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      Fabrics

      Without fabric there would be no garment. You could have the best design in the world, but without fabric it can’t be realized. Making a judgment call on which fabrics to use and for which garment is a skill, and it is one that can be learnt through experience in the workplace. For example, look at the clothes in your wardrobe. Take a cotton shirt and imagine what it would be like in a heavy wool fabric. Take a silk dress and imagine it in denim. Both the dress and shirt would still be wearable, but would probably be suitable for different occasions. Understanding which fabric is used for what style and why, is part of the skill of the developer.

      FABRIC CHARACTERISTICS

      There are thousands of different fabrics used, but for a starting point I will break them down into four categories: knitted fabrics, woven fabric, bonded/non-woven fabrics, and yarns.

      COMPOSITION

       The composition of the fabric is the mix of different yarns it is made from. It can be split into two sections, the first is natural fibres (cotton, linen, wool and silk), and the second is synthetic or artificial fibres (e.g. viscose, modal, polyester, nylon). Some fabrics are made of a single fibre, and some are blends of two or more fibres. The composition of the fabric affects the performance of the fabric in its end use. For instance, a shirt in 100% cotton will probably be creased when it is washed and will need to be ironed. The same shirt in 50% cotton 50% polyester probably won’t need to be ironed, as the long fibres of the polyester yarn help to keep the fabric flatter.

      CONSTRUCTION

       The construction of a fabric refers to how it is made. Some are woven, some are knitted and some are bonded. Under these headings the categories can be broken down into different weaves and knitting techniques. Here are some examples of the types of weaves and fabrics and their suitability for specific garments and product groups.

      WOVEN

       A woven fabric is constructed by weaving a warp and a weft thread together. The warp threads run along the length of the fabric and the weft from side to side. At the edge of the fabric on each side is the selvedge. Woven fabrics can made from both natural and synthetic fibres and can be used for shirts, coats, jackets, dresses, pants and skirts. The three basic weave constructions are plain, twill and satin.

      BONDED OR NON-WOVEN

       Bonded fabrics are constructed by sealing together synthetic fibres by heat or adhesive. They are not as strong as woven fabrics, but can be used for interlinings for garments or in felted fabric, which can be used for hats or slippers.

      JERSEY KNIT

       Jersey knit is a knitted fabric, and is used for T-shirts or any lightweight knitted garments. Most jersey is made on a circular knitting machine, which means it is knitted in a seamless loop. Jersey knit doesn’t have to be in cotton; it can be in a variety of yarns. Common jersey qualities are: single jersey, double jersey or interlock.

      SWEATER YARN

       Sweater yarns are also knitted into garments, but here they describe sweaters rather than T-shirts. Sweater yarns can be of natural, synthetic or metallic origin, and are usually knitted up on a loom rather than on a circular knitting machine. The thickness of the yarn is indicated by its gauge, and this is indicated as ‘gg’. A yarn for a hand-knit piece will have a low gauge of 3gg, whereas a very lightweight or fine gauge knit would be in 16-18gg. The number of the gauge refers to the number of rows to an inch, so the lower the number the thicker the yarn.

      TIMINGS

      The selection of the fabric begins when the concept is created. The designer will have some fabric ideas from the concept, which can be as vague as ‘printed silk’, or a ‘textured wool’. At the same time as the developer is working with the sketches and the range plan, she is also working alongside the designer on the fabric selection. The designer has a clear idea about which fabrics should be used, but at this stage they are not yet finalised. Once the design process is underway, these ideas will start to become more specific, with a firmer view of the silk being a crepe, or the wool being a bouclé, and from there the selection goes one step deeper into different weights of fabric and different compositions that may be required. Maybe the silk will be a cotton silk mix, whereas the wool may be mixed with cashmere.

      PLACES TO SELECT FABRICS

      FABRICS FAIRS

       Fabric fairs are the best places to source and select new fabrics and yarns, but what happens at the fairs, who works there and how does the fabric selection process work? Fabric mills show their collections at the fabric fairs twice a year, either directly or via agents, to designers, developers, and fabric buyers. Examples of some European fabric fairs are Première Vision (pv) in Paris, Munich Fabric Start in Germany or Milano Unica in Milan. But there are also many fairs in Asia and the usa. There is also a specific yarn fair in Florence.

      FABRIC AGENTS

       Agents are the middlemen between the fabric mill and the brand, with many being linked to more than one mill; they earn their money from linking the right mill with the right customer. An advantage of using a fabric agent is that if they work with more than mill, you are able to see multiple collections in one appointment.

      FABRIC MILLS

       Fabric mills come in all shapes and sizes. Some are huge, covering many different types of fabrics (wools, linens, cottons and synthetics) and some specialise in one specific fabric type. Each mill will have a range relevant to the oncoming season, and their job is to entice the visitor into ordering a header card or colour card. The secrecy around the fabrics is due to the possibility of having fabric ideas stolen. The mills are very protective of their fabrics, and it is common for them not to allow you on their exhibition stand unless you have an appointment with the agent or with the mill directly.

      FABRIC DYEING

      There are four main ways of buying fabric: as a yarn dye, piece dye, a printed fabric or greige. Understanding the differences will help you make informed fabric selections during the development stages.

      YARN DYE

       A yarn dye fabric is one which could be either a stripe, check or all over pattern, and whose colours are usually selected by the brand at yarn level. They will select colours from the yarn mill’s colour card and will ask the fabric mill to make a hand loom for approval by the developer and the designer.

      PIECE DYE

       Piece dyed fabric is dyed after weaving, and is the most common of the techniques. The design team will either make a colour selection from the mill’s colour card, or will submit its own shades for lab dipping.

      PRINTED FABRIC

       Some fabric mills have collections of fabric prints, which can be used as the header or recoloured to fit the brand’s collection. It is also possible to have your own design printed by a fabric mill for something completely unique. In this case the mill will take the artwork from the brand, make a ‘strike off’ and send

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