The art dreams of wool weaving

Theresa Honeywell is a textile artist, whether the motorcycle decorated with wool or wool woven works of art, both displayed Theresa Honeywell's mellow and warmth heart.




Brief introduction of Theresa Honeywell:
A Washington DC native, Theresa Honeywell attended Montgomery College in 1995-1997, University of Georgia 2001-2005, and Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in 2004. After graduating with a Master degree in Sculpture, she began her artistic explorations of Pop art and Tattoo imagery. Using the traditionally “feminine” mediums of knitting and embroidery, she began to create a distinctly non-gender specific body of work that reflects her interest in low-brow art and “macho” tattoo culture. This dichotomy between art and craft, macho and feminine is where she finds her inspiration.
Provocative imagery and macho icons are rendered into delicate and beautiful pieces of art that seem to question the notion of what art is, and what is “only” a handicraft. Her work is very labor intensive and densely rendered. She takes a craft that is considered to be “pretty” and merely decorative, and creates art that comments on our rigid notions of gender roles and high/low culture.
Theresa’s work has been featured in various international publications, including W magazine, Nickelodean, Victim, Needled, and Make Magazine. Her work has been displayed in many galleries and museums from San Francisco and New York.

High-tech home sewing machine

Have you ever thought of home sewing machines can be equate with and high-tech? Brothers Japan launched a high-tech home sewing machine. You might ask why this sewing machine can be called high-tech? After reading the following introduction of the new machine and you will know.

Products of this machine，code-named Quattro 6000D, has nearly 50 inches working table. Equipped with a 4.5 x 7-inch HD LCD screen which produced by Sharp，through the screen you can easily get to control.

The brothers use its exclusive two technologies "InnovEye" and "Up-Close Viewer". The two technologies can provide you a bird's eye view of the browser through a camera beside the sewing needle.

West Lake silk umbrella

West Lake silk umbrella

West Lake silk umbrella is one of Hangzhou's famous speciality.With bamboo umbrella stand and silk face, the West Lake silk umbrellas are light with artistic designs and easy to carry, thus reputed as "Flowers of the West Lake". Usually printed, dyed, or embroidered, the umbrellas are painted with the Ten Views of the West Lake or flowers, which are beautiful in shape, particular in material choosing, and exquisite in design.

Moreover, the story of "Sending Umbrella by the Lakeside" in The White Snake popular among the Chinese further lends a legendary color to the West Lake silk umbrellas. Nowadays, Umbrella is a symbol of romance in Hangzhou, Inspired by the beautiful and brave lady White Snack, nowadays some youngsters still use umbrellas to express their adoration.

Chinese Blue Calico in Wuzhen

Chinese Blue Calico from Zhejiang Wuzhen

Chinese Blue Calico is very famous in the world.It is the Chinese traditional folk arts and crafts with thousand years of history of printing and dyeing.Its deep blue color, comfortable, natural feel, and charming traditional patterns have kept the Chinese Blue Calico popular, and It is famous for its handmade printing and dying process,concise and simple desigh and bright and concordant coloreven among the urban sophisticates of modern China.

Wuzhen (乌镇) is a scenic town, part of Tongxiang, in northern Zhejiang Province, China.It's one of the orginal place of Blue Calico.It is the great place to travel during this season.

Textile - Bhutan

Bhutanese woman is weaving

Textile art plays an important role in Bhutanese life. These weavings are produced using a technique called supplementary weft that involves inserting small pieces of colored thread among the warp threads by hand. This allows very intricate designs, but leaves the back side of the fabric with an unfinished look. Due to their labor intensive nature these hand loomed fabrics are very expensive, especially when done in silk or cotton, because of the number of weft threads per inch.

Uzbekistan Fabric

Uzbekistan Fabric

This contemporary suzani textile is handwoven and hand-embroidered by women incorporating designs traditionally used in the 18th and 19th centuries in the Silk Road cites and towns of Uzbekistan. By the early 20th century the art of natural dying had largely fallen by the wayside in places like Samarqand, Bukhara, Tashkent, and Shahrisabz. However, with independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 there has been a return of some of the traditional commerce of the region. One of the happy outcomes is the rediscovery of the use of natural dyes and a renascent production of suzanis, this traditional needlework of the women of the Silk Road.

The silk used in the embroidery of these pieces is colored with natural dyes from various plants and insects. The reds come from madder and cochineal; the blues come from indigo; the yellow from a variety of local plants; the black from pomegranate, and so forth. The brilliance of the dyes, along with their subtle variations, results in an appearance unmatched by the flat regularity of modern chemical dyes.

The ground fabric is handwoven with a silk warp and cotton weft. The silk warp gives the ground fabric a “hand” or touch that is superior to that of a simple cotton fabric. The silk adds a subtle visual richness to the surface. Compare it to the machine made 100% cotton backing, which, while a very nice quality material, does not have the same look or feel.

