Woven fabric

A Palaung woman weaving a vibrant fabric on a lap loom.

Woven fabric is any textile formed by weaving. Woven fabrics, often created on a loom, are made of many threads woven in a warp and weft. Technically, a woven fabric is any fabric made by interlacing two or more threads at right angles to one another. Woven fabrics can be made of natural fibers, synthetic fibers, or a mixture of both, such as cotton and polyester. Woven fabrics are used for clothing, garments, decorations, furniture, carpets and other uses.

Production Process

Yarn Preparation: Fibers are spun into yarns and prepared with specific properties tailored for either the warp (longitudinal yarns) or the weft (transverse yarns).

A graphic with Arabic text distinguishing raw fibers from processed threads and woven fabric.

Warping: The warp yarns are arranged on a beam to prepare for weaving. The warp threads are held taut and parallel, and as such must be strong and durable.

Weaving: During weaving, the weft yarn passes over and under the warp yarns in various patterns. The primary types of weaves are plain weave, twill weave, and satin weave. These basic types have been extrapolated into a variety of diverse patterns that serve both form and function.

Finishing: After weaving, the fabric undergoes several finishing processes, which might include bleaching, dyeing, printing, and treatments to enhance performance characteristics like water resistance or shrinkage prevention.

Qualities

Woven fabrics only stretch diagonally on the bias (between the warp and weft directions), unless the threads used are elastic. Woven fabric cloth usually frays at the edges, unless techniques are used to counter it, such as the use of pinking shears or hemming. Different companies use textiles differently to create products.

Plain weave

Fabrics that are woven do not stretch as easily as knitted fabrics, which can make them advantageous for many uses.

Closely woven fabric is more durable and keeps it shape better. Woven fabric is constructed with two threads, horizontal and vertical. The horizontal threads are called the weft and the vertical threads are called the warp. The warp and weft can be woven together in different variations of the three basic weaves; plain, twill and satin. These varieties can be shaped into dresses, tops, coats, etc.

How to choose fabric for dress

See also

• Knitted fabric
• Nonwoven fabric

External links

• Media related to Woven textiles at Wikimedia Commons