Textiles

From Preface [1967]: "[This book] places stress on the comparison, selection, usage, and care of fabrics and merchandise items as well as the theory and processes underlying their manufacture and development. New methods of finishing, such as improved wash and wear for cottons, permanent press for all-cottons and cotton blends, durable press for wools, fabric bonding, and foam laminating, are surveyed. The wide application of 'stretch' in fabrics is given considerable attention through discussions of stretch fibers, yarns, finishes, and the resultant stretch fabrics. New dyes and optical brighteners are also considered. The newer strains of cotton fibers...are explained, evaluated, and compared, as are rayons, nylons, acrylics, polyesters, sarans, and glass fibers. New in this edition are the chapters on modacrylic, spandex, and polypropylene olefin fibers, as well as on textured yarns. Special attention is given to the growing acceptance of fabric constructions other than weaving. Knitting, for example, is treated independently and in great detail. Nonwovens, tufting, and the new mali constructions are also covered. In this edition the authors compare fabrics of all types in reference to their performance, durability, care requirements, and related characteristics. Detailed descriptions and information are provided on home furnishings, such as rugs, and on personal garments, such as sweaters and hosiery. The detailed discussions of hosiery, for example, cove evaluations of various knitted constructions, gauge, and denier. The book opens with an introduction to the various fibers and tells how to identify them. Then the reader is taken through the logical, related sequence of chapters from fiber to finished fabric. As an example, a chapter is devoted to spinning the fiber into various types of yarn. This is followed by treatment of fabric construction in a chapter on weaving, an expanded chapter on knitting, and a separate chapter on the less predominant, but growing, minor fabric constructions. Subsequent chapters review the many types of finishes, dyes and dyeing methods, and decorating techniques. Also included are the history of textile development, the methods of manufacture, and the characteristics, evaluations, and care of each type of textile. Comparative characteristics of all fibers are presented in a summary chapter. Subsequent chapters of the book cover minor textile fibers, rugs and carpets, and care of fabrics, thus rounding out the reader's acquaintance with the field of textiles." Contents Include: * Textile Fibers Under the Microscope * Testing Fibers * Spinning (fiber to yarn) * Textured Yarns (stretch and bulk) * Weaving (yarn to fabric) * Knitting * Minor Fabric Construction (Nonwovens, tufting, mali, braiding, netting, lace) * Finishing Processes (appearance and serviceability) * Dyeing (Finishing with color) * Decoration * Cotton * Linen * Wool, Hair * Silk * Rayons: 4 Basic Varieties * Acetate