The fabric has been woven on a narrow loom by hand, resulting in a piece of cloth typically about 17-20” wide. The strips are then tacked together to make the larger piece of cloth. Then a master draws the design on the fabric with a pen. The pieces are then taken apart and each is embroidered separately by hand. When the pieces are rejoined the design will never match exactly at the seams and changes in color will also be noticeable. These slight variations were not traditionally considered to be a defect. Rather, they add some interest and give each piece its own character. This is how these items have always been made, and the variations do little to detract from the color, beauty, and rhythm of the designs. Each piece is also a slightly different size, slightly different color, and even if made by the same artisan, never exactly the same design.

Dimensions: 39" x 54"

China ancient cotton ginning machine

This is cotton ginning machine used in Qing Dynasty.Found in Yunnan province of China.It is made of wooden, measured 78cm long, 61.5cm high，56cm wide. The cotton ginning machine was made by the Jino ethnic minority. They use this machine to separate cottonceed from cotton. There are two hardwood sticks that connected with crooked handle. By rocking the the handle and putting the cotton through the two sticks, the cottonceed would be separated from the cotton.

Beautiful Textile in dali yangren street

Colour Scafts

Textile Shop in the yangren street

Dali is an beautiful and legendary city in Yunnan province, China. It is situated near the foothills of the Himalayas, on the southern end of the legendary Silk Road , south of Tibet. Dali is famous for its history, culture and scenic spots, and attracts throngs of domestic and foreign tourists with its amazing natural scenery. Yangren street is well-known for gathering a lot of foreigners in Dali. There are many featured shops on both sides of the street. You can find many ethnic traditional and local characteristic products especially for its colourful textile. The Scafts in the pictures above is from Yangren street.

Guangxi Zhuang Brocade

Zhuang brocade has a history of 1,000 or more years.Produced by local Zhuang people, Zhuang Brocade is a splendid handicraft which originated in the period of the Tang and Song Dynasty. Woven with cotton threads and colorful silk threads, the Zhuang Brocade was the special gift offered by the local government to the royal family in the Ming Dynasty. Zhuang Brocades are favored by people for their beautiful patterns, which show a unique Zhuang style and favor, and their durable quality. Also, other characteristics like wide-ranging themes, well-knit structure, vivid designs, exquisite patterns and rich colors reflect the moral characters of bravery and industry, wisdom and sensitiveness, and honesty and frankness of Zhuang people. Typical patterns on the Zhuang Brocade include unique shapes such as卍, letters, water, squares, clouds, flowers and so on. Zhuang Brocade has many uses, such as blankets, quilt facings, aprons, bags, girdles, scarves, cloth borders and wall hangings.

Other famous brocade：Nanjing Yun brocade， Chengdu Shu brocade， Suzhou Song brocade

Suzhou Song Brocade

Song brocade, generally referred to as Suzhou Song Brocade, is that made in the famous brocade and satin producing city of Suzhou since the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Song Brocade is distinct for its bright colors, intricate patterns and strong but soft texture.Suzhou Song Brocade with its magnificent color, delicate patterns and softness, Nanjing Yun Brocade, Sichuan Shu Brocade and Guangxi Zhuang brocade are honored as the most famous brocades in China .

Song brocade began to be produced in Suzhou during Tang Dynasty. During Five Dynasties, the Suzhou Song brocade became even more splendid. Later, there appeared more than 40 styles of the Song brocade mainly for the purpose of mounting paintings. Song brocade is woven by organizing slant silk threads in a cycle of two warps and three wefts. Song brocade falls under the categories of Big Brocade, Small Brocade and Box Brocade. Big Brocade is used to decorate valuable artistic ornaments, and Small Brocade is used to decorate small craftworks and mount pictures.

Shu Brocade（Chengdu brocade）

vivid panda shu brocade

Shu Brocade，also called Chengdu brocade，made in Sichuan originated from Han and reached its heyday in the Wei, Jin, Sui and Tang Dynasties. It became the primary kind of traditional silk brocade and is one of the four most famous brocades (Yun brocade of Nanjing, Suzhou Song brocade of Jiangsu, Zhuang brocade of Guangxi) with a history of more than 2000 years. Shu Brocade is featured for luxuriant appearance , bright colour , primitive and elegant pattern , meaningful and propitious design, and imbued with rich folkloric and regional characteristic . In the Tang Dynasty, Dou Shilun, Duke Lingyang, created a set of designs for Shu Brocade, which was known as the "Duke Ling Yang Pattern".

Introduction of Dobby Loom

This particular specimen resides in Concordia's textile lab

This particular loom is called dobby loom.A Dobby Loom is a loom in which each harness can be selected without using treadles; a manual dobby uses a chain of bars or lags each of which has pegs inserted. The pegs select the harness to be moved. A computer assisted dobby loom uses a computer program to select which harness is to be moved. In either case the harnesses are lifted or sunk by either legpower on a dobby pedal or electric or other power sources. This is in contrast to a treadle handloom, where the harnesses are attached by cords to a limited number of different treadles to select and move the harnesses.

Dobby looms allow a huge variety of weave structures which a treadle loom might not, due to the lack of treadles. A floorloom is limited in the amount of treadles it can use within the loom frame, but a dobby need only add bars to the dobby chain to enlarge the loom's weave capacity. A normal eight harness floorloom has ten or twelve treadles but a dobby device mounted on the same loom will use a chain of bars ranging from twelve to seventy. The average dobby chain will have approximately fifty bars.

