What is TEXTILE? How it differs from fabrics

I used to refer to all the materials I use for sewing as fabrics and textiles interchangeably, but they have distinct differences. Textile is a broader term and fabric refers to a specific material. Textiles includes all fiber-based materials including fibers, thin threads, or filaments that are natural or manufactured or a combination and the things you make with them.

Fabric refers to a material composed of fibers, threads, or yarns that are woven, knitted, or otherwise bonded together to form a sheet of material. Textile includes fabrics as well as the fibers, yarns, and threads used in their creation.

When you talk about a fabric it is usually in the context of making apparel and furnishing. But, textiles are used for technical, and industrial applications, as well.

As per the Federal Trade Commission’s website – The term “fiber” or “textile fiber” means a unit of matter which is capable of being spun into a yarn or made into a fabric by bonding or by interlacing in a variety of methods including weaving, knitting, braiding, felting, twisting, or webbing, and which is the basic structural element of textile products.

The word “textile” comes from the Latin word “textilis,” which means “woven” or “to weave.”

The textile fibers are spun into yarn and then made into fabric by methods like weaving, knitting, and felting. Fiber type, yarn gauge, twist, weave, and finishing processes determine the final textile.

Textiles play a vital role in clothing, furnishing homes, and industrial applications. Understanding textiles involves learning about their types, manufacturing processes, properties, and uses.

Classification of textiles based on different textile fibers

Textiles are classified as natural textiles and synthetic textiles.

Classification according to textile making processes

How are textiles made?

The manufacturing process of textiles transforms raw fibers into finished textile products.

Fibers are spun into yarn and then converted into fabric using weaving, knitting, felting, crocheting, knotting, laminating, and other methods.

Mass production and modern textile technologies have made textiles more affordable and accessible.

Felting uses heat, pressure, and moisture to interlock fibers.

Braiding twists fibers together.

Knotting and interlacing create open mesh fabrics like lace and macrame.

Single cloth or Double cloth

According to the way the fabric is woven the textiles are further categorized as single cloth or double cloth.

The single cloth is made when one yarn of warp and one yarn of weft are interlaced. In this type, there may be a balance of weft and warp yarns or an imbalance. When there is a balance and the weft and warp yarns are of equal thickness, the textile is called an ordinary structure. But where there is a prominence of a yarn this is called a rib structure. There may be warp rib structure with weft yarn stronger and a warp surface rib is formed.

In some textiles, extra threads (warp or weft) are stitched on the back of the fabric for weight – (this is not visible from the front). This is called a backed cloth.

A double cloth will have two warp and two weft yarns interlacing resulting in a much stronger textile with more weight. Sometimes the double cloth is separated as in the case of velvet.

Types of Knitted textiles

Tricot Knits (A warp knit textile which is very soft and stretchy; Used to make lingerie)

Raschel Knits (Another warp knit fabric with a complex structure; it almost looks like lace or crochet)

Jersey Knits (The most basic weft knit textile which is more stretchy than warp knits; sweaters, lingerie are all made in this knit)

Double Knits (A weft knit textile made with 2 different yarn feeds interlocking), Interlock knits, Purl Knits, Rib Knits, Float Jacquard knits ( with a pattern on the face of the fabric) Full Jacquard knits (with pattern on both sides) are all weft knit textiles.

Classification of textiles based on their weave

Textiles are also classified according to the weave structure.

Other weave types include rib weave, jacquard weave, dobby weave, and herringbone weave.

Textiles can also be classified as single cloth or double cloth depending on the weaving structure.

Knitted textiles include tricot knits, raschel knits, jersey knits, double knits, rib knits, purl knits, and jacquard knits.

Classification of textiles based on fabric weight

Classification of textiles according to their use

Other materials according to uses are moisture-wicking fabrics, antimicrobial textiles, UV-protective fabrics, fire-resistant textiles, phase-change materials, conductive textiles, military textiles, and sports performance fabrics.

Floor coverings include rugs and carpets.

Furnishing textiles include curtains, upholstery, and wall coverings.

Classification of textiles after surface treatments

Dyeing, printing, and finishing treatments change the appearance and functionality of textiles.

Finishing treatments improve softness, wrinkle resistance, water repellency, and other properties.

Classification of textiles based on current trends

Important criteria for quality textiles

Thread count

Thread count refers to the number of threads per inch of fabric.

This refers to the number of threads per inch of fabric (yarns-per-inch). This denotes how tightly or loosely the fabric will be woven. Higher the thread count higher the number of threads woven per inch and the higher the quality.

Learn more about Thread count and why it is counted as a quality yardstick of textiles

Balance of weft yarn and warp yarn

Balance of weft and warp yarn is important for textile quality and stability.

In the weaving of the cloth, there will be a balance in the proportion of horizontal weft yarn and the vertical warp yarn. This is very important in any fabric. This balance (in numbers or in size) will always be maintained in high-quality fabric.

Ply

Ply refers to the number of yarn strands twisted together.

The fibers that are woven to make the fabric will either be as a single strand or they will be formed by combining two yarns (twisted) or even more.
When two or more fibers are so twisted together, they result in a stronger, durable yarn which also resists pilling. A two-ply yarn is superior to a single ply yarn

Finishes

Finishes improve appearance and performance through treatments like shrinking control and wrinkle resistance.

These are processes used on the fabric to improve its appearance as well as performance. Pre-shrinking, Making it non-wrinkle, dyeing to different colours, sizing, sanforization etc. More on fabric finishes here

Some textile related terms

Count of cloth – The number of ends and picks per inch in a woven fabric.
Thread count – The total number of warps and wefts per square inch of a woven fabric. This is an indicator of the quality of a textile
Ply – This refers to the number of threads used to form a yarn used to weave the fabric – it indicates the weight of yarn. Larger the ply, heavier the fabric.
Selvedge (Selvage) – The two long finished edges, one on each side along the length of the fabric
Sley – The number of warp ends per inch in a fabric exclusive of selvage. A fabric of high sley has a high number of warp yarns per inch.
Textile Finishes – This is a general term which refers to the treatment of a fabric to add a functional or decorative quality to it
Tear Strength – The force necessary to tear a fabric. This is usually expressed in pounds or in grams.
Yarn – The continuous strand of fiber or group of fibers used in weaving knitting etc forming the fabric
Warp yarn – Lengthwise yarn in a woven textile
Weft Yarn – Crosswise yarn in a woven textile (also called pickings or filling yarn). They are interlaced with warps in a crosswise direction to make a fabric.
Warp-faced textile – Fabric which has prominent warp yarns on the surface
Weft-faced textile – Fabric with prominent weft yarns on the surface
Zephyr – Lightweight fabrics