Basic Understanding of Upholstery Blends & Weaves for Interior Fabric in Contemporary design., texture yarns- boucle & chenille, and loom weave structures: Plain weave, Basket weave Crepe / Waffle weave, Leno /Casement/ Lace Twill weave, Rib / Faille/ Satin, Satin / Damask , Dobby / Jacquard, Brocatelle / Brocade, Doublecloth /Matelasse Pile / Cut or Uncut Pile, by Jennifer Hein- Textile Specialist

1. SIMPLE WEAVE DISTINCTIONS
Plain weave is over, under, over, under / construction of threads interwoven one to one.
Basket weave is 2 or more warp yarns used as one,
Any combination:
2-5 /2-3/2- 4/ 4-1, 4-2…

2. Fabric Upholstery Qualities : Weave , Yarn Texture & Finish for Interior Products INTR –Admin Tex- ID Scanned (

3. Loom Weaves Illustrated
•Plain weave
•Basket weave
•Crepe / Waffle weave
•Leno /Casement/ Lace
•Twill weave
•Rib / Faille/ Satin
•Satin / Damask
•Dobby / Jacquard
•Brocatelle / Brocade
•Doublecloth /Matelasse
•Pile / Cut or Uncut Pile

4. Simple Basket Weave Poly Boucle – Texture Yarn

5. Poly Chenille 4 harness chenille adds texture & looks more costly

6. Boucle / Chenille
NOVELTY YARN TYPES are specialty or complex yarns.
SPECIALTY yarns are designed for their stretch & recovery potential.
COMPLEX yarns are made for their uneven appearance with deliberate irregularities built in.
SLUB, Thick & Thin & Flock Yarns are types of SINGLE YARNS.
SLUB is a staple yarn that has a twist interrupted at intervals to have a bulky section.
Types of PLY YARNS / Names for BOUCLE
RATINE & GIMP yarns are finer types of Boucle yarn. Then
BOUCLE’ yarns are 3 ply with projecting loops.
LOOP or curl yarns are larger than boucle loops.
NUB yarns are 2 ply with a base yarn & an effect yarn.
SPIRAL has a bulky & a fine yarn PLIED TOGETHER.
CHENILLE yarns are historically a leno weave fabric constructed then slit lengthwise as yarn. The weft are the fuzzy pile on the chenille yarn. Now it is any heavy textured soft yarn.

7. 4 Blends- Rayon, Si, Co, Poly in a simple basketweave

8. 3 Blend- Co, Rayon, Poly yarn in a simple, 4 harness Rib weave with a chenille float yarn for texture effect

9. Textures with Chenille Yarns
The textures of a fabric will change with use.
Fabrics with a nap, such as velvet, look different in varied lighting and show wear as it is abraded, or sat on.
Silks are delicate but are usually strengthened with manmade fiber blends.
Highly textured fabrics like nubby tweeds can fray after much use and usually pill fairly quickly.
Fabrics that stand up best are flat weaves, like cotton, jacquard and damask weave but texture yarns add softness to a durable weave.

10. Poly Simple Weave 2-4 harness less production costs

11. 2007 Residential Design

12. Simple Weave Distinctions continued
Twill weave always has diagonal slanted lines
(you can draw a pen line)
Example: 50% of Jeans are twill or modified twill
Crepe is a pebbly or crinkly
texture with excellent recovery
& elongation , so very durable.
Example- office chair upholstery
Waffle weave crepe is an unbalanced W weave with irregular slanted lines where the shapes vary.

13. Twill Weave

14. Zefron Finish Nylon with acrylic adhesive backing for cleaning Twill Design for stretch & durability

15. Poly Crepe

16. Poly simple 4 harness weave

17. Poly Texture made with a crinkle- chemical plisse finish on a crepe weave

18. MIXTURE FABRICS (Manmade & Natural fibers combined)
Provide Many Advantages: They
1. Improve soil resistance
2. Increase bulk & cover
3. Have a smoother feel
4. Reduce pilling

19. Blends use 2, 3 or 4 yarn types
•Cotton absorbents for texture & comfort
•Manmade / Poly for durability & lower cost

20. Poly, Co, Rayon

21. Mock Leno + Bedford Cord Modified Basket weave with 8 harness

22. Compound Simple Weaves more costly, more pattern , more colors
•Satin- lustrous front face with long floats
•Damask- reverse satin structures in a traditional design (Ex. tablecloth)