A Jacquard loom is an example of an adaptation from a dobby loom. A Jacquard device mounted atop a loom will lift the individual heddles and warp threads. The individual heddles and warp threads can be controlled by a computer or a series of punched cards which select them to rise or fall. Power is usually supplied to the loom to move the many heddles involved.

Nanjing Yunjin（Nanjing Brocade）

Nanjing Yunjin refers to the incredibly beautiful brocade made in Nanjing, capital city of eastern Jiangsu Province .Among all ancient fabrics, silk cloth known as jin represents the industry's top arts and crafts. Furthermore, Nanjing brocade has absorbed all the best silk-fabrics-weaving crafts and skills of past dynasties and ranks first in quality among the Chengdu brocade in southwestern Sichuan Province, Song brocade in Jiangsu Province, and Zhuang brocade in southwestern Guangxi Province. With the rich cultural and scientific meaning it carries, the Nanjing brocade is honored by experts as "the last milestone in the technological history of Chinese silk fabrics".

Nanjing Yunjin（Brocade）has a history of over 1500 years with regard to the hand-weaving technology. Its wooden-loom Zhuang Hua（also named da hua lou ji） represents the history of silk weaving lasting for over 4700years. This is the traditional hand-weaving technology by means of human memory that cannot be replaced by machines, the only technology of its kind handed down to the modern times in a history of over 3000years concerning brocade.

Chachi loom - A kind of traditional vertical loom

I had never seen this loom before. When i saw it, i was attracted to it. This loom's picture was found in Flickr，belong to Teyacapan, the following was his introduction.

"The Chachi (or Cayapas) people live in the rain forests of northern Ecuador on the western slopes of the Andes mountains. This traditional vertical loom was on display at the interpretive center at Lago Cuicocha. Vertical looms were the means of weaving cloth on the Pacific coast of Ecuador, and were still in use in the 1980's on Isla Puna in the Gulf of Guayaquil."

It looks like the weaving in progress was going to be a shoulder bag, but I'm certain that this type of loom is also used to weave wrap skirts. Traditionally, Chachi women went topless and wore only knee length wrap skirts.

Types of Fabrics used for Apparel

Acetate - It is used as uniforms, clothing and lingerie. It has a crisp feel with lustrous appearance of silk and excellent drapeability.

Acrylic - It is used as a substitute for wool. It is durable, soft, and has a wooly feel. It is resistant to sun and chemicals.

Broadcloth - Closely woven and wears very well but wrinkles very badly. It is used as shirts, dresses, blouses, summer wear.

Brocade - Usually made fit for eveningwear, church vestments, interior furnishings, and robes. It has rich, heavy, elaborate design effect.

Challis - It is soft, very lightweight and is washable. It is used as women's and children's dresses, kimonos, neckties and sportswear.

Chambray - It is smooth, strong, closely woven and soft. Used as children's wear, dresses, shirts and blouses, aprons and all kinds of sportswear.

Chiffon - Used as eveningwear, blouses and scarves. It is lightweight, sheer, transparent and very fine.

Cotton - It is very elastic and withstand high temperatures. It has high washability and dyes well. It is comfortable in all weather. It is used as all types of clothing.

Crepe - All types of dresses finds a fit place like from long dinner dresses to suits and coats. It has a crinkled and puckered surface with a soft mossy finish. It has rough feel and appearance.

Damask - It is very durable, made from silk in actual. It sheds dirt, launders well and holds high luster, especially in linen.

Denim - Used as pants, caps, uniforms, bedspreads, slipcovers, draperies, upholstery, sportswear. It resists snags and tears. It comes in heavy to lighter weights.

Drill - A cotton fabric used for uniforms, work cloths, and sportswear.

Faille - It has a lustrous finish. Used as dresses, blouses, and some dressy coats.

Flannel - Used as blazers, dresses, skirts, suits and coats. It is soft with a napped surface. It shrinks if not pre-shrunk. It sags with wear.

Flax - It is of linen with a high absorbent quality, allowing moisture to evaporate quickly. It is easily washable but has a poor elasticity.

Gabardine - Used as men's and women's tailored suits, coats, raincoats, uniforms, and men's shirts. It has a clear finish. It is durable and wears extremely well.

Georgette - It is crisp with an outstanding durability. It is sheer and has a dull face.

Houndstooth - Sportscoats and suits are made out of it. It is usually of wool.

Moire - It is made of silk, rayon or cotton and has a watermarked finish. It is used as eveningwear, formals, dresses and coats.

Nylon - It is used as women's hosiery, knitted or woven lingerie, socks and sweaters. It is elastic, easy to wash and is lustrous.

Organdy - It is used as summer formals, blouses and aprons. It is a tightly twisted yarn with a crisp.

Organza - Used as evening dresses. It is fine, sheer, lightweight and crisp.

Oxford - Mostly used for men's shirts. It is made of cotton and sometimes even of rayon.

Polyester - It is smooth, crisp and springy. It is readily washable and is not damaged by sunlight. It is made for all weather and is resistant to moths and mildew.

