What is Fabric selection in apparel

manufacturing?
Fabric selection is a crucial step in designing a project because fabrics are designed for specific
applications, a fabric manufactured for one purpose, may not be adaptable for another use.
Therefore selecting the appropriate fabric is only the first step in providing serviceable fabrics for
apparel manufacturing. Designers specify the fabric as part of their design concept. Designers may
develop new styles for fabrics that have been successful.

Various aspects of Fabric selection

Fabrics used in garment manufacturing can be categorized into two groups: properties and
characteristics. A property is a static physical dimension such as yards per pound;
whereas, the characteristic is the reaction of the fabrics when a force is imposed upon it.
Elongation, elasticity, shrinkage and seam strength are examples of characteristics. These
are the measure of reactions to dynamic conditions. Characteristics are physical or
chemical changes in the fabric resulting from the application of outside forces.

GENERAL CONSIDERATION OF FABRICS FOR

APPAREL MANUFACTURING
The apparel producer is interested primarily in the characteristics of a fabric. Although
fabric characteristics are related to fabric properties, a fabric property is of no interest to the
apparel manufacture unless it controls a fabric characteristic or cost factor vital to him, or
unless the property itself such as thickness or weight, has definite utility or style value.
There are three viewpoints to stipulating fabric selection

• The consumer’s viewpoint

• The fabric producer’s viewpoint
• The garment producer’s viewpoint

The consumer’s interests lie solely in the appearance and wearability characteristics of the
fabric; the durability, utility and style values. The garment producer is interested in the
garment production working characteristics of the fabric, the cost of producing a given
garment with the fabric. If the garment producer is a jobber or manufacturer who sells the
garment directly or indirectly to consumers, he will be interested, also, in all the consumer
values. If the garment producer is a contractor his interest lies only in the field of the
production cost aspect of the working characteristics. The same applies to the fabric
producer. If he fabricates cloth for garment manufactures, he must consider garment
production work characteristics. However, if the fabric producer makes cloth for over the
counter retail sales, he does not have to consider whether the working characteristics are
good enough to produce the garment with industrial equipment and methods.
FABRIC IDENTIFICATION FOR GARMENT
Designers and merchandisers may go to major fabric markets to collect ideas, check trends,
examine few products, and seek sample yardage. Fabrics may be designed and developed
by apparel designers or merchandisers and ordered from mills or converters according to
the apparel manufacturer’s specification. Acquisition of piece goods is accomplished after
fabric samples and product specifications have been examined and lead times. Minimums,
delivery dates, put – up, and the price has been negotiated. Identification of appropriate
fabrics is based on product information and testing provided by fabric vendors and/or
testing and product development conducted by apparel manufacturers. Sources of
information include fabric samples, specifications, and certification.

APPAREL FABRICS FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN

In the purchase of their apparel most women seek primarily for “look rightness and
serviceability”. For outer apparel look – rightness is probably the first consideration. In the
purchase of underclothing and children’s wear, serviceability is commonly the first
consideration, although look – rightness is nearly always a factor, too. Serviceability is a
combination of the suitability of fabric and the quality of garments construction. Differences
in weight automatically limit some fabrics to particular seasons and use. In summer thin
fabrics, such as voile, eyelet, batiste, sheer, creeps, and chiffons, in winter, for heavier
materials such as wood tweeds, homespuns, velvet, corduroy, and fur like fabric. Some
stiff fabrics look better when a crisp appearance is required; soft and clinging fabrics are
appropriate when slinky, draped effect is desired; rich and luxurious fabrics look best in the
evening; washable fabrics appear to advantage when worn in the house, in the garden, and
for sports.

