Textiles
Natural Fibers
Background
• Clothing began with animal skins being
fashionable and has progressed to “high tech”
fabrics.
• Almost all fabrics are made from fibers.
• Fibers are thin threads.
• Most fibers can be lumped into two
categories: natural or synthetic.
Natural Fibers
• Come from plants and animals
• General Characteristics
– Hydrophilic (Absorb Water)
– Most wrinkle easily
Natural Fibers
•
•
•
•
•
•
Cotton
Flax (Linen)
Wool
Silk
Ramie
Leather
Natural Fibers from Plants
• The world’s most
important non-food
crop is cotton.
• Cotton has been
found in the tombs in
India dating back to
3000 B.C.
Cotton advantages
•
•
•
•
•
•
Strong, durable
Soft
Absorbs moisture
Breathes well
Washes easily
Is Americas favorite fiber
Cotton disadvantages
•
•
•
•
•
Mildews
Does not spring back into shape
Wrinkles easily
Burns readily
Shrinks
Clothing/Fashion uses
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Blouses
Dresses
Skirts
Underwear
Shirts
Jeans
Sportswear
Care of Cotton
• Wash in washer and dry
• Iron at high temperature
Cotton
• Grows best where it stays sunny at least half
the year.
• About 2 months after planting, flower buds
appear on the plant.
• After the buds fall off, they leave green pods
called cotton bolls.
• Cotton is harvested in the fall by machine.
Production of Cotton
1.Pick Cotton
2.Ginning: Machine that separates the fiber from the
seed. (Eli Whitney)
3.Carding: Cleans the fibers and starts to align them.
4.Combing: Align the fibers, take out the short fibers.
5.Drawing: Take the slivers and make them more uniform.
6.Roving: Add twist to sliver
7.Spinning: Gives a yarn
Cotton
Microscopic view of cotton. Notice that it twists.
This gives the absorbent quality that cotton has.
The Cotton Plant
Flower
Boll
Open Boll
Cotton is a seed hair that comes from the boll of the cotton plant.
4,000 fibers come from a single cotton seed and 250,000 from the cotton boll.
There are three varieties of cotton. 1) Pima cotton 2) Egyptian cotton 3) Sea Island cotton.
Cotton Production
• Harvesting happens after the flowers blossom,
ripen, wither and fall off. The part left is the green
seed pods or cotton bolls. The fibers grow and push
out of the boll.
Major Producers of
Cotton
• United States
• Russia
• China
• India
Flax (Linen) Advantages
•
•
•
•
STRONG
Absorbs moisture
Comfortable in warm weather
Washes easily
Flax
Cotton
Ramie
FLAX
Flax comes from the stalk and root of
the flax plant. The flax fiber comes
from the “inner bark” of the stem of
a plant grown in temperate and
subtropical regions of the world.
Linen is a fabric made from flax
fibers.
Flax fibers are five to twenty inches
long.
Flax was probably the first fiber to be
used to produce textiles in the
Western Hemisphere.
Wool
Silk
Linen disadvantages
• Mildews
• WRINKLES
• Burns easily
Linen
Dew vs.
water
retted
Bale of
water
retted flax
Clothing/Fashion uses
•
•
•
•
Blouses
Dresses
Skirts
Suits
Care of Linen
• Wash or Dry Clean, CHECK LABEL
• Iron at HIGH temperature
Flax
Cotton
Ramie
Wool
Silk
Care Instructions for Linen
Properties of Linen
• Linen has a thick and thin
irregular surface and crispness.
• The color of flax can differ from
a light blond, to a gray blond.
• Comfortable fiber for hot
climates.
Wool Advantages
•
•
•
•
WARM
Durable
ABSORBENT
Resilient (returns to
original shape quickly)
• Resists wrinkling
• Fire Retardant
Flax
Cotton
Ramie
Wool
Silk
Sheep’s wool is a more important type of wool
because it is more plentiful. On average one sheep gives
eight pounds of wool per year.
Wool Disadvantages
•
•
•
•
Requires special care
Shrinks sometimes if washed, or dried in dryer
Absorbs odors
Requires protection against insects
Characteristics of Wool
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Comes from sheep
Itchy
Staple Fiber (Short, fuzzy fiber)
Warm in winter
Expensive
Shrinks
Dry Cleanable
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Knit garments
Sweaters
Gloves
Skirts
Coats
Sportswear
Socks
Suits
slacks
Clothing/Fashion
uses
Care of Wool
• Dry Clean or Hand Wash and Dry flat
• Iron at low temperature
Silk Advantages
•
•
•
•
Smooth
Lustrous
Strong
Dries quickly
Silk Disadvantages
• Shows water spots
• Iron at low temperature
Characteristics of Silk
•
•
•
•
•
Comes from the cocoon of the silkworm
It is a monofilament fiber.
Expensive
Cool to wear
Comfortable
Clothing/Fashion uses
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Skirts
Blouses
Dresses
Neckties
Scarves
Lingerie
Sweaters
Care of silk
• Dry clean or hand wash, check label
• Iron at low temperature
Silk
One
single
thread
can
measure
up to
4,000
feet in
length
Flax
Cotton
Ramie
Wool
Silk
RAMIE
Advantages of Ramie:
1. It is a very white fiber and dyes easily.
2. Ramie is longer than flax.
3. Ramie has more luster.
RAMIE
• Disadvantages of Ramie
– Low in elasticity
– Lacks resiliency
– Low abrasion resistance
– Wrinkles easily
RAMIE
• Uses of Ramie
– Sweaters
– Suits
– Skirts
– Curtains/ draperys
– Handkerchiefs
– Canvas
RAMIE
• Care of Ramie
– Can be laundered or dry cleaned
– High temperature washings or ironings may harm
colors or finishes on the product
– Machine wash cold on gentle cycle is best
– Line dry
Natural Fibers From Animals
• Wool comes from
sheep, llama, alpaca.
• Angora rabbits
provide angora.
• Angora goats provide
mohair.
Leather
• Not technically a fiber
• Animal skins used for clothing, shoes and accessories.
• Cattle skins used the most, but pig skins are also used
extensively in soft leather goods.