Sewing Thread Essay

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1. Introduction 1.1. Background In ancient times, mankind used to stitch animal skins for clothing and shelter. Thread in the form of leafs or long fur fibres of animals after twisting and needle made of bone was used for stitching. Weaving of cloth, introduction of line, silk and cotton threads and sewing machine put the stitching to a new level. The production of garments from tailor shop to mills started with industrial revolution [1]. Fabric and thread are two major elements of an apparel. Although thread have less than 1/1000th of its weight but still it is responsible for more half of the performance of apparel.[2] Life of apparel is equal to the minimum life of its any element. Thread is used to form stitches which helps in holding …show more content…

Theory To stitch the panel of fabrics together, thread is used. Sewing thread is a twisted ply yarn, which is treated with some finishes to make its surface resistant to friction and stresses when it passes through needle hole and material.[5] Different types of threads are used depending upon our garment design, life expectancy, quality, desired strength, fabric GSM, fabric construction, stitch and seam type, stitch density, machine speed, needle size and end use.[2] Sewing threads can be classified on the basis of type of fibre to be used, thread construction and finishes applied to the surface of thread. Threads can be manufactured form natural or synthetic fibres. Natural threads include cotton, linen and silk thread. Cotton thread is of three types: soft, glace and mercerized. Soft thread receives no special treatment other than bleaching or dyeing. Glace thread have a surface coating while mercerized thread is treated with caustic soda to produce thread with high lustre. Cotton thread have good sewability, good dye take-up but low strength. Linen thread have good strength and stiffness than cotton. Silk thread have high extensibility up to 20% which is an important factor adding to the strength of silk thread. It is available both in spun and filament form.[5] Most common synthetic threads include polyester and nylon. Both threads are stronger, more resistant to abrasion, mildew and ultraviolet radiation and have less shrinkage than cotton.[2] Moreover due to their …show more content…

Soft threads have low elastic modulus, low friction, large residual strain and low rigidity while hard threads have high elastic modulus, small residual strains, high friction and rigidity. For high speed stitching, hard threads is a better option.[9] Choosing a thread for stitching should fulfil two requirements: aesthetics and function. Factors affecting aesthetics of thread are colour, lustre, fineness, hue and shade matching, colour fastness, stitch selection and uniformity of stitch formation while factors affecting performance of thread include seam strength, abrasion resistance, elasticity, chemical resistance, flammability and colour

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