PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN AND APPLICATION

Lesson 9: Effects of Yarn, Weave, Colour and Finishes on Textiles

Novelty or Fancy Yarns

• Novelty, fancy or decorative yarns are used in both woven and knitted fabrics. They can be natural or man-made or a combination of both.
• Knots, snarls, loops and other irregularities at regular or irregular intervals can be introduced to create textured surface effects.
• Fancy yarn usually have a base or core yarn which is a conventional single, ply, cable yarn or multi filament; this yarn is combined with the effect or fancy yarn and the effect yarn can be held in place with a binding yarn as shown in Fig.10.4.
  
  

  
  

  
  
• There are many types of fancy, novelty and decorative yarns produced for the knitting and furnishing industry.
• Different coloured fibres can be blended together then spun as one yarn.
• Colour can be applied by printing or dyeing pattern onto roving or yarn.
• Spots of coloured fibre can be twisted with the base yarn.
• Two or more threads of different, softness, thickness, weight, colour or fibre content can be twisted together.
• Raised textures can be introduced by controlling the amount and direction of twist.

Role of fancy yarns in woven designs

1. These fancy yarns produce fancy effects when woven in simple (basic) weaves and their variations.
2. Usually the fancy yarns are employed as weft to create fancy effect & special textures in simple weaves.
3. Fancy yarns enhance weight that in turn improves the drape and durability due to that such fabrics are more suitable for curtains, draperies, and other furnishings.
4. The dyed yarns produce stripes and checks as well pronounced seersucker effects.
5. Fancy yarns play an important role in creating variety of textures like – soft, fine, coarse, hard, rough, tuff, glossy, slippery, leathery textures.
6. By intelligent sourcing and planning of variety of yarns, one can produce fabrics for different end uses like – shirting, dress material, children’s garments, home textiles, towels, carpets, durries, industrial materials, agro textiles, medical textiles, civil engineering works, automobile industry etc.
7. Space dyed yarns produce single or double ikat effects popularly used to weave Pochampalli and Patola fabrics.
8. A designer can create miracles with limited weaves simply by manipulating the use of fancy yarns of different types.