Pongee - It is made of silk, cotton, or rayon and used for dresses, blouses and summer suits. It is lightweight.

Rayon - It is a cellulose fiber based fabric and is highly absorbent. It drapes well and is resistant to moths, bleaches and chemicals.

Silk - It is very strong and absorbant. It has a brillient sheen and unique softness.

Crocheted lace - Types of lace

Crochet is a chain technique made by catching loops on each other with a crochet hook. Each loop is pulled through another so the whole becomes a chain. The chain is worked into with even more loops one at a time and a fabric forms as chains build up. Pieces can be worked in one continuous thread interlocking on itself and forming a fabric made of chains. The looping arrangements can be doubled and trebled and this creates areas which are more solid or more loopy and lace like in effect or raised to create rich areas of texture. The yarn thread used is important in achieving a particular end result. Crochet is a simple, fast, easy and transportable technique. Probably the most famous crochet technique is Irish Crochet.

Other types of lace: Needle lace , Whitework , Bobbin Lace , Tape lace

Tape lace - Types of lace

This term refers to laces that include a tape in the lace as it is worked (or a machine- or hand-made textile strip formed into a design, then joined and embellished with needle or bobbin lace). Through the centuries tape lace has had several names including, mezzo punto, Renaissance lace, and more recently the coarser Brussels tape known as Battenburg. Luxeuil is also famous for tape lace. This is a comparatively quick method of producing lace fabrics using pre made tape lengths mostly now made by machine. The lengths of narrow tape are joined together with connecting hand stitches, worked in an open manner. Machine made tapes have more folded kinks in them because they don't easily navigate corners. Some tapes have a thread running down one side which can pulled to help it curve more. Bobbin made tapes being hand made are usually designed to curve corners more naturally. Washing the item usually reveals differences as machine made laces don't lie so flat after laundering.

Other types of lace: Needle lace , Whitework , Bobbin Lace , Crocheted lace

Bobbin Lace - Types of lace

As the name suggests, this is lace made with bobbins and a pillow. Bobbin lace is made by using spools called bobbins (as many as 1200 in elaborate examples) and a stuffed pad called a pillow. The pattern is drawn on paper or parchment, and pins are inserted along the course of the pattern, through the parchment into the pillow. The loose ends of threads wound on the bobbins are looped around selected pins, and the bobbins are then passed over, under, or around one another, plaiting, interlacing, and twisting the threads as desired. The patterns may be connected by brides or a reseau. Also known as "Bone-lace."

Other types of lace: Needle lace , Whitework , Tape lace, Crocheted lace

Whitework - Types of lace

There are many types of whitework, but three main methods are usual, including openwork, cutwork and classic whitework. Openwork draws and pulls threads. Norwegian hardanger comes in this category. Cutwork involves cutting out fabric shapes from the background and then neatening the edges in a decorative manner. Broderie Anglaise and Italian Reticella are both cutwork methods of whitework. Classic whitework uses white embroidery stitching of various depths to create soft and darker shadows. This is often down on exceptionally fine cottons such as fine linen, batiste, muslin, organdie or on nets. Typical classic whitework includes Irish Carrickmacross, Scottish Ayrshire which uses pulled threads with embroidery, Dresden and Chikan a floral variety of patterning from India.

Other types of lace: Needle lace , Bobbin Lace , Tape lace, Crocheted lace

Needle lace - Types of lace

Needle lace is a type of lace created using a needle and thread to stitch up hundreds of small stitches to form the lace itself. This is the most flexible of the lace-making arts. The finest antique needle laces were made from a very fine thread that is not manufactured today. The most delicate and precious type of needle lace is known as "Rosepoint lace." The pattern is first designed on paper, often reinforced with a piece of tissue, on which the design is realized. The design usually represents a rose or some other flower. To start, the lacemaker elaborates the flower's outline with a thicker thread, so to add relief to the work. The next stage is to fill in the interior of the flower design with much finer thread and a variety of different stitches

Other types of lace: Whitework , Bobbin Lace , Tape lace , Crocheted lace

Lace Making Machines

The popularity of handmade laces led to the invention of lace-making machines. The first machine lace appeared in the late 1700's. It developed from a machine that made fancy knitted stockings. This early version of netting was made in England by Hammond. Others improved on this looped lace and it became very popular as a base to embellish with needle run designs and allowed resurgence in the demand for this more affordable lace.

Updating and changes continued for years until an new machine was produced in that was more like lace in that it wove netting that closely resembled the twisted netting of handmade Lille bobbin lace. As a boy, John Heathcoat made stockings and became familiar with the machines and used this knowledge to develop and patent his lace net machine in 1808. This invention created an enormous lace industry. At first, the netting was embroidered with a needle or tambour chain stitch. Limerick Ireland became famous for it's exquisite embroidery of this twisted net. Carrickmacross Ireland created their own lace by appliquéing a fine muslin on the net. They also sometimes added embroidery as well.

The next important step in the evolution in machine lacemaking came about with the invention of the Pusher machine. This was the first development that was capable of putting a pattern in the lace with the machine. This pattern was then outlined with a raised thread called a gimp. The gimp was applied by hand and sometimes the handrun gimp was the only way to tell the difference between the real 'Chantilly' lace and this very good imitation.

