All about Textiles / Fabrics: Specifications, Fabric Treatments, Dyeing, Etc.

[jun3machina]

totally agree with you about the kinesthetic quality of fabric selection....i work at a fabric store, we have a few nice pieces....but i want some silk charmeus and stuff more high end....

 

[Lena]

truth is that high quality fabrics are becoming rare (and over priced) to find in retail..

 

[jun3machina]

/\ sad but true/.....

 

[softgrey]

i tried dying silk.. made a complete mess and wasted 20 yards of fabric.
the colors just kept spreading making little lines between the threads. had fun though. i just wanted to know something though, i am a self taught designer and i work on designing stuff and have my own shop but since i cant design my own fabric i always avoid buying something with prints and embroidery because i simply can't call that my design since i didnt design the print.. can i? i try to buy plain colors and then add beads and design them my own way. this is my question.. is a designer entitled to sell a peice of clothing to the public although he got the fabric from his local shop with ready prints and cannot garantee that you will never see the same print on someone else who bought the same fabric?

the answer is ...OF COURSE...
you are callling yourself a fashion designer...not a textile designer...
that is another skill set and a real luxury-as it costs more money...

you are only taking credit for the design of the garment-which you are entitled to...

 

[jun3machina]

could anyone give me some information on sizing? i know a lot of companies base their sizes on either market studies or certain models and use their body shapes to enlarge the patterns.....does anyone know exactly how this is done? if there are any rough measurements of certain sizes (like a small would be a size 4-6, x-small 0-2, medium 6-8 and large 8-10?)or am i better just making them up and providing a size guide?

 

[gius]

^i think it's sometimes like that, like you create sizes based on your clientele. my sister has a shirt size small and it is so huge!! it is like extra large! and then she has a jacket size large, but it's fairly small and skinny, as if for a petite person... both were bought at different shops.

 

[Lena]

could anyone give me some information on sizing? i know a lot of companies base their sizes on either market studies or certain models and use their body shapes to enlarge the patterns.....does anyone know exactly how this is done? if there are any rough measurements of certain sizes (like a small would be a size 4-6, x-small 0-2, medium 6-8 and large 8-10?)or am i better just making them up and providing a size guide?

we have a thread on sizing right on the C&E forum,
please use the search button to locate it

 

[Ameera]

Thanks for clearing that up Softgrey!

 

[jun3machina]

thank you lena!

 

[himmy520]

Where can i get the fabrics and other materials in New York City???

hi~everybody!!!
i just came to NY for 1 month!

i only kown the'Mood Fabric'
(coz i watch it in Project Runway)
and i kown some wholesale shop around the FIT!!!

Where can i get the fabrics and other materials in New York City???
especially for retail!!!
THX!!!

pls excuse my poor english!!!

 

[fiona_101]

Sheperds Bush!! Fabrics

Try sheperds bush for cheap fabrics, get tube to gold hawk road, very very cheap and good quality fabrics, lots of stores to choose from to!!!!!!!

 

[Lena]

^ great tip for those based in London

 

[LottaK]

does anyone have experience with dying jeans? I have a pair of evisu's that I've never worn since the shade is too light for my likings, is it possible to dye them darker? will the color stay, what will happen to the seagulls on the pockets? thanks

 

[gius]

LottaK try the dyeing threads in the DIY (do it yourself) section:
http://www.thefashionspot.com/forums/f105/dyeing-clothes-27588.html
http://www.thefashionspot.com/forums/f105/customisations-5290.html
There might be some more... Just go to search

 

[gius]

nice thread.. did not know it even existed..

Hi, im a young designer and i want to experiment on treating fabrics like satins and organzas.... =)

i want to know how to creat effect and textures etc.
i think LANVIN s/s 2005 did some fabric treatments too...




do any of you guys knows any METHODS & PROCEDURES on how to do it??? like putting acid? and all that stuff? im not really sure about doing it so maybe a little help would be great...

thanks so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

kinkexplosion those bubbly looking fabrics you've posted by Lanvin
the technique is called cloqué
yes it is an acid
however very dangerous
you need to get the chemical strong enough that it will shrink the fabric.. this strength will also be able to eat through your skin...

i've done it before myself
but i am completely covered.. long chemical-resistant gloves, suit, boots, and a giant shield for your head (LOL)

there are other ways to create texture though

maybe you'd find this tFS article interesting...
http://www.thefashionspot.com/news/moon-young-hee-fw-2008-158

 

[Jamess]

A bit off-topic perhaps but does anyone know where I might get long lengths of fabric knife-pleated? (Im in the UK)
Surely there must be a machine that you can feed the fabric into, I know you can get pleating machines, but do they do knife-pleats?

Also, if its any help to anyone, this place is great for buying silk (especially for dying/printing), they have every kind and some really nice treated fabrics too. Also coated fabrics for digital printing, water-proofed and flame-proofed fabrics, sand-washed fabrics that feel kind of worn (the sandwashed silk satin is my favourite!).
You can buy a sample pack for £29.99 but its SO worth it, you get hundreds of samples, really nice quality and I learned alot about fabric qualities just from looking through the books.

http://www.whaleys-bradford.ltd.uk/

 

[gius]

^ Ooh nice Sample pack sounds great

Yes you can get knife pleating machines
I saw one here --nice it is a UK website too
http://www.shellmark.co.uk/second_hand_equipment.htm

I just read in a book for 19th century details on clothing too.. that they would have knife pleating machines , so the technology is quite old

 

[rockitgirl]

You can suede fabric by washing in in the washing machine with a load of heavy jeans in HOT water

 

[gius]

does anyone know what is the name of the technique
where you make a garment using strips of fabric?

coutorture.com

I learned it in draping class this evening
but we called it "shirring."
I don't know if that is the right spelling.. It seems that shirring in the English dictionary is a sort of gathering technique, like smockng.. using stitches in a sequence and pulling them to create fabric texture.

 

[daniellat]

According to the Free Dictionary
shirr (shûr) tr.v. shirred, shirr·ing, shirrs 1. To gather (cloth) into decorative rows by parallel stitching.
2. To cook (unshelled eggs) by baking until set.

it looks more like this

splendicity