APPAREL FABRICS FOR MEN’S AND BOY’S WEAR

Men’s wear may be classified as

1. Men’s clothing and

2. Men’s furnishings.

A similar division may be made for boy’s wear. Work clothing is often treated as a separate
classification. Men’s and boy’s furnishings are composed of similar articles, the chief of
which are shirts, sleepwear, underwear, hosiery, robes, ties, handkerchiefs, belts,
suspenders, garters, muffles and scarf, sweaters and bathing suits. Men’s jewellery (non –
textile) such as cufflinks, studs, tie clips and stickpins, are also commonly included in the
classification. Men’s clothing includes garments such as suits, topcoats, cover coats,
jackets, and slacks. Boy’s clothing includes suits, topcoats, overcoats, jackets, and
raincoats. With the emergence of fashion as selling force, there are more divisions of men’s
and boy’s section in department and specialty stores.
Common Fabrics used in Garment manufacturing
Name Description

CALICO Calico is balanced plain weave. Made of cotton and blends

usually polyester.

The COTTON Cotton lawn is made of combed or mercerized cotton. It is a

LAWN balanced plain weave. It is soft and top weight fabric.

COTTON It is top weight fabric, with open or loose weave, sheet,

MUSLIN sleepwear, shirt, dresses, etc

SHEETING/ Sheeting or percale fabric is made of cotton and blends of

PERCALE carded yarn. It is balanced plain weave and used for household
sheeting.

POPLIN Poplin is made of cotton or blends with polyester. It has more

warp than weft and weft are generally coarser.

TAFFETA Taffeta is produced only from filament yarn. Its weave is close,
and wrap and weft same size. There is more warp than weft. It is
fine smooth fabric with a very fine crosswise rib.

DRILL Drill is made of cotton or blends with polyester. It is produced

from carded yarn with 3/1 warp face twill

DENIM Denim is produced from cotton or blends with polyester. Carded

yarns only or rotor yarn is used for denim manufacturing.

GABARDINE Gabardine is usually wool or blends with man-made fibers. It is

usually fine, combed, and worsted.
Name Description

TWEED Tweed may be wool, fairly coarse or cotton, man-made fiber and
blends fabric.

SATEEN/SATIN Sateen is weft float fabric, mostly produced from cotton. It is top
weight smoothest, fullest and mostly lustrous and very flexible
fabric.

Properties of Fabrics

When looking at basic properties of fabric, there are certain features which are necessary to consider;
breathability, weight, drape, durability, softness, construction and whether it is a water-repellent fabric.
Most fabrics fall into 2 categories, when it comes to their construction properties; woven and knitted. A
textile’s specific properties and appearance are affected by not only what type of yarn was used to make it,
but how it was constructed. Properties of woven fabrics differ greatly to properties of knitted fabrics. Where
one is made up of woven wefts and warps, the other is made by looping them. This difference in construction
gives both fabric types completely different characteristics.

1. Physical properties of Fabrics

Physical properties are the static physical dimensions of fabric. The following
physical properties are used to define the static physical dimensions of strand
fabrics:

o Fiber or filament: type, size, length

o Yarn: diameter, twist, weight or size, count, fiber content for mixed yarns, ply.
o Weight: ounces per squared or yards per pound.
o Thickness: vertical depth.
o Fabric structure
o Woven fabrics: weave type, warp and filling yarn count per linear inch<li>
o Knitted fabric: knit type, wale and course count per inch
o Finishes: chemicals such as resins, starches, waxes and mechanical effects
such as
o Calendaring and napping applied to the woven fabric to yield or enhance style,
durability, and utility values.
o Fabric width: The length of the filling or course
o Colour: Hue, value, and intensity (degree of brilliance)
o Fabric density: weight per unit of volume.
o Surface contour: the geometric dimension of the surface plane.
2. Physical characteristics of fabrics
Physical characteristics are the dynamic physical parameters of fabric. They are
physical changes in the fabric that result from applying outside forces on the fabric.
Most of the durability and utility values of fabric are characteristics and not
properties. There are four major categories of fabric characteristics that interest the
apparel manufacturer. They are:

o Style characteristics
o Utility characteristics
o Durability characteristics
o Product production characteristics

There are often correlations among the four types of characteristics. A utility
characteristic such as fabric elongation will be correlated to a working characterstics
such as sewing without stretching.

