fibre reflective journal

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The categorisation of fibres was not new to me although the classes went into much greater detail than I was aware of. The ability to create almost endless fibres from synthetic materials was astounding. The mix of natural and synthetic fibres was something I knew, as many t shirts I own are a mix of cotton and polyester. The understanding of knitting and weaving gave me a new appreciation of the mix of fibres and yarns, and their recyclability. The fact that cotton is such a damaging product to the environment, it’s non-recyclable, a very thirsty plant made me question the mixing with valuable materials like polyester, where it will be placed into landfill and the valuable synthetics will be lost. Polyester is completely recyclable, but is not favoured as a 100% polyester textile because of its look and feel. The choice of using cotton for underwear and t shirts is understandable, however where applicable, synthetic recyclable materials should be used to lessen the impact of fabrics on the environment, which are often

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thrown out season to season which wastes the longevity possible of natural fibres which are grown and wasted before the end of their life. For applications where clothes are treated as disposable, fibres that are much less damaging should be forcibly used. Policies like the ones being applied in the EU on textiles should be implemented worldwide.

http://product-image.tradeindia.com/00111522/b/0/Polyester-Industrial-Sewing-Thread-Hari-.jpg

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Silvertex® was interesting to learn about, although due to it being such a young, trademarked product it was hard to find details about its make up. This lack of information allowed us to be more creative in its uses, and have a bit of fun with the product and its possibilities.

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The fibre classes were very informative and interesting. When we went to Brunswick it really made the processes and information we had learnt solid. Seeing the hand weaving machine made me respect fabrics a lot more for what they are. The machines and their detail were astonishing. The circular hand knitting machine showed the inventiveness and the scale of these machines. The amount the needle moved up and down as the handle was wound. The way the knot was tied, or knitted as the latch on the needle caught the thread and released gave me a new appreciation for knitting. The commercial grade machines such as the jacquard loom, jacquard/shuttle hybrid, circular knitting machine and Shima Seiki knitting machine are so complex that I could not fathom trying to make one of them.Brunswick was fun to go to. My interest in denim lead me to see in much more detail how it is created. I saw how selvage denim I like to wear was made. The hybrid jacquard shuttle loom made me understand how the traditional “red selvage” stripe comes about which I found very interesting.The manequin which produced sweat and ran was interesting and showed how developed the science of fabrics really is. Although i could not handle it for long in the room.

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Shuttle loom/Jacquard Hybrid

Circular knitting mill

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Shima Seiiki automated knitting mill

Hand weave shuttle loom

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Double story Jacquard Loom

Hand powered Circular knitting mill

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Sweaty manequin in humid room

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The innovation of Issey Miyake in the world of fabrics lead me to look at new innovations, however not in a fashion sense but a technical sense. A development from Japan where an invisibilty cloak was made using a projector onto the wearer gave the appearance of invisibility although it was not very convincing. Their however is a product being developed that bends light around the body inside. Due to its secrecy, there is not much information available but somehow the fibres reflects and refracts around the body inside. The article briefly goes into the fibres being thinner than the wavelength of light. The fabric is supposedly 5 years away and has only been tested in very small patches. This could be a hoax like many things on the internet but would be very exciting if real.

12.ELLIOTHENKEL #3236909