Shortly after Heathcoat patented his machine, John Leaver developed his 'Leaver' machine which, by 1805, had been modified with the system invented by Joseph Jacquard and now was able to make lace entirely by machine. By 1841, the last great development was added which allowed the machine to also incorporate the gimp. Once this was accomplished, the use of lace machines developed so quickly that the market was soon flooded with this new inexpensive lace.

Beautiful Lace for wedding

There is perhaps nothing more elegant and history-inspired in fashion than a garment embellished with lace.Any ordinary white blouse can be transformed into an homage to past fashion trends by simply adding a lace collar or cuffs.I love lace especially used for wedding。It is so happy to wear white lace wedding dress and lace headdress, just like a princess.

Lace is an openwork fabric, patterned with open holes in the work, made by machine or by hand. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric.

Lace-making is an ancient craft. True lace was not made until the late 15th and early 16th centuries. A true lace is created when a thread is looped, twisted or braided to other threads independently from a backing fabric.

Originally linen, silk, gold, or silver threads were used. Now lace is often made with cotton thread. Manufactured lace may be made of synthetic fiber. A few modern artists make lace with a fine copper or silver wire instead of thread.

Beautiful Tea Cozies

Beautiful cups with hot tea

Flowers and butterflies

coffee cup wearing chothes - so cute

No more cold tea in cold winter！Haha，I find this cute and useful tea cozies last weekend in Flickr.It is so beautifu for its colors and details.The applique is made delicatel.You will be delightful when you enjoy your hot coffee and see the vivid screen.

Felted Knit Mushroom

Is it beautiful? If you want to make your owns, keep reading please.

The first thing to make this kind of Felted knit mushroom is knitting.The following is the Mushroom pattern.

Size: 2.75" in diameter by 1.5" tall
Yardage: 14 yds
Shown In: Paton's Classic Wool in Chestnut and Bright Red. Spots on red cap were needle felted after fulling using Cascade 220 #8010.

CO 33 sts, join for working in the round.
Round 1-2: knit
Round 3: (k2tog, k9) to end
Round 4: knit
Round 5: (k2tog, k8) to end
Round 6: knit
Round 7: (k2tog, k7) to end
Round 8: knit
Round 9: (k2tog, k6) to end
Round 10: knit
Round 11: (k2tog, k5) to end
Round 12: knit
Round 13: (k2tog, k4) to end
Round 14: knit
Break yarn and thread tail through remaining stitches, pull to inside of cap and weave in end.

After knitting, you should felt the mushroom, follow the steps in the How to Make a Needle-Felted Pillows to felt.

How to Make a Needle-Felted Pillows

Yesterday,we learned what is felting, Now let's try to make a needle-felted pillows.

1. Remove any buttons and trim from the sweater. Wash in the machine in a hot/cold cycle with 1/4 cup of baking soda and then dry in an automatic dryer on high.

2. Remove sleeves and/or collar at seams and cut open body of sweater to create large flat pieces.

3. Trace and cut out front and back of pillow, adding 1/2" seam allowances all around.

4. Place pillow front onto foam slab and pin in place with quilting pins.

5. Arrange roving or yarn on pillow front in desired pattern, keeping in mind that areas of color will appear smaller once they are felted to the surface.

6. Hold felting needle vertical to fabric surface and pierce repeatedly to attach roving to pillow front.Repeat as necessary until desired effect is obtained. Colors may be added and layered over previous layers if desired to create texture and more complex designs.

7. When design is complete, arrange pillow front and pillow back with right sides facing and sew together, leaving an opening for turning. Turn right side out.

8. Fill with pillow form or polyester fiberfill. Sew closed by hand.

9. As a finishing touch, apply wool roving or yarn around seam using same felting technique.

What is Felting

Felting is actually an ancient craft that has become increasingly popular lately. Felting is the process of transforming wool into a dense cloth by bonding and shrinking the fibers together. Technically, there are three types of felting: wet felting, needle felting, and commercial felting.

Commercial felting is the proccess used to create sheets of felt sold at craft and fabric stores. While these are different than the felting projects you can make at home, if you look closely at these sheets, you can see all the fibers used to form the fabric.

Needle (or punch) felting is a process originally developed for making industrial felt. Large beds of steel needles are moved in and out of the loose fiber to create large sheets of felt. The felt needle has rough, notched edges that force the fiber down causing it to entangle with other fibers and create felt.

Wet felting is what this tutorial will focus on. With wet felting, you can create a soft, dense cloth using wool. The process uses heat, agitation, and moisture to shrink and bond the fibers of the wool together. Don't let this description scare you away from trying wet felting, all you need is some yarn and a washing machine really!

Braiding Machine

braids are textile compositions made with yarn thread crossing in diagonal direction. Each thread intertwines the diagonal threads it crosses one from above and one from below. Braiding machines are used for such constructions. Strength of braids and time of braiding shows the quality of the braiding machines.

Primarily there are two kinds of braids :

Round braids

Round braids have a round or oval cross section. The products made are cords (technique), laces (for clothes), cables (electro technique) or ropes (heavy braids).

