moscow and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Khalili, who also owns a collection of Meiji-era Japanese art, describes kimono as "one of the wonders of the world." He started the kimono collection with the aim of collecting and cataloguing cultural works that were not already actively being collected. (Full article...)
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  Whitney in 1822

  
  Eli Whitney Jr. (December 8, 1765 – January 8, 1825) was an American inventor, widely known for inventing the cotton gin in 1793, one of the key inventions of the Industrial Revolution that shaped the economy of the Antebellum South.
  
  Whitney's invention made upland short cotton into a profitable crop, which strengthened the economic foundation of slavery in the United States and prolonged the institution. Despite the social and economic impact of his invention, Whitney lost much of his profits in legal battles over patent infringement for the cotton gin. Thereafter, he turned his attention to securing contracts with the government in the manufacture of muskets for the newly formed United States Army. He continued making arms and inventing until his death in 1825. (Full article...)
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  Gunta Stölzl (5 March 1897 – 22 April 1983) was a German textile artist who played a fundamental role in the development of the Bauhaus school's weaving workshop, where she created enormous change as it transitioned from individual pictorial works to modern industrial designs. She was one of a small number of female teachers on the Bauhaus' staff and the first to hold the title of "Master".
  
  Her textile work is thought to typify the distinctive style of Bauhaus textiles. She joined the Bauhaus as a student in 1919, became a junior master in 1927. She was dismissed for political reasons in 1931, two years before the Bauhaus closed under pressure from the Nazis. (Full article...)
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  White Oak Mill

  
  Cone Mills Corporation was an American textile manufacturing company. It produced cotton fabrics such as corduroy, flannel, and denim. The company headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina. (Full article...)
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  The Vestiarium Scoticum (full title, Vestiarium Scoticum: from the Manuscript formerly in the Library of the Scots College at Douay. With an Introduction and Notes, by John Sobieski Stuart) is a book which was first published in 1842 by William Tait of Edinburgh in a limited edition. John Telfer Dunbar, in his seminal work History of Highland Dress, referred to it as "probably the most controversial costume book ever written".
  
  The book itself is purported to be a reproduction, with colour illustrations, of a 15th-century manuscript on the clan tartans of Scottish families. Shortly after its publication it was denounced as a forgery, and the "Stuart" brothers who brought it forth were also denounced as impostors for claiming to be the grandsons of Bonnie Prince Charlie. It is generally accepted today that neither the brothers themselves nor the Vestiarium are what they were purported to be. (Full article...)
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  Fabrics dyed in the current era from different species of sea snail. The colours in this photograph may not represent them precisely.

  
  Tyrian purple (Ancient Greek: πορφύρα porphúra; Latin: purpura), also known as royal purple, imperial purple, or imperial dye, is a reddish-purple natural dye. The name Tyrian refers to Tyre, Lebanon, once Phoenicia. It is secreted by several species of predatory sea snails in the family Muricidae, rock snails originally known by the name Murex (Bolinus brandaris, Hexaplex trunculus and Stramonita haemastoma). In ancient times, extracting this dye involved tens of thousands of snails and substantial labour, and as a result, the dye was highly valued. The colored compound is 6,6'-dibromoindigo. (Full article...)
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  Perkin in 1906

  
  Sir William Henry Perkin FRS (12 March 1838 – 14 July 1907) was a British chemist and entrepreneur best known for his serendipitous discovery of the first commercial synthetic organic dye, mauveine, made from aniline. Though he failed in trying to synthesise quinine for the treatment of malaria, he became successful in the field of dyes after his first discovery at the age of 18.
  
  Perkin set up a factory to produce the dye industrially. Lee Blaszczyk, professor of business history at the University of Leeds, states, "By laying the foundation for the synthetic organic chemicals industry, Perkin helped to revolutionize the world of fashion." (Full article...)
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  Skirt (AM 1944.51-1)

  Mamianqun ornamented with Chinese goldwork and embroideries, a traditional skirt of the Han Chinese, Qing dynasty

  
  Goldwork is the art of embroidery using metal threads. It is particularly prized for the way light plays on it. The term "goldwork" is used even when the threads are imitation gold, silver, or copper. The metal wires used to make the threads have never been entirely gold; they have always been gold-coated silver or cheaper metals, and even then the "gold" often contains a very low percent of real gold. Most metal threads are available in silver and sometimes copper as well as gold; some are available in colors as well.
  
