Fibers and Their Characteristics A brief overview of today’s natural and manufactured fibers
Where do Fibers Come From? Natural Manufactured
The Natural Fibers They come from Plants Cotton Flax
The Natural Fibers They come from Animals Wool Silk
The Manufactured Fibers They come from cellulose Acetate Rayon
More Manufactured Fibers They come from Chemicals Polyester Nylon Acrylic
What is a blend? Two or more fibers are mixed together Natural fibers are often combined with manufactured fibers
Cotton: the fabric of our lives Strong Durable Dries Quickly Absorbent Lacks elasticity Wrinkles Shrinks
Flax (Linen) Strong Dries Quickly Absorbent Wrinkles Shrinks Mildews
Wool Warm and Soft Resilient Breathes Repels and absorbs moisture Shrinks and Mats Susceptible to moths Heat Sensitive Itchy
Silk Luxurious Wrinkle resistant Absorbent Dyes easily Yellows Weakened by Sunlight Insect Damage
Polyester Strong Wrinkle Resistant Can be heat set Stable Holds oily stains Non-absorbent (hot to wear)
Nylon Strong Dries Quickly High Wet Strength Non-absorbent Damaged by sunlight Picks up stray dies
Acrylic Strong Elastic Soft Imitates wool Pilling Holds oily stains Absorbency limited
Acetate Absorbent Colorfast Luxurious feel Resilient Inexpensive Poor wet strength Heat sensitive Dissolves in acetone (fingernail polish remover) Gets static electricity
Rayon: the first manufactured fiber Inexpensive Dyes and prints easily Absorbent Takes finishes well Poor wet strength Low resiliency Wrinkles easily Weakened by sunlight