How Are Our Clothes Made?

Cotton is one of the most widely used fabrics in the world. It’s so popular that half of the global production of clothing fibers is from cotton alone. While this is a seemingly high percentage, it is one that makes complete sense. Most of the clothes in our closets contain cotton, as it is comfortable, breathable fabric. However, although the fabric is easy to wear, the production process to create cotton is extremely intricate.

Inspection

After the raw cotton is harvested and placed into bales to store and transport, a sample from each bale must be sent to the United States Department of Agriculture for inspection and value determination so that it can be sold to a mill to be processed further into yarn.

Creating the yarn

To make yarn, first the fibers of several bales must be mixed to create a uniform blend of fiber properties. The fibers are then blown from a feeder through chutes that form them into thin webs. These webs are then processed through another machine to create a rope-like piece called a sliver. The sliver is put through roving frames to thin the sliver and create a bit of a twist in it, which is accentuated when put through the next machine: ring spinning machines or rotors. These machines are what form the slivers into the desired thickness that is needed for weaving or knitting.

Dying the fabric

After the yarn is knitted or woven into fabric, it moves on to the dying process. Here piece dying is used. The fabric is passed through a hot dye solution and then goes through padded rollers to evenly distribute the dye and squeeze out excess liquid.

Lastly the fabric is then given some type of finish(es) the fabric production is finished. The processes to create different finishes vary but finishes can be applied to a fabric to create a different look to it, change the way it feels, or for utility reasons such as making the fabric flame resistant, water repellent, etc.

Sources

http://www.madehow.com/Volume-6/Cotton.html

https://www.cotton.org/pubs/cottoncounts/fieldtofabric/dyeing.cfm