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Balanced stripes -
Any
pattern with background and stripe of the
exact same width. Bengal and candy stripes
are both balanced.
Barathea
-
A soft fabric of silk and cotton, silk and wool or all wool,
woven with fine two-ply yarns.
Battenburg
-
Refers to any various designs of coarse renaissance lace.
Bengal
stripes -
Equal and balanced stripes but fairly narrow and
conservative.
Bedford
-
A lengthwise ribbed weave that resembles corduroy. Fibers may
be wool, worsted, cotton, silk and
rayon.
Bird's
Eye Check -
A pattern of small diamonds, each having a dot in the center
woven into the fabric.
Binding
-
A strip of fabric sewn over or attached along an edge, to
secure or protect.
Broadcloth
-
A plain weave of cotton, silk and rayon fibers that are woven
with a fine crosswise rib that is similar
to but more delicate than poplin, giving a
lustrous and soft finish.
Brocade
-
A heavy exquisite jacquard type fabric with an all-over floral
design or raised pattern.
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Cable knit -
A
pattern consisting of vertical overlapping
"cables" interspersed with flat knit
columns.
Candy
stripes -
Broader than Bengal stripes but still balanced. Think of candy
canes.
Canvas
-
A strong, durable, closely woven cotton fabric popular for
raincoats, handbags and boots. Originally
made of unbleached hemp of flax used for
sails, tents, etc.
Carefree
-
A versatile, fashionable "easy care" collection designed to
offer great style in the most advanced
easy-care, easy wear, stress-free fabrics.
And they're all machine washable,
featuring up-to-the-minute fashion
details.
Cashmere
-
A luxury natural fiber found from the soft fleecy undergrowth
of the Kashmir goat, found in Tibet,
Mongolia, China, Iraq, Iran and India. It
is most commonly used in sweaters, shawls,
suits, and outerwear for its warmth and
softness.
Chambray
-
A class of yarn-dyed, plain weave fabrics with a colored warp
and white filling. Made of cotton or
synthetic fibers, chambray is often light
blue. It was originally woven in Cambrai,
France, for farmers.
Charmeuse
-
The trade name of silk and silk-like fabrics that are
characterized by a shiny, soft, satin-like
appearance.
Chenille
-
A fabric with soft, fuzzy yarns standing out around a velvety
cord, whose name comes from the French
word for "caterpillar." Used for
bedspreads, rugs, bathrobes and, more
recently, loose-fitting
sweaters.
Chiffon
-
A soft silk that is a plain woven, lightweight and sheer
fabric containing highly twisted filaments
of yard. The fabric is used for scarves
and evening gowns, but can also be made
from rayon and other synthetic
fibers.
Chintz
-
A printed and glazed cotton fabric usually of bright
colors.
Combed
cotton -
A fabric with a silk-like hand. Considered superior to basic
carded cotton.
Coolmax®
-
The DuPont trademark for polyester. A specific process at the
fiber-making stage helps wick away
moisture from the body, keeping it cool
and comfortable.
Corduroy
-
A medium to heavyweight cotton pile fabric with wales, usually
cut vertically. This strong, durable
fabric, originally used by the household
staff of French kings, was called corde du
roi or "cord of the king."
Crepe
-
Refers to a crinkly, crimped or grained surface. It is used to
describe all kinds of fabrics-wool,
cotton, silk, rayon, synthetics and blend.
It comes from the French word creper,
which means "to crimp or frizz."
Crepe
de chine -
A fine, lightweight crepe usually made of silk.
Crewel
-
An artistic embroidering technique that creates a design motif
from wool yarn, giving a colorful effect,
as well as, adding texture.
Crochet
-
A loose, open knit made by looping thread with a hooked
needle. Used for light, summer
sweaters.
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Denim -
A
twill-weave cotton-like fabric made with
different colored yarns in the warp and
the weft. The twill construction allows
for one color to dominate on the fabric
surface.
Dobby
-
A type of woven fabric that contains simple geometric forms or
motifs, where the design on the fabric is
created in the weaving process.