Flat braids

Flat braids are called laces or just flat braids.

Braids have special characteristic features. Standard braids have only a low lateral stability. Due to this property they can be sawn to other textiles without problems. On the other hand they can be made rigid and stiff with inserts and aftertreatments.

The load-bearing capacity of braided products is much more higher as of products made with other techniques.

Because of the special properties, braids can be found (often hidden) in many different applications. Some examples: Clothes and shoes, candle wicks, sash cords, water ski ropes, mountaineering ropes, yachting ropes, parachute lines, fishing nets, mooring lines, medical applications such as catheters or dental floss, overbraided high-pressure tubes, ground cables or harnesses.

Suzhou embroidery - Head of tiger

Hand to Hand: Two Grand Masters of Suzhou Embroidery At the Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, Georgia, through June 11, 2005

Do you believe this tiger is an embroidery! The beauty of the tiger took my breath away when i saw it.This is very impressive and amazing! The detail is unbelievable!!

This exhibit contains thirty-two works from the studios of two grand masters of the art of Suzhou embroidery, which uses a hand-to-hand technique, in which an embroiderer places a hand on one side of the frame and another on the other side, working a needle back and forth and applying stitches in layers to create highly reflective fields of color and provide lifelike qualities to the subjects, whether landscapes, flowers or animals.

Suzhou embroidery has a long history exceeding 2000 years。During the Song Dynasty (960-1279), Emperor Huizong had encouraged embroiderers to work with artists and calligraphers to copy their art onto silk fabric.Suzhou embroidery, also called Su embroidery, is one of the four traditional Chinese embroidery styles.The great skill is passed down by word of mouth and from hand to hand.Suzhou artistsare are able to use more than 40 needlework and a 1,000 different types of threads to make flowers,birds,animals and even gardens on a piece of cloth. The Suzhou embroidery is refined and exquisite,best-known work being an embroidered cat with bright eyes and fluffy hair looking vivid and lifelike,just like the tiger above.

Cute Crochet banana - Basic Steps of Crochet

The crochet peeling banana

Is the banana above lovely? And do you want a one? Now pick up your crochet hook to crochet by yourself.It is easy and simple.

Step 1: Hold crochet hook in right hand and make a slip knot on hook.

Step 2: Bring yarn over hook from back to front and grab it with hook.

Step 3: Draw hooked yarn through slip knot and onto hook. This makes one chain stitch.

Repeat Steps 2 and 3 in sequence 28 more times. You should have 29 chain stitches and one loop will remain on hook.

Step 4: Skip the first chain stitch.

Step 5: Insert hook into center of next chain stitch. Draw yarn through the chain stitch and up onto the hook. There are now 2 loops on hook.

Step 6: Bring yarn over hook from back to front, and draw it through both loops on hook. One loop remains on the hook, and you have just made one single crochet stitch.

Repeat Steps 5 and 6 in each of the remaining 27 chains--be sure to work in the very last chain. You have now completed one row of single crochet. Measure your work; it should be about 7" wide. If it is too wide, try again with fewer beginning chains. If it is too narrow, try again with more beginning chains.

Step 7: At the end of the row, make one chain stitch, then turn the work counter-clockwise, leaving the hook in the chain.Now you can begin another row, working into the stitches of the previous row.

Step 8: Make one single crochet stitch in first stitch and in each remaining stitch of the previous row. Be sure to work into the last stitch. Chain 1, turn.

Repeat Step 8 until the block measures 9" long.

Finishing: Cut the yarn from the skein, leaving a 6" end. Draw the hook straight up, bringing the yarn through the remaining loop on the hook.

History of textile machinery

Textile industry its evolution and progress forms an integral part of the history of textile machinery. Since the dawn of civilization, clothing was one of the man's primary needs. This led to the spinning of fiber into yarn and the cloth weaving which finally resulted in innovation of new technologies for textile industries.

The first textile machinery used was the spinning wheel. It first developed in India and then in 14 th century it reached Europe.

Loom is ancient in origin and the modern invention to increase its skill was the flying shuttle which John Kay patented in 1733.

The initial enhancement in the early spinning machines took place in in 1737 when Lewis Paul and John Wyatt discovered the roller method of spinning jenny and water frame by Samuel Crompton in 1779.

Various Textile process machineries
• Cloth finishing machines
• Knitting machines
• Fabric seaming machineries
• Crochet machines
• Lace making machines
• Label making machines
• Quilting machines
• Textile finishing machines
• Textile sourcing machines
• Textile spinning machines
• Textile winding machines
• Textile edge control device
• Thread winding machines
• Tufting machines
• Weaving machines
• Zipper making machines
• Woolen mill machines

Various Textile working machineries and equipments and accessories
• Applique scaling machines
• Attaching machines
• Cloth measuring machines
• Cloth cutting machines
• Embroidery machinery
• Garment machinery
• Industrial sewing machine
• Laundry dryers
• Monogramming machines
• Textile bleaching machines
• Textile folding machine
• Textile trimmers machine

Uses of Textile Machineries

It is primarily used in cotton mill, covering plants, wool mill, garment factory; man made factories of fur and trades goods inspection units for the entire length of fabric rolling. It is especially beneficial for inspecting and rolling export fabrics.

