Variations of the Weaves; Different types of special woven fabric

Variations of the Basic Weaves

Dobby Fabrics 

The dobby weave is like a jacquard weave in miniature. The Dobby weaves have small, repeated patterns, that are usually geometric. The following are some of the fabrics made on the dobby loom. 

1. Birds eye, a cloth made with small diamond-shaped figures, has a weave that is said to resemble the eye of a bird. Bird’s eye is also called diaper cloth. 

2. Pique is a medium- to heavyweight fabric, often of cotton, with a pronounced lengthwise cord, often combined with other small figures or patterns such as honeycomb or waffle effects. 

3. White-on-white has a white dobby figure woven on a white background and is often used for men’s shirting. 

Jacquard Fabrics 

Jacquard patterns, when carefully analyzed, may be seen to contain combinations of plain, twill, and satin weaves, even in the same crosswise yarn. Many decorative fabrics are made by the jacquard technique. Jacquard-woven tapestry fabrics should not be confused with true tapestries (see below) even though some fashion promotions may refer to jacquard fabrics as “tapestry fabrics.” 

The following are some of the best-known jacquard patterns. 

1. Brocade features an embossed or embroidered appearance. Elaborate patterns, often of flowers and figures, stand out from the background. Pattern and ground are usually different weaves. Brocades are made from a wide range of fibers and with a wide range of price and quality. Fabrics are used for upholstery, draperies, and evening and formal clothing. 

2. Brocatelle is similar to brocade, but with figures or patterns standing in high relief Brocatelle is used mostly for upholstery fabrics and draperies. 

3. Damask is a flatter fabric than brocade and often has a fine weave. Damask figures often use a satin weave to reflect light from the pattern, whereas the background is made in a plain or twill construction. Linen damasks have long been used for luxurious tablecloths. Damasks are reversible. Cotton and linen damasks are made either with four-yarn float or a seven-yarn float in the satin weave. The longer floats are more lustrous, but the shorter floats are more durable, as they are less likely to snag or be subject to abrasion. 

4. Tapestry-like fabrics have an appearance that simulates handwoven tapestries. Used extensively in fabrics for interiors, these jacquard-woven fabrics have highly patterned designs on the face. Although the back is also figured, the colors within the design differ. For example, a leaf that appears on the face as green will be some other color on the back.

Others Variations of Weaves 

Leno or Gauze Weave: 

In leno or gauze weave pairs of warps are twisted over each other with each passing of filling yarn. The leno weave is the modern descendant of a technique called twining that was used thousands of years ago for making fabrics. In leno-weave fabrics, the warp yarns are paired. A special attachment, the doup or leno attachment, crosses or laps the paired warp yarns over each other, while the filling passes through the opening between the two warp yarns. Leno-weave fabrics are made in open, gauzelike constructions. The twined (not twisted) warp yarns prevent the filling yarns of these open fabrics from slipping. Curtain fabrics are often made with leno weave. Two of the more popular leno-weave fabrics are marquisette and grenadine. Many fruit sacks are leno-woven of slit films 

Characteristics: 

• Open-mesh appearance with yarns securely held 

• Sheer but durable for its weight 

• Ex: Grenadine, Marquisette 

5. Pile Weave: 

Extra sets of warps or fillings are woven over ground yarns of plain or twill weave to form loops. Pile fabrics have been defined as “fabrics(s) with cut or uncut loops which stand up densely on the surface” (Klapper 1967,64). Pile fabrics may be created by weaving or through other construction techniques, such as tufting, knitting, or stitch through. 

There are two types of pile fabric
1. Filling Pile Fabrics
2. Warp Pile Fabrics

6. Swivel Weave: 

The swivel weave is the method by which decorative effects, such as dots, circles, or other figures, are interwoven on the surface of a fabric while it is being constructed on the loom. The weaving of the design requires an extra filling yarn and additional small shuttles or insertion devices. Similar fabrics can be made in the swivel weave, which is sometimes used in decorative fabrics for interiors. The design is made by supplying an extra filling yarn on a small shuttle or swivel. The filling design yarns are carried several times around a group of warps by the motion of the swivel to prevent the yarn from pulling out ofthe background fabric. The long floats between designs are knotted and clipped off. Occasionally, imported dotted Swiss fabrics may use a swivel weave rather than a clipped spot weave. The swivel weave is more durable than the clipped spot weave because the design yarns are woven in and cannot pull out of the fabric as easily as in the latter method. When the floats at the back have been cut away they are called clipped swivel patterns 

6. Lappet Weave: 

Lappet weave is also used to superimpose a small design on the surface of a fabric while it is begin woven. In the lappet weave, the design is stitched into the fabric by needles that operate at right angles to the construction. Thus the lappet weave is very similar to embroidery. Lappet weaves have an extra warp yarn that may interlace in both the warp and filling direction with the ground fabric. The extra set of warps is threaded through needles set in front of the reed. The yarns are carried in a zigzag direction, back and forth to form an embroidery like design. 

The design is created on the right side of the fabric, the excess yarn being carried along on the wrong side. Extra yarn is not clipped away from the back of the fabric but can be seen as it is carried from one design area to another. 

7. Dobby Weave: 

The dobby weave is a patterned weave used to construct small. Geometric designs composed of short floats created on a loom by a special attachment called a dobby, which raise or lowers as many as twenty-four to forty harnesses. The design is usually small and does not make use of long floats. 

8. Jacquared Weave: 

A jacquard pattern is a design, which contains very detailed, unlimited range of intricate designs. Any combination of weaves and patterns is possible.Since these designs exceed the capacity of the harness looms, a special loom called a Jacquard looms, a special loom called a Jacquard loom is used. Here, each warp is individually controlled. Almost any design desired can be made. Durability depends upon weave and yarn. E.g.: Brocade, tapestry, damask