spring/summer 2016 - fabric more

spring/summer 2016 | fabrics & more | FFT magazine

FABRICS & MORE

SPRING/SUMMER ’16

FABRICS & MORE

SPRING/SUMMER ’16All civilisations are centred on water; it’s a need we haven’t been able to outgrow. But there is one more thing that separates the thinking animal from the feeling animal and that is cloth. It’s a very human instinct to create fabric, and anthropologists assure that the use of cloth predates the human exodus from Africa. This Spring/Summer, the prodigal race returns home to Africa. Being a major theme in prints, animal stripes are used as unconventional colours; the use of natural resources like bamboo, the cotton bud, the lax plant to make lightweight fabric; a return to slow fashion and handmade techniques signal a nostalgia for simpler times.

Then there is a different kind of nostalgia, a fun-young remembrance of festive times which celebrates the decade of the 70s. All fashion trends accumulate on Woodstock and lowers in your hair, your dresses and enough to go around for garlands. The joie de vivre of this nostalgia ties in comfortably with the ecological concern of slow fashion. This Spring/Summer is light – in mood and fabric.

REFINED RUSTICITYEmphasis on traditional artistry and slow fashion has brought to the fore the raw and rustic aspect of fabrics. Multiple cracks across fabric, dip and over dyeing methods and usage of block printing bring their ‘natural’ aspect to centre stage. Raw yet reined, it hints at appearances taken from minerals, rocks, fossil imprints and composite natural forms to induce fabrics with a composite fantasy. Building on layered elements and diverse substrates, the crafty weaves and prints adorn the fabric. Cotton, jute and organic laces form luid lines to mimic surfaces that exist in nature, bringing out the true essence of summer and its aridity.

POP JUNGLEFluid and gleaming fabrics reveal the visual appeal of art-pop. The brightness brings in the fun and colourful elements. Surfaces are sprinkled with neon relections of pop prints in a combination of paisleys and geometrics. The polyester bases are rampant with animal prints and the natural world.

This multi-application print trend plays with recognizable pop patterns in varied versions with bold graphic inishes. Patterns and prints from the 60s and 70s in the form of relaxed geometry, mosaic, geometric illusions combined with organic shapes and eccentric animal prints are beginning to trend. Polyester blends, crepes and rayons are ideally suited for this kind of printing.

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Fashion Forward Trends

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SPICK AND SPANThe classic cotton, viscose and poly-blends are revamped to make clean and structured aesthetics come alive. Taking inspiration from suiting and shirting fabrics, the material is created with higher count yarns providing smooth surfaces. The cotton warp and weft are interlaced together to create reined dobby motifs, miniscule checks and stripes, bringing out elegant and immaculate woven patterns. They are constructed with right and left hand twills, plain and basket weaves. Light weight fabrics are woven with smooth and polished yarns, signalling an increase in the usage of wrinkle- free and waterproof inishes. Polyesters and cottons are coated and waxed to display their glorious laminated surface and to gather maximum area for light relection.

TEXTURE WITH A TWISTWith an amalgamation of hand skill and machine creativity, fabric surfaces are adorned with the third dimensionality forming radiant surface effects. Ornate laser cut loral patterns are fashioned on taffetas with couching and fabric gathering techniques. Posing as a perfect selection for couture designs, dainty laces are layered with cool summer checks, lightweight polyesters are manipulated in multiple ways and 3-D laser cut motifs are splashed over printed grounds. To create pliable pleats and pin-tucks, synthetic surfaces are morphed and modiied with steam, dry heat or machinery attachments. Smooth georgettes are gathered in shirring technique with minimal embroideries to form the perfect choice for summer skirts and dresses.

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FLORAL FIESTAThe prettiest and most feminine message of the season, depicted through the cherry blossoms and botanical blooms, can be found on the inest cottons and crepes. Yarn-dyed, digital and rotary screen printed lorals remind us of the bold prints of 70s. There is twisted silk and cotton ib res which are new this season. Illustrated as a garden with lush colourful lowers, the rising temperatures and shining sun cue the entry of fresh and feminine greens for Spring.

