Why a fabric wears through at the fold
A fold puts the same narrow strip of cloth through repeated bending and exposes its ridge to rubbing. Fiber, yarn, weave and care decide how that wear develops.
A place for slower thoughts
Threads of Cloth
Textiles through fibres, structures, dyes and the work of keeping them.
Words by Leila Hart
The archive
6 storiesFrom the notebook
The stretch that comes from knitting
A knit can lengthen as its loops change shape, before much of the yarn itself stretches. Stitch pattern, direction, friction and yarn decide how it returns.
What indigo leaves on the surface of a fibre
Indigo enters a vat in one chemical form and leaves the air as another. The depth at which its blue settles helps explain denim's colour, wool's different response, and the marks of wear.
How a woven edge holds together
A woven cloth has an edge made by the path of its threads. Follow a shuttle’s return, then the different ways a shuttleless loom secures each cut weft, and the small allowance of slack that keeps the edge straight.
The twist inside a strong thread
A spun thread holds together because its short fibers grip one another. Twist increases that grip, but too much turns the fibers away from the line of a pull. The strongest yarn balances both effects.
Why wool changes shape in water
A damp wool garment can swell, relax, or felt. The three changes happen at different scales and for different reasons, so the shape you see after washing tells only part of the story.