FABRIC GLOSSARY
Aplaca: The long woolly hair of the peruvian alpaca mammal, which makes up into cloth noted for its soft feel and resilience
Bemberg: Name for the finest quality jacket lining, made from cupro rayon.
Camel Hair: Undercoat hair from the Bactrian (two hump) camel. It is not clipped or shaved, but gather from the ground as the camels skin expands seasonally and hair loosens. Usually used in it natural color.
Cashmere: Fibres from the undercoat of the Kasmir Goat. Used in pure and blended forms in soft-twilled fabrics.
Corduroy: A durable cut-pile fabric with narrow or wide vertical ribs or wales.
Flannel: A soft twilled fabric with a loose texture and a slightly napped surface. Can have a plan or ribbed weave.
Gabardine: Tightly woven fabric with a twill surface weave and a diagonal rib effect. Favoured by pilgrims in the Middle Ages for the protection against wind and rain.
Glen Plaid: An American corruption of Glenurquhart (a district in England) Check, a design chosen in the 10th century by the
Countess of Seafield to be the distinctive uniform of her tenants, factors and gamekeepers.
Herringbone: Classic zigzag effect resembling the backbone of a herring. Achieved by altering the direction of a twill.
High Performance: Produced by using fine, high twist yarns, which give the fabric a spring hands, higher resistance and resiliency.
Houndstooth Check: A small, broken check pattern with hook resembling a dog’s incisor.
Lamb’s wool: Wool from a young sheep after first shearing. Noted for its soft hand.
Linen: A rough fabric woven of flax, an herb annual blooming plant with blue flowers, cultivated for its bast (woody) fibre.
Merino Wool: Fine wool produced by merino sheep. Strong and elastic, it possesses excellent spinning properties.
Micron: Unit of measurement used for wool fibre diameter. One micron equals one millionth of a meter. Eg. Super 100’s would be approximately 18 microns.
Mohair: The fibre of the angora goat. Characterized by crispness, lustre, lightness and durability. Usually blended with wool.
Saxony: Soft, pliable, lighty napped wool or worsted fabric of high quality with a clear, concise finish. Derived from the sheep-growing province of Germany.
Seersucker: A drinkly, lightweight cotton fabric. Alternate stripes of plain flat weave with crinkle effects.
Serge: Hand finished with smooth, clear face and a diagonal rib. Usually worsted.
Shetland: A soft, light, tweed like, very nappy fabric made only from the fine undercoat of sheep raised on the Shetland Islands of
Scotland. Word is also used (incorrectly) to refer to soft fabric closely related to tweed.
Tweed: A rough, wiry wool with hairy, nappy surface that permits bright yarns to mingle shades.
Twist: A yarn formed by twisting tow or more strands together. Different coloured yarns are often used for a unusual colour effect.
Vicuna: Wool from the fine, lustrous undercoat of the wild vicuna goats of Andes in South America. Very fine, very soft and very expensive.
Woolen: As used in the textile industry, fabric using wool fibres of varying lengths. Fabrics are generally softer and bulkier than worsted. Used in tweeds.