23. Compound Basket Weave = 8 harness weave with polyester & recycled texture yarns

24. Satin & Damask From History Collections New Harmony, IN Satin Ribbon & W. H. Harrison Damask in CMC, Cincinnati, OH collections

25. 1836 Damask from Tredwell NYC Interior

26. Satin & Damask from B. B & Beyond retail drapery

27. Residential Design with damask, satin stripe,

28. Complex / Compound Weaves Discussed
Dobby -bird’s eye, dotted swiss, weft dots evenly spaced in design
Damask - satin weave ground with a reverse patterned floral design
Jacquard - is any 8 harness complex weave: damask, brocade, tapestry.
Brocade - jacquard with supplementary design from long floats seen on back
Brocatelle - complex jacquard with tight 1-1 weave / short threads for design.
Doublecloth - Two layers linked. Matelasse is a quilted look doublecloth
Pile - velour, velvet, plush, corduroy, velveteen, terrycloth, loop carpet

29. Most Common Complex Weaves medium cost, more pattern , more colors
•Pile - extra set of yarns added to the ground to create a 3D effect
•Dobby- fabrics with small repeat patterns, dots, geometric shapes…
•Leno- paired warp yarns crossed over or twisted between the weft/ filling.
•Jacquard - elaborate multicolor designed patterns

30. Pile = extra set of yarns added to the ground to create a 3D effect Pile names = velour, velvet, plush, corduroy, velveteen, terrycloth

31. PILE/ TRIAXIAL / 3 Element Weaves Use: carpet / upholstery depends on yarn content
Cut-Pile / Plush / Velvet / Loop Carpet- Cut or Uncut
Corduroy /Bedford Cord – usually cotton
Terrycloth / Uncut Pile / Looped Boucle

32. Wool, Poly, Nylon

33. 70%Cotton-30% Poly Cotton for softness, Poly for strength

34. 90%Wool & 10% Nylon fiber content Wool for warmth, softness & nylon warp for strength Jacquard pattern for durability & design

35. Durable Airport Design Dobby Jacquard & multi color loop/ uncut pile carpet

36. REASONS to choose Fiber Blends or Mixture Fabrics in Interiors are
a)To obtain cross-dyed effects
b)To improve uniformity in manufacturing & finishing
c)For economic reasons (COST)
d)To extend the effect of expensive fibers by adding less costly ones
e)To improve the appearance or hand (touch)
f)To produce fabrics with improved performance.

37. Complex Weaves / 8, 16 & 32 Harness Loom Construction
Jacquard - elaborate multicolor designed patterns
Brocade – historic jacquard with design and long wefts floats on reverse with unused yarns
Brocatelle - contemporary complex jacquard design that can be seen on reverse, tight weave that is more durable and less costly than brocade
Pile / Carpet - extra set of yarns added to the ground to create a 3D effect with a loop

38. Brocade/ Brocatelle

39. Trevira Poly

40. Tapestry Design Brocatelle Weave

41. Desired but costly weaves
•Tapestry - pictorial jacquard weave with a “picture” design.
•Doublecloth - 8-32 harness to create 2 layers that mix & separate, which you can see as pockets when cut.

42. Zefron Finish applied to a Nylon fiber in a Compound Twill Weave

43. 75%Poly, 25%Cotton Poly-strength, Co- soft hand

44. Acrylic, Poly, Cotton fiber blend contents in a double cloth weave with 2 layers interchanged (16-32 harness loom)

45. Knits & Non Wovens Are Economical & Durable
WEFT KNITTING - Ex: pile (uncut/ cut) fabrics
Use: casement & drapery fabrics
Characteristics of new knits: heavy, firm, less stretchable
WARP KNITTING - Ex: Raschel Knit Lace, Tricot
Use: Lace tablecovers / sheers
Characteristics: economical
KNIT VARIATIONS - Ex: Knit-weave,
Use: draperies, bedspreads, blankets
Characteristics: easy drape, comfort, great recovery from stress,
Non-woven - felt, needlepunch, bonded fabric furniture filling or lining
Non-textiles- foam cushions, or padding for carpet

46. Non-wovens
•Knit / Net
•Example- knit socks
•Interwoven/ braid, tufted
•Non-woven / needlepunch, web

47. Poly Knit

48. MicroNylon- New Tech

49. Hotel lobby, Cleveland, OH