Double
stripes -
Usually two pinstripes or pencil stripes in
proximity.
Drop
needle -
A type of knit cut and sew fabric where some of the needles
are "dropped out" during stitching, to
produce an openwork pattern in the
fabric.
Dryel®
-
A new product from Procter & Gamble that allows you to
keep your "dry clean only" clothes looking
their best in between trips to the dry
cleaner-right at home, right in your
dryer. Dryel® has earned the Good
Housekeeping Seal, and has met the high
performance standards of the Woolmark
Company. For more information, visit the
Dryel® web site at www.dryel.com.
Dupion
-
A plain weave silk that is known for its irregularity and
untwisted fibers that are spread out at
intervals throughout the
fabric.
Duchess
satin -
A heavy, lustrous, rich-looking satin weave fabric usually
used for wedding and fancy
dresses.
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Embroidery -
Fancy
needlework or trimming consisting of
colored yarn, embroidery floss, and soft
cotton, silk or metallic thread. Although
hand embroidery is still a widely
practiced craft, most commercially
produced embroidered clothes are made by
machine.
Engineered
print -
Also called a placed print, is integrated into a specific area
of the design. Border prints are often
engineered into place.
Enzyme wash -
This is a process used on wovens, mostly denim or twill. Enyme
wash has taken the place of what used to
be "stone-washed"; it softens, while it
gives the fabrication a worn
look.
Eyelet
-
A fabric that is designed with a series of finished patterned
cutouts, or perforations, adding beauty
and breathability to the
garment.
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Facing -
A piece of fabric sewn to the inside of a garment for lining
purposes, or to add structure.
Faille
-
A dressy, flat-ribbed fabric with a light luster that drapes
and tailors well. The ribs are flatter and
less pronounced than in grosgrain.
Traditionally used for women's dresses,
suits and coats.
Faille
crepe -
A dressy, double-faced fabric made with high-twist poly crepe
yarns.
Feed
stripe -
A knit fabric where a stripe pattern is produced by the way
colored yarns are fed into the knitting
machine. Often used for cut-and-sew knits,
like t-shirts and other casual knit
garments.
Flannel
-
A warm, soft fabric made in tightly woven twill or plain
weave, and finished with a light napping.
Derived from the Welsh word gwlanen, which
means wool.
Flax
-
Taken from the Linum plant, this lustrous fiber is considered
to be strong, highly absorbent and quick
drying. When processed into fabric, flax
is called linen.
Foulard
-
A lightweight, lustrous twill fabric, usually with a small,
repeating printed design. Originally
imported from India, it is popular for
neckties and scarves.
French
terry -
A circular knit fabric with a looped pile back and smooth
face.
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Georgette
-
A sheer, lightweight plain-weave fabric with a fine crepe
surface. Sometimes silk, sometimes
synthetic. Also called crepe georgette or
georgette crepe.
Gingham
-
A yarn-dyed, checked or plaid fabric made of pure or blended
cotton. Checked ginghams use two colors,
plaid ginghams several. The name comes
from the Malay word ging gang, meaning
striped.
Glen
plaid -
A woven design that pairs small checks with larger ones of
similar colors. Named for Glen Urquhart, a
valley in Inverness-shire,
Scotland.
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Hairline
stripes -
Supposed to be the width of a hair, which makes them thinner
than pinstripes.
Herringbone
-
A twill weave made up of parallel lines balanced evenly in
each direction to create a zigzag
effect.
Hopsack
-
A loosely woven coarse fabric of cotton or wool used in
clothing. Hop growers originally used the
fabric for bags.
Houndstooth
check -
A variation on twill weave construction, where a broken check
effect is made by a variation in the
pattern of interlacing yarns, using at
least two different colors.
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Intarsia
-
A flat knit fabric with solid-colored, geometric patterns. The
sides of the fabric are identical. Derived
from the Italian for "inlay."
Interlock
-
A type of cut and sewn knit fabric that is characterized by
the interconnecting of the knit
stitches.
