The history of fashion designing fabrics can be traced back to the 18th century where India was known as the main textile hub. Different types of fabrics were woven, embellished and dyed to enhance their appearance. The textile designing industry in India is the second most employment-generating industry. Indian fabrics are in high demand all over the world. The quest into the basics of Indian textiles leads to an in-depth study of textile science.
Textile science plays a major role in the development of a fabric. The process of developing a fabric is quite complex as it has to go through a series of processes. As important draping and embellishment are to fashion design, so is textile science, that holds a prominent place in the field.
What is Textile Science?
Understanding a fabric’s physical, chemical and biological properties summarises the gist of knowledge acquired and used in textile science. As every fabric is different from the other in its properties, a thorough fabric analysis is important. This understanding that is highly important in fashion designing helps designers to make a sensible choice of fabrics that complement their design.
Before a fabric is chosen for a particular garment, its properties are tested to check its strength, durability and suitability. For example, a fabric such as satin is mostly chosen to design evening gowns because it is soft, lustrous and has a good fall. On the other hand, a fabric like cotton is more suitable for casual clothing as the fabric gives a highly comfortable feel.
Firstly, fashion designers are able to judge the fabric with its look and feel. Analysing a fabric is not just a natural knack but comes with experience and definitely after pursuing a professional textile designing course. So, these designers actually go down to the anatomy of a fabric as it helps them in the designing process. They are even able to visualize the look of the garment before it is finally ready.
In fact, in textile & fashion design institutes, textile science as a subject is an important part of the curriculum. Textile science as a subject of study includes topics like dyeing, printing and weaving. Students are also taught about each fabric and its usage. An in-depth study gives a clear understanding of each fabric.
Textile science has also led to the innovation of new fabrics. So, few of them are as follows:
Paper Cloth
This is latest to the addition of sustainable fabrics. Non-woven cellulose is used to make the paper cloth. This is produced with Swedish paper to make fashionable clothing. Hence, innovative clothing is made of recycled paper.
Orange Fibre
The orange fibre is recovered from orange waste specifically developed for sustainable fashion. In this process, no natural resources are exploited. The orange is squeezed and with the remaining skin the cellulose is converted into yarns and then into fabric.
Pinatex
Pinatex is another innovative fibre used in fashion. This fibre is extracted from pineapple leaves. It is biodegradable, lightweight, strong and very easy to sew. Many fashion designers use this as an alternative to leather.
These days, many institutes have included sustainable textile designing as part of the curriculum. In textile diploma courses, students learn about the importance of sustainable fashion clothing and how best it can be implemented.
MycoTEX
The fabric developed from mushroom mycelium is MycoTEX. A certain vegetative part of the mushroom consists of multiple fine white filaments. This fabric is made by converting its filaments into yarn.
The MycoTEX fabric is literally grown! The fabric can be trimmed into different patterns and can be embellished. This fibre requires less water and no chemicals at all.
Eucalyptus Yarn
A knitting company launched a new yarn known as Tina Tape Yarn developed from the Eucalyptus trees. The fibre is harvested and pulped to before extracting. The fabric made from the yarn is called Tencel (or Lyocell) which is a regenerated from wood cellulose. The yarn is wrinkle resistant, soft and eco-friendly.
Textile science is highly applicable in fashion. It is present in every textile product. It is for this very reason that every fashion design student must understand the basics of fabric development that owes a lot to textile science.
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