  Goldwork is always surface embroidery and free embroidery; the vast majority is a form of laid work or couching; that is, the gold threads are held onto the surface of the fabric by a second thread, usually of fine silk. The ends of the thread, depending on type, are simply cut off, or are pulled through to the back of the embroidery and carefully secured with the couching thread. A tool called a mellore or a stilleto is used to help position the threads and create the holes needed to pull them through. The threads most often have metal or gold leaf wound around a textile thread, or threads treated with an adhesive and rolled in powdered gold or other metal. (Full article...)
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  Commercial machine embroidery in chain stitch on a voile curtain, China, early 21st century

  
  
  Machine embroidery is an embroidery process whereby a sewing machine or embroidery machine is used to create patterns on textiles. It is used commercially in product branding, corporate advertising, and uniform adornment. It is also used in the fashion industry to decorate garments and apparel. Machine embroidery is used by hobbyists and crafters to decorate gifts, clothing, and home decor. Examples include designs on quilts, pillows, and wall hangings.
  
  There are multiple types of machine embroidery. Free-motion sewing machine embroidery uses a basic zigzag sewing machine. Designs are done manually. Most commercial embroidery is done with link stitch embroidery. In link stitch embroidery, patterns may be manually or automatically controlled. Link Stitch embroidery is also known as chenille embroidery, and was patented by Pulse Microsystems in 1994. More modern computerized machine embroidery uses an embroidery machine or sewing/embroidery machine that is controlled with a computer that embroiders stored patterns. These machines may have multiple heads and threads. (Full article...)

Did you know (auto generated)

• ... that Sandra Ng wore her own clothes while filming Love Lies to help the production crew save on the budget?
• ... that according to Brandy Hellville, executives at Brandy Melville have bought the clothes off of employees' backs?
• ... that Liberian paramount chief Tamba Taylor worked as a tailor and claimed to have sewn clothes for Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie and Ghanaian president Kwame Nkrumah?
• ... that during the Second World War, the British government's campaign Make-Do and Mend encouraged the public to fashion men's clothes into womenswear?
• ... that during a renovation of 4 Park Avenue, workers found a sealed room with women's clothes and shoes that was not in the building's blueprints?
• ... that Church Clothes 4 deals with Christian hip hop artist Lecrae's faith deconstruction and reconstruction?

More Did you know

• ... that handcrafted textiles in Mexico (samples pictured) are still made using techniques that date back to the pre-Hispanic period?
• ... that both the textile mills and residence of Nathan Wild, a prominent local figure in Columbia County, New York, are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places?
• ... that many of the Paterson, New Jersey, textile mill workers who struck in 1835 demanding shorter working hours were children?

Related portals

Selected image

Kuna woman displays a selection of molas for sale in the San Blas Islands of Panama

The mola forms part of the traditional costume of a Kuna woman, two mola panels being incorporated as front and back panels in a blouse. The full costume traditionally includes a patterned wrapped skirt (saburet), a red and yellow headscarf (musue), arm and leg beads (wini), a gold nose ring (olasu) and earrings in addition to the mola blouse (dulemor).

General images -

The following are images from various clothing-related articles on Wikipedia.