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Jacquard
[ja-CARD] -
An elaborate woven or knitted pattern made on a Jacquard loom.
Invented by Joseph Marie Jacquard in
France in 1801, the loom uses a punch card
much like a player piano does. Some
jacquard fabrics have specific names
(e.g., brocade, damask and tapestry).
Jermyn
stripes -
Used generically to describe boldly colored but traditional
stripes like the patterns favored by the
bespoke shirtmakers on London's Jermyn
Street.
Jersey
-
A generic term for a plain knit fabric without a distinct rib.
Originally made of wool, jersey fabric was
first manufactured on the island of
Jersey, off the coast of
England.
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Linen -
The fibers of the flax plant, woven into fabrics that are
cooler, stronger and more absorbent than
cotton.
Lurex
-
A metallic yarn woven into knits, which gives the knit a shiny
luster.
Lycra®
-
The DuPont trademark for its spandex fiber. Any time you see
this fiber listed on a label, expect
comfort, movement and shape retention that
won't wash away.
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Madras -
A plain weave, lightweight cotton fabric that has a striped,
plaid or checked pattern. This type fabric
is often imported from India, and is used
for shirts and dresses.
Marled
yarn -
Two single yarns of different colors twisted together. You see
this mottled effect most often in
sweaters.
Matte
jersey -
Dull, flat knit fabric made of fine crepe yarns.
Mélange
wool -
A fancy yarn spun from fibers that have been printed in many
shades, tones and hues.
Mercerized
-
A process applied to a cotton yarn or fabric, which increases
its luster, shine and affinity for color
dye.
Merino
wool -
High-quality wool yarn is made from the fleece of merino sheep
that is fine, strong and elastic, and
takes dye well.
Micro
fiber -
A generic term for any synthetic fiber finer than silk.
Fabrics made with microfibers are soft,
lightweight, breathable and durable.
Mille
stripes -
Stripes formed by individual threads that alternate in color.
Unless you look at the fabric up close,
you may mistake this for a
solid.
Modal
-
A generic category of manufactured fibers that have a greater
ability to retain their shape when wet, as
well as a high breaking
strength.
Multicolor
-
Usually describes a pattern that has stripes of equal width in
more than two colors. If these are a
little wider and more boldly colored, this
pattern may also be described as Roman, a
term that refers to contrasting stripes of
the same size.
Multirack
stripes -
Stripes of varying widths, the most popular pattern in the
current shirting market.
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Non-iron
-
A fabric has a finish that allows a garment to stay smooth
without ironing, and crisp throughout the
day.
Nylon
-
A lustrous fiber, which is fast drying, strong, elastic and
washable. Given its nature, it maintains
its original shape, and has great
versatility.
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Oil-based
-
Coating normally applied to outerwear fabrics, has the
characteristics of a slick hand and subtle
shine. This can also be combined with
other finishes to ensure water repellent
standards.
Ombré
-
The shaded effect of color ranging from light to dark tones of
one color, and is often used in a striped
motif.
Ottoman
-
Use of a stiff, heavy weight, warp rib (vertical running
yarns) is referred to either as an Ottoman
rib or Ottoman cord.
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Paisley
-
A teardrop shaped design in a fancy fabric often used in
dresses and ties.
Pencil
stripes -
Narrower than a Bengal stripe but wider than a
pinstripe.
Percale
-
Originally 100% cotton, percale is a plain lightweight fabric
made in a great variety of qualities.
Today, better qualities of percale contain
blended yarns of polyester with the
cotton. The finest quality percales are
high count and are made with combed yarns.
Lower count percales are sized to add body
to a fabric. All percales must be dyed or
printed. Best qualities are used in
easy-care dresses and shirts.
Picot
-
A small, embroidered loop forming an ornamental edging on a
ribbon or lace.
Piece-dyed
-
Fabrics that are dyed in piece form after they are woven are
piece-dyed, and are usually offered just
as a single color.
Pima
-
High-quality cotton known for its softness and
durability.
