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