3. Style characteristics of a fabric

Style characteristics are those changes which affect the emotional appeal, the fabric
imports to the consumer. This is exemplified when a consumer handles a fabric and
refers to the fabric with adjectives such as stiff, soft, hand, etc. The three basic
categories for style characteristics are:

o Hand characteristic – are the changes of the fabric plane with hand
manipulations, which exert tensile compression, molding, or supporting forces
on the fabric. The hand characteristics include some of the utility
characteristics, such as elongation, elasticity, flexibility, etc.
o Tactile characteristics – refer to the changes in surface contour that result
from a mechanical force exerted on or against the surface structure. These
changes apply to the surface contour aspects of the fabric surface and not the
fabric plane. The surface contour changes dimension under tactile pressure (no
matter how small the pressure) this is a tactile characteristic. Pile, napped, and
any fabric whose surface contour can be varied by tactile pressure, have
obvious tactile characteristics. Designers specify tactile characteristics with
terms such as soft, coarse, rough, hard, smooth sticky, oily and greasy.
o Visual characteristics – are the changes in the color values when either the
fabric or light is moved. End – to – end shading, side – to – side shading and
mark – off are three color quality problems in addition to metamorphic fabrics.
▪ End – to – end shading – refers to changes in shade throughout the
length; the shade of one end of the bolt differs from the shade of another
end.
▪ Side – to – side shading – refers to changes in shade from selvage to
selvage; the shade of the fabric along one selvage differs from the shade
of the fabric along the other selvage.
▪ Mark – off – in the fabric is the phenomena of changing the shade
and/or the intensity of the fabric surface by rubbing it.
▪ Metamorphic – fabrics exhibit color difference with the change in the
spectral distribution(characteristics) of the illuminant

4. Utility Characteristics
Utility characteristics are changes in the fit, comfort, and wearing functions of the
garment when the fabric engages a mechanical thermal, electrical, or chemical force
during the utilization of the garment. The two major types of utility characteristics are
transmission and transformation. A transmission characteristic transmits mass or
energy through the fabric. Transmission characteristics include:

o Air permeability ( includes all gases and vapor)

o Heat transmission ( thermal conductivity)
o Light permeability
o Moisture transmission
o Radioactivity transmission (the degree with which radioactive energy such as x-
ray and gamma rays can penetrate fabrics).Transformation characteristics
charge a physical property of the fabric. The property dimension(s) is altered
without destroying the fabric. Changes which disintegrate the fabric are
durability characteristics. Transformation characteristics include:
▪ Colorfastness
▪ Crease resistance
▪ Crock resistance
▪ Dimensional stability
▪ Pilling
▪ Shrinkage
▪ Static electricity etc

5. Durability characteristics
Durability characteristics are the capacities of fabric to maintain the style and utility
characteristics during wear. It is the measure of stress which destroys the fabric or
the fabrics ability to repeat a desired style or utility characteristic. The durability
characteristics are:

o Abrasive strength (the measure of rubbing action)

o Bursting strength (the measure of vertical pressure)
o Launder-ability (the measure of washing)
o Tearing strength
o Moth resistance
o Tensile strength
o Radiation absorption strength (the rate at which radiation energy either
disintegrate a fabric or destroys utility characteristics).
o Fire resistance
o Corrosive strength ( the measure of chemical action, acid or alkaline)
o Dry cleaning durability ( the measure of dry cleaning performance)

6. Product Production working characteristics

Product production working characteristics are those characteristics which affect the
quality of production with respect to quality values and the cost of production
method. The working characteristics of a fabric include:

o The coefficient of friction ( cutting, sewing, pressing and packing)

o Sewed seam strength
o Sewed seam slippage (yarn slippage)
o Sewing distortions
o Yarn severage
o Bondability strength (fused, cemented, and heat – sealed seams
o Pressing moldability (to what degree a flat piece of fabric may be skewed
during pressing with hand and /press buck).
o Die moldability – how well a flat seamless piece of fabric may be molded with
dies into a given from such as a bra cup or a hat.