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SUMMER SOLSTICEThe onset of summer, ideal for picnics barbecues and other outdoorsy jaunts, necessitates a kind of fabric that manages heat and looks good at the same time. Tissues, chiffons, lurex nets and georgettes do that with inesse. Inspiration from rose gardens and textures of fruity gelato depict the pastel power with vibrant colours. Surfaces contain sparkling relections and soft prints on chiffon and net bases.


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DOUBLE-SIDED JERSEYRegarded as the most preferred knit in the summer due to its airy structure and construction, Jersey is used predominantly for clothing manufacturing at this time. Named after the island of Jersey, the fabric was originally made of wool but is now is created with cotton and synthetic i b res as well. Jerseys are very stretchy, made using single knitting process and are usually lightweight. The most popular application of this lightweight fabric can be seen in regular T-shirts. Other than single knitted, jerseys can be double knitted as well. The latter has less stretch and can be bulky as two single jerseys are knitted together to form a double jersey, the most popular amongst other varieties of Jersey Fabrics. It is considered to be an excellent fabric for draped garments, such as dresses, and women’s tops.

Some common uses for jersey fabric include T-shirts and leggings. The fabric is cool, lexible, stretchy, soft, easy on the skin and insulating, making it a popular choice for the layer worn closest to the body. KNITTED DENIM

Amid varied technological advances, fabric manufacturing has also touched new heights and with the customer’s growing need to wear something new every season, manufacturers have tried and developed many new versions. One such version is the knitted adaptation of our own archetypical denims. Indigo knit denims are made more or less the same way as denim. Cotton i b res are carted, spun, indigo-dyed and inally knitted instead of getting woven. Polyester and elastane are added to the cotton to increase lexibility and fabric recovery and the construction technique of knitting is the true value addition to this fabric.Being a knit, knitted denims have more elasticity, ease and lexibility in comparison with normal woven versions. Knitted denim also has the desirable knit properties of air permeability and wicking. One of the cons of this fabric is its tendency to fade with repeated use but the garment gains character with multiple wash and wear. Knitted denims are constructed in many different structures like, single jersey, interlock, pique, honey- comb, leece, plated, cross-strings and all possible design structures. Knitted denim are suitable for creating a wide range of garments and accessories like tights, glues, innerwear and other close it t ing garments.

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MESHPreparing for a hot summer, one must catchhold of fabrics which are easy to carry, cool and don’t weigh the body down. Net and mesh are such materials which give style, lucidity and convenience, all at the same time. Mesh is any textile in which the yarns are knitted at their intersections resulting in a fabric with open spaces between the yarns. Due to these open spaces, the fabric breathes well and can be used as a cover-up or a layer over summer clothing. Depending on the type of yarn or ilament that is used to make up the textile, its characteristics can vary in durability.

One of the most important qualities of mesh is transparency. The level of transparency differs depending upon the type of mesh, material used and the tightness of knitting. The fabric has an invisible pattern of knots that make up the cloth itself. Owing to its high breathable quality, mesh is used for sports jerseys as it does not keep in heat and dries quickly. Softer meshes are lexible like the ish net stockings.

NEOPRENEAs summer welcomes a range of loose it ted T-shirts and shorts, it is also a home base to leggings and jeggings. Stepping out from the winter heavy trousers, summer wear is more about body hugging lightweight knits, which are not only make the wearer feel comfortable but also cool and airy. Lycra serves the purpose perfectly. A registered brand name for a polyurethane-based synthetic ib re which is also called spandex or elastane, was created by DuPont. It's appreciated mostly for its strength and durability. Lycra can be stretched four to seven times than its initial length, and can still spring back to its original length once tension is released. While Lycra appears to be a single continuous thread, it is a bundle of tiny ilaments. Never used alone; it is always combined with another ib re (or i b res), natural or man-made. It already has an inherent stretch of its own; therefore it’s combined with ib res like cotton, viscose, etc. and is made into a fabric by knitting to extend its stretchy and lexible qualities to other variants. Even 2 per cent Lycra is enough to improve a fabric’s movement, drape and shape retention. Fabrics for high-performance garments such as swimwear and active sportswear may contain as much as 20-30 per cent Lycra. The fabric has varied range of applications like in apparels, socks & stockings, seamless garments, gloves, etc.

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