How to tie-dye

Tie-dyed clothing first became popular in the 1960’s. Bright colors, an unlimited variety of patterns and color combinations, and the ease with which the average person can create tie-dyes contribute to its enduring appeal. Making tie-dyes is a very simple process and is very fun. All you need is a piece of fabric (or clothing, preferably white), dye, and fasteners to keep the dye from penetrating and to create patterns.

The easiest material for tie-dyeing is 100%, or at least 80% cotton; synthetic materials may not retain the dye evenly, but it’s worth trying. What dye should you use? It depends on the fabric, but since cotton materials are recommended for the beginner, choose a fiber-reactive dye such as “Procion MX,” which is available at some craft stores or by mail order. RIT and other fabric dyes commonly available in grocery stores aren’t recommended unless you plan to use only one color and don’t want a deep shade. Squeeze bottles are helpful for application. These can be ordered along with the dye, or you can use plastic condiment bottles. A pair of disposable latex gloves will come in handy as well because the dye will stain your skin. For the ties, you can use a number of things such as rubber bands, string, nylon cable ties, or anything that will hold firmly in place. Newspapers or other covering materials are useful for protecting the surface where you apply the dye and lay the finished fabric to dry.

First, wash the material to remove any chemicals that may be in the fabric; if this step is skipped, the dye may not penetrate well. Dry the material completely before dyeing. When the fabric is dry, you can begin tying it. There are several “standard” patterns used for tie-dye, including:

1. Spiral: Determine where you want the center of your spiral, and hold the fabric in that spot. Twist the fabric into a point, adding ties along the length of the “cone.”

2. “V” Pattern: Fold the fabric in half and starting at one corner, fold the fabric in even segments back and forth accordion style. Add fasteners as you go.

3. Concentric circles: Same as the spiral, but don’t twist the fabric.

4. Stripes: Roll the fabric into a tube, and fasten ties along the length.

Any number of other patterns can be created; use your imagination. You could try sewing the fabric with a loose basting stitch and pulling the thread tight. Fold the garment into different shapes before tying. Be creative: the most interesting results come from using many fasteners and keeping relatively consistent.

Now that the material is all scrunched up and tied, the next step is to add the dye. Be sure to use enough dye to fully saturate the material, including inside the folds, unless you intend to leave white space. Choose colors that work well together, according to the color wheel. Opposite colors on the wheel (red-green, blue-yellow, orange-purple, etc.) will tend to look muddy where the two colors meet.

When finished with the dyeing process, allow the fabric to dry completely before removing the fasteners. This can take quite some time. Allow at least four hours if the material will be dried in the sun on a hot day, but it will often be necessary to let the fabric bundle dry overnight. Do not attempt to dry it in your dryer! When it’s totally dry, remove the ties and admire your artwork. You’re not done, though because the material must be washed thoroughly in cold water. Don’t use soap; you may wish to rinse it several times before washing it in a machine. After each wash, squeeze the material to see if any dye is released. If dye is released, wash it again!

Textile Asia 2009 Exhibition' begins from April 5 in Karachi

Textile Asia Exhibition 18/21 March - Karachi 2007, Pakistan

The International Textile Asia 2009 Exhibition, one of the most promising and enduring Event to be held for the 5th successive year at the Karachi Expo Centre from 05 - 08 April 2009 is the official event of the Federal Ministry of Textile Industry.

The event is being organized at the most opportune time when the government is looking forward to modernize and upgrade the textile sector of the country for better quality products and enhanced productivity.

The exhibition aims to focus on the immense buying selling potential of textile & garment machinery, accessories, raw material supplies, chemicals and allied services under one roof.

Cotton is the cash crop of Pakistan. The quality of cotton and cotton related products of Pakistan are unmatched in the international markets. The ever-growing textile industry of the country has shown consistent expansion and stability over the last many years.

The exports of textile and textile products of Pakistan have shown a significant increase in the recent years. The government has offered various incentives for the industry’s up gradation and modernization.

Pakistan is at the center of a rapidly developing textile & garments manufacturing region. Apart from fulfilling its local requirements, Pakistan has emerged as the textile hub of the region.

There exists a strong political will to modernize the textile sector and there is an increasing demand for compliance with ISO and other international quality certifications and standards.

As the textile industry of Pakistan being is in the midst of industrial up gradation and the businessmen are seeking newer solutions to bring more efficiency in their production systems.

Therefore, the pioneer of grasping this opportunity will be the most successful business organization in Pakistan as none of the local industry can cater this tall order.

National organizations will enjoy the benefit of globalization and will witness more joint ventures and collaborations between local and international brands.

Chenille Embroidery Machines

Historically, chenille embroidery has had many applications in decorating fabrics. From delicate work of lace to commonly recognized emblems and letters sewn on letterman’s jackets, chenille is that form of embroidery which is recognized by almost all. Shifting from hand stitched patterns, the chenille embroidery became industrialized with the lockstitch sewing machine. These machines could produce both - chenille stitches, also known as moss stitches, and chain stitches by using only one thread for both types of stitches. Variations of these machines were developed for taping, cording and sequins as well as machines with two needles for four thread stitching. All these machines still required skilled manual labor.