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  1895 Punch cartoon.Gertrude: "My dear Jessie, what on earth is that Bicycle Suit for?"
  Jessie: "Why, to wear, of course."
  Gertrude: "But you haven't got a Bicycle!"
  Jessie: "No; but I've got a Sewing Machine!" (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  Cover of Marcus Clarks' spring and summer catalogue 1926–27 (from Fashion)
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  A French reinterpretation of Spanish fashion, with elaborate reticella ruff, 1609 (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  A Concert in an Interior by Jan Josef Horemans the Younger of Antwerp, 1764. The women's sack-back gowns and the men's coats over long waistcoats are characteristic of this period. (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  Gross sales of goods vs IP laws (US 2007) (from Fashion)
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  Slashing at its height: Henry IV, Duke of Saxony, c. 1514 (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  Latin dancers in their costumes. The woman is wearing backless dress with deep slits on its lower portion, while the man is wearing a shirt with top buttons open. (from Fashion)
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  Estonian national clothes are a fine example of change in clothing after the Industrial Revolution. They changed a lot during 18th and 19th of century with the addition of new types of colors (like aniline dyes), placement of colors (like lengthwise stripes) and with the addition of new elements (like waistcoats). By the end of the 19th century they went out of use in most of the country (except more remote places as in Kihnu island) and it was only in mid 20th century when they once again gained popularity and now as a formal clothing. Members of University of Tartu Folk Art Ensemble wearing clothes specific to Kihnu island, Tori Parish (women in red skirts) and Tõstamaa area (men in brown clothing). (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  A woman in Bengal region in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent, clad in fine Bengali muslin, 18th century. (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  Albrecht Dürer's drawing contrasts a well-turned out bourgeoise from Nuremberg (left) with her counterpart from Venice. The Venetian lady's high chopines make her look taller. (from Fashion)
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  Bold floral patterned silks, 15th century (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  14th-century Italian silk damasks (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  Kaia Gerber at the 2019 Max Mara Fashion Week in Milan (from Fashion)
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  Melania Trump with Argentine first lady Juliana Awada in 2017 (from Fashion)
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  A see-through top worn along with pasties by a model at a fashion show in US, 2017. Such fashion trends get popularised through media. (from Fashion)
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  Hindu lady wearing sari, one of the most ancient and popular pieces of clothing in the Indian subcontinent. (from Fashion)
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  Jacqueline Kennedy, the wife of President John F. Kennedy, made pink a popular high-fashion color. (from Fashion)
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  Marie Antoinette, wife of Louis XVI, was a leader of fashion. Her choices, such as this 1783 white muslin dress called a chemise a la Reine, were highly influential and widely worn. (from Fashion)
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  Model with a modern dress reflecting the current fashion trend at a fashion show, Paris, 2011 (from Fashion)
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  Gensei Kajin Shu by Yoshu Chikanobu, 1890. Various styles of traditional Japanese clothing and Western styles. (from Fashion)
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  Celebrities such as Britney Spears have popularized the concept of wearing underwear as outerwear. (from Fashion)
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  Nylon stockings being inspected in Malmö, Sweden, in 1954 (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  French fashion from the New Larousse Illustrated, 1617–1898 (from Fashion)
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  Tie dye vendor, July 2013 (from Fashion)
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  Fur fashion for sale in Tallinn, Estonia (from Fashion)
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  A Mexican sports reporter Inés Sainz wearing a little black dress and knee-high boots (from Fashion)
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  Timberland boots are an everyday shoe in streetwear. (from Fashion)
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  The Boxer Codex, showing the attire of a Classical period Filipino, made of silk and cotton (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  Liu Wen, supermodel, walks the runway modeling fashions by designer Diane von Fürstenberg at New York Fashion Week 2013. (from Fashion)
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  Indigenous Americas Map Tunic designed in 2018 by Carla Fernández and Pedro Reyes for Taller Flora. (from Fashion)
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  This 1921 clipping from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, with story and drawings by Marguerite Martyn, represents the saturation newspaper coverage given to society women at a fashionable dance. (from Fashion)
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  Textile machinery at the Cambrian Factory, Llanwrtyd, Wales in the 1940s (from History of clothing and textiles)
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  Woman's Bicycling Ensemble, 1898, LACMA (from Fashion)
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  Edgar I of England in short tunic, hose, and cloak, 966 (from History of clothing and textiles)

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Featured articles Bronwyn Bancroft Inuit clothing Good articles Batik Bed hangings Cora Slocomb di Brazza Dar al-Kiswa English embroidery Knitta Please William Morris Navajo weaving Sprang Featured pictures 17.17-37-1969-Kaukasisk-broderi 17th century Central Tibeten thanka of Guhyasamaja Akshobhyavajra, Rubin Museum of Art Eugène Grasset - A La Place Clichy Khalili Collections A Composite Imaginary View of Japan Featured portals Portal:Clothing

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Textile Arts WikiProject

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Here are some tasks awaiting attention: Article requests : Japanese embroidery, Slip stitch crochet, Angelo Testa (see Ostrich leather for example) Assess : Rate unassessed articles for quality and importance Cleanup : Tassel, Burlap, or one of the articles in our cleanup list Copyedit : History of knitting, Drawn thread work Expand : History of textiles and clothing, Casting on (knitting) Photo : Hollie point, Challis (fabric), Mountmellick embroidery, More photos... Stubs : Afghan blanket, Emilie Bach, Candlewicking, Dip stitch (knitting), Elongated stitch (knitting), More stubs... Verify : Clothing, Ply, Bobbinet, Braid, Canvas, Cardigan (sweater), Cotton-spinning machinery, Crocheted lace, Damask, Distaff, Dobby loom, Drawn thread work, Dyeing, Hemline, Ikat, Lace, Natural fiber, Neckline, Oilskin, Overlock, Machine embroidery Other : Help find and upload Requested pictures Place the {{WikiProject Textile Arts}} project banner on the talk pages of all articles within the scope of the project. Place the {{Portal|Textile arts}} portal template in the See also section of associated articles. Improve a top priority textile arts article. Original research removal: Clothing, History of knitting

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