Pinpoint
oxford -
A lightweight, soft, cotton-like fabric with small, 2x1 basket
(rib) weave repeats. It is of high
quality, with a very smooth surface often
used for shirts.
Pinstripes
-
Supposedly the width of a pin, approximately 1/16 of an inch
or less.
Piqué
[peekay] -
A knitted cotton fabric with a waffle (or diamond-shaped)
pattern. French piqué knits became
an international favorite when René
Lacoste, a 1920s French tennis champion,
designed the polo shirt.
Placket
-
The piece of cloth that reinforces a split or opening in a
garment; and that usually also serves as
the closure (i.e., the button placket for
an oxford shirt or the zipper placket on a
pair of pants).
Plisse
-
A crinkled or creased effect created by shrinking on fabrics
such as cotton, acetate or rayon.
Pointelle
-
A very feminine, delicate-looking rib knit fabric made with a
pattern of openings.
Polyester
-
A generic term for a category of synthetic fibers that are
lightweight, strong, quick drying, and
resistant to creases, stretching, abrasion
and shrinking. Fabrics made with polyester
require minimum care, and maintain their
shape.
Ponte
-
A non-jacquard double-knit fabric made on an interlock basis,
resulting in a fabric that is generally
firm and very stable.
Poplin
-
A durable, plain weave fabric similar to broadcloth, but with
a heavier rib and heavier weight. Made of
silk, cotton, synthetic fibers, wool or
blends.
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Quickdry® -
The Ciba
Geigy trademark for a special finish that
helps wick away moisture from the body,
keeping it cool and comfortable.
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Ramie -
A bast fiber
that is similar to flax that comes from
the stalk of a plant grown in
China.
Rayon
-
A generic term for a synthetic fiber made from cellulose,
which is soft, highly absorbent, has a
lustrous appearance, and offers good
drapability.
Rickrack -
Flat ribbon with a zig-zag form used for trimming.
Ring Spun -
The original denim fabric, which is know for its
characteristic slubs.
Rip
stop -
A fabric woven with a double thread at regular intervals, so
that small tears do not spread.
Ruching
-
A detail created by taking fabric and sewing in lines of
elastic to the back in neat rows, so that
the fabric puckers to create a stretchy,
gathered look.
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Sateen -
A
semi-lustrous surface distinguishes this
smooth, durable fabric in a satin weave.
Sateen is usually made of
cotton.
Satin
Stripes -
A two-tone effect created in a solid by a damask weave. For
2008 shirtings, expect to see it combined
with color.
Schiffli
-
A type of embroidery characterized by vine-like floral
patterns on sheer/mesh-like fabrics, named
after the type of machine it is produced
on (Schiffli machine).
Seersucker
-
A popular, warm-weather cotton fabric with permanent woven
crinkled stripes. Launders well, and
generally does not need to be ironed.
Seersucker
stripes -
A seersucker pattern is formed by its weaving-usually with
some warp yarns tight and some loose so
that the threads pucker and give its
distinctive texture.
Shadow
stripes -
Usually a fairly narrow stripe that's bracketed or "shadowed"
by stripes on one or both sides. In
classic shirting the shadow is a variation
on the color of the main
stripe.
Shantung
-
A medium weight, plain weave, and silk-like fabric with
pronounced slub-filling yarns (slub means
yarns are uneven or nubby). It is
primarily used for dresses.
Sharkskin
-
A smooth, crisp fabric with a dull finish, usually made of
rayon in a basket weave.
Shirring
-
The gathering of fabric to create soft, feminine folds in the
garment is referred to as
shirring.
Silk
-
Known as one of the finest textiles, silk is strong, soft,
absorbent, and has a brilliant sheen. It
is the only natural fiber to come in a
filament form from silkworms.
Space
dyed -
This is a yarn dyeing process where one strand receives more
than one color. It then produces an
irregular, random design of color.
Soutache -
A narrow, rounded braid in herringbone-weave, used for trim.
