Embroidery (page 380, textbook)
Decorating fabrics by using a base fabric and threads or other fabric pieces to form a design on surface

Lace
Individual yarns are joined into a decorative pattern
May be hand or machine made

Quilted Fabric Page 119, (#10)
Composed of three layers
Top, middle (fill), bottom
Top and bottom may be the same or reversible
Quilted Fabrics
Provide good thermal insulation because inner layer traps air
Fill layer today is usually made from polyester; traditionally made from cotton batting
Quilted Fabric
Layers are joined by quilting (stitches either hand or machine-made)
OR by the ultrasonic method using sound waves to generate heat
Some of the fibers must be thermoplastic
 

Flocked Fabric (#35, page 119)
Short fibers are adhered to surface of fabric to give illusion of pile fabric
Can be attached by adhesive
May be attached electrostatically
(Page 392 in textbook)

Coated Fabric Page 120, #37)
Two or more layers – one is a textile material (usually nonwoven or a knit structure) and the other(s) is/are continuous polymer layer (such as vinyl, plastic film, etc.)
Often used for weather protection (wind, rain, etc)

Laminated/Bonded Fabrics (page 120, #49,38; page 120 #15)
Sometimes used as the same
Technical difference is:
Bonded: shell fabric is joined to a backing fabric with adhesive, usually does not add to thickness
Laminated: May be same process but often fabrics are joined by using heat properties of fibers to join fabrics

     Carpets and Rugs  Here are two excellent web sites for information about carpets and rugs.

floorspecs.com  Go to the Library and then to Novalis.

      Click here to go directly to the site.

      Carpet and Rug Institute  carpet-rug.com
 

    Terminology
     Tufting- process of punching loops of yarn (by using a series of needles) through a backing material.  Face
     may be cut or uncut.
     Gauge - the distance between the needles in the crosswise direction of the carpet; expressed as a fraction.  If
     there are 10 needles (loops) in an inch of the carpet, the gauge is 1/10.
     Stitch density - the number of loops  in the lengthwise direction of the carpet

     The density of the pile is the most important characteristic related to durability.

     Approximately 80% of the carpet made of nylon.  Other fibers are polyester, olefin (polypropylene), acrylic
     and wool.

Nylon has the largest market share of carpeting followed by olefin, polyester, acrylic, and wool.
 

PILE HEIGHT
Pile height means the thickness of the pile above the primary backing.

 PILE WEIGHT
Pile weight is the mass of the material used to form the pile of the wear surface.

Weights are different from one carpet to another because weight results from 4 factors – yarn count, height, gauge and stitch rate. These factors themselves relate to pile structure, appearance, comfort and the use to which the carpet is to be put.

Luxury carpets with a high, very dense cut pile use more yarn than low pile height, loop carpets with medium gauge and stitch rates.
 

Total  weight: the mass of material in the pile including the part within the backing.
Face or pile weight weight: the mass of material located above the primary backing, and which can be measured by shearing.
The weight within the backing is of interest as it affects tuft bind. However, the only meaningful value is the pile weight  weight, since this makes up the wearing surface.

It should also be remembered that, in order to make up for poor abrasion / crush resistance, some fibers require more weight than others. This additional weight is merely a compensation factor and does not give superior carpet quality. Care should thus be taken when comparing the weights of carpets made from different fibers.

 GAUGE & STITCH RATE
Pile stitch rate is measured in two ways: across the width and along the length of the carpet.

Across the width

On tufting machines the space between the needles is defined by precise standards. The space between needles is given in fractions of an inch (1/10 means there are 10 stitches across the width of the carpet. This is called the GAUGE.

If the gauge is known, the number of needles per metro can be calculated using the following formula:
 

Each needle inserts a tuft which corresponds to one stitch.

Changing the gauge allows the number of tufts to be varied to produce highly differing structures, from the finest to the coarsest, in varying densities, depending on the appearance and the quality required.

Along the length

Tufts along the length are expressed as the number of stitches. Stitches are determined by the rate at which the backing, in which the rows of tufts are inserted, is fed through the tufting machine.

Generally, stitch rates should be the same longitudinally as laterally.

Pile density stems from the number of tufts per  and is calculated by multiplying the number of rows (gauge) by the stitch rate. Whilst the gauge is normally given, the number of stitches is frequently not supplied although it is an important item of information.