From the loom

Dear reader, unless you belong to a tribe lost in the Amazon rainforest, whether you are a Naga Sadhu from India covered only in ashes or a remote aborigine from New Guinea, you use it every day and every time. But how many of us wonder how the fabric that covers us is made, whether it is cotton for bed, silk for a party, or the indestructible denim of the working jean?

Making a fabric requires a loom, which is nothing more than a wooden frame, a weft -threads or fibers that are stretched in a parallel and horizontal position- and a warp, which are the threads that are interlace vertically to form the flexible fabric we use to get dressed. Strictly speaking, this refers to a simple hand loom, the principle of all fabrics, which was used from ancient times, first in the Middle East and China before Europe, and which is still used in certain handicrafts, in cushions, carpets, and tapestries for decoration.

Then the different materials to be used come into play and this is where it lies the key to the softness, elasticity, resistance, or exquisiteness of the finished product. The raw materials for loom weaving can be of animal origin: wool, mohair, alpaca, and silk, or vegetable such as cotton and linen among others. Rayon and acetate fabrics that were originally made from natural products such as cellulose have given way to truly synthetic ones: nylon, polyester, acrylic fibers, and polypropylene.

In addition to loom-weaving, the most commonly used fabrics are woven into belts, cords, cables, whose spinning is not vertical and horizontal but diagonally and longitudinally, and felt. The latter is not made on frames but by accumulating layers of wool – formerly also used hair from other animals – by means of compression and steam. Today it is made on large industrial machines that mix synthetic fibers with wool.

All the work begins with the twisting of the thread that will go to the knitting machine, but excuse me for the digression… the mind flies in time to the well-known image of Gandhi sitting with his loincloth while spinning the cotton in a distaff that symbolizes the simplicity and strength of the craft as a form of protest against the colossal British Empire. Returning to the spinning, the fiber is twisted several times: from the yarn used and the number of twists will depend on the firmness (many twists) or softness (fewer twists) of the fabric. The threads, already dyed in different colors, are twisted into cones that “feed” the loom.

Craftsman’s looms were replaced by large textile machines in the mid 18th century. With the increasing demand for products by the growing population – more people were born living in better conditions and for longer – more efficient production methods had to be found. This historical moment of great development that transformed all areas of life was called the Industrial Revolution. In Great Britain began the great textile manufacture of cotton, which came from the enormous plantations of North America, Egypt, and India; a very affordable raw material that was picked by slave hands and transported by the British merchant navy.

Since the time of industrial progress from 1750, the manufacture of fabrics has been an important part of the world economy – not to mention the world of fashion!