Spandex
fiber -
A manufactured elastomeric fiber that can be repeatedly
stretched over 500% without breaking, and
will still return to its original
shape.
Stain
Resistance -
The term stain resistance refers to any finish that repels
water, oil, and most stains.
Stain
Resist and Release -
Refers to a special finish that minimizes most stains, repels
liquids, and releases most stains during
normal washing.
Supercombed
Cotton -
Combing is a process that removes all the short fibers, making
it stronger and finer. It is a higher
quality fabric.
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Tactel® -
A soft, yet
durable nylon fiber trademarked by DuPont.
It is extremely easy to wash, allows the
skin to breathe, and readily regains its
shape, making it ideal for active
sportswear.
Tattersall
-
A classic pattern of colored lines forming squares of solid
background.
Tencel®
-
A Tencel Ltd. Trademark for their brand of lyocell, a
high-performance fiber used to make soft,
beautifully draping fabrics. Made from
wood pulp that is harvested from
replenished tree farms, Tencel® is
environmentally sensitive and
washable.
Terry
-
A woven fabric; usually cotton, with loop pile on one or both
sides.
Tipping
-
The embellishment of a garment by adding some type of trim to
the edges (cuffs/pockets/plackets/hems)
for decoration.
Tissue
linen -
Thin, sheer, lightweight linen used for blouses.
Toile
-
A light/medium weight, plain weave, fine, and cotton-type
fabric, usually with one colored, printed
scenic design. Used mostly for home
furnishings and clothing.
Trapunto
stitch -
Allows one to create a quilted effect, where a design is
outlined with single stitches, and padding
is drawn from the back to give a raised
appearance.
Tweed
-
A medium to heavyweight woolen, twill weave fabric that is
characterized by colored stubby yarns,
used for coats and suits.
Twill
-
Fabric that shows a distinct diagonal wale on the face (e.g.,
denim, gabardine, tricotine).
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Unbalanced stripes -
Stripes of
unequal width.
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Variegated -
Having
streaks, marks or patches of different
colors; distinguished or characterized by
a variety of different colors.
Velour
-
Any soft, plush fabric with a close, dense pile. Originates
from the French word for
"velvet."
Velvet
-
Any short, closely woven cut pile fabric with a rich, soft
texture. Originally silk, velvet is now
also made of cotton or blends.
Velveteen
-
Cotton fabric made with a cut pile technique resembling velvet
to create depth and richness in the cloth
is called velveteen.
Viscose
-
A manufactured fiber made of regenerated cellulose. It is
soft, absorbent, and drapes
well.
Voile
[vwahl] -
A lightweight, sheer fabric with a crisp, wiry hand.
Originally cotton, voile is now also made
in silk, rayon or acetate.
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Wale
-
In woven fabrics, a wale
is one of a series of cords, running
vertically or lengthwise. The number of
wales per inch is a measure of the
fabric's fineness. For example, a
fine-wale means
that the vertical cords are thin and very
close to each other; a
wide-wale means
that the vertical cords are further apart
from each other.
Water
Repellant -
A finish applied to a fabric that enables it
to shed water, but is comfortable to wear
is called water-repellent.
Waterproof
-
A strong finish applied to a fabric that will not allow water
to penetrate through. In order to qualify
a garment as truly waterproof, the seams
must also be heat-sealed.
Windowpane
check -
Dark horizontal and vertical bars, crossing over a light
background, giving the effect of a window
divided into small panes.
Wool
-
The fiber or fabric made from the fleece of sheep or lamb.
However, the term "wool" can also apply to
all animal hairs, including Cashmere or
angora goats, alpaca, vicuna, llama or
camel.
Wrinkle
Resistant -
This special finish allows you to wear clothing right out of
the dryer, which makes ironing
optional.
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Yarn-dyed -
A fabric
woven or knitted with yarns that have been
dyed prior to fabrication of the cloth
(i.e., plaid) is called yarn-dyed.
Considered a sign of quality, because
yarn-dyeing makes the fabric resist
fading.
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