With growing demands, the chenille embroidery machines manufacturers went on to support research for developing such machines that could mass produce and that required lesser skills. The efforts resulted in production of chenille machines with various mechanical functions controlled by pulse motors. Looper drive, Z-axis drive (needle and looper synchronization), and ATH (automatic thread trimming) – all these functions were driven by pulse motors in the new electronic chenille machines. Recent developments in the field of digitized software for embroidery market, certain very sophisticated and easy to use software for chenille work have been introduced. Electronic machines and software combined, are at work to satisfy the growing demands of the customers who want very fine works of embroidery.

Quilting - Machine Quilting and Hand Quilting

leather sewing machine, witch is able to sew in any direction, used for quilting.

Quilting is a sewing method done either by hand, by sewing machine, or by a longarm quilting system. The process uses a needle and thread to join two or more layers of material together to make a quilt. Typical quilting is done with three layers: the top fabric or quilt top, batting or insulating material and backing material. The quilter's hand or sewing machine passes the needle and thread through all layers and then brings the needle back up. The process is repeated across the entire piece where quilting is wanted. A straight or running stitch is commonly used and these stitches can be purely functional or decorative and elaborate. Quilting is done on bed spreads, art quilt wall hangings, clothing, and a variety of textile products.

For many quilters, machine quilting is a way to quilt those tops that seem to go together faster than they can be hand quilted. For others, machine quilting is a means of self expression. Machine quilting can range from an almost invisible stitch outlining the quilt blocks to a combination of threads and stitches creating a one of a kind work of art and everything in beween.

All machine quilting falls into one of two catagories, machine guided (feeddogs up) or free motion (feeddogs dropped or covered). Machine guided quilting is used for straight and slightly curved lines. Free motion quilting is used for all other patterns such as feathered stars and stippling. But there are no absolute rules. Some quilters like to use free motion quilting for all their patterns including those made with straight lines while other quilters prefer using the even stitches of machine guided quilts for making feathered wreaths and other similar patterns.

With a few special feet, almost any sewing machine can be used for machine quilting. With a little practice, any quilter can master the art of machine quilting.

Tips for Machine Quilting

• Trace the quilting design on to light weight paper. Pin the paper to the quilt and sew on the lines, then tear away the paper. Also try tracing the design on to freezer paper and pressing the paper into place.
• Place a card table next to the sewing machine table to help hold the quilt.
• Use a straight stitch needle plate on the machine to prevent the quilt from being pulled into the throat plate slot and puckering.
• Use a walking foot for straight lines. It will prevent the quilt back from shifting.

Embroidery Machine

An embroidery machine running a design on a cap

Today, Embroidery means adding dollar value to garments by embellishing them with names, corporate logos and sports symbols, to name a few. Embroidery is more than fashion or trend. It has been a form of class distinction since the days of the Egyptian Pharoahs.

An embroidery machine is used to automatically create a design from a pre-made pattern that is input into the machine. Most embroidery machines used by professionals and hobbyists today are driven by computers that read digitized embroidery files created by special software.

The artwork for embroidery design is entered into the computer. The computer transfers the robotics instructions necessary for stitching the design to the embroidery machine. The machine operator places the item, such as a sweatshirt or ball cap on the machine with a holder or hoop. The operator also chooses the colors of thread appropriate to the design. Once the "set up" has been performed, stitching may begin by pressing the "Start" button on the machine. It will precisely and efficiently stitch the design. A typical logo on a ball cap may take five minutes or so to stitch, roughly a dozen caps an hour.

Sequins

Sequins are disk-shaped beads used for decorative purposes. They are available in a wide variety of colors and geometrical shapes. Sequins are commonly used on clothing, jewelry, bags and other accessories. Large sequins, fastened only at the top, have been used on billboards and other signage, particularly prior to the development of lighted and neon signs. Signs made with sequins were called schmaltz, as were the sequins themselves in that context.

Although coins are still used as sequins in some cultures, modern sequins tend to be made of plastic. They may also be referred to as spangles, paillettes, or diamantes. Paillettes themselves are commonly very large and flat. Sequins may be stitched flat to the fabric, so that they do not move, and are less likely to fall off; or they may be stitched at only one point, so that they dangle and move easily, to catch more light. Some sequins are made with facets, to increase their reflective ability.

Antique Sock Knitting Machine

Antique Sock Knitting Machine

In the 19th century, virtually every nation held a patent for a sock knitting machine. Several nations manufactured circular sock knitting machines which were a rage in those times. Canadian, Dutch, Scottish and English models of these sock knitting machines were particularly innovative. In the 20th century, a German manufacturer came up with a sock knitting machine that had 42 slot ribber dials and 84 slot cylinders.

Today, the trend of sock knitting machines is widespread. The machine knits socks way faster than what one could knit by hand. Not many brands manufacture these machines today. As a result, antique machines ought to be retailed. These machines have an old world charm that entices all.