Learner’s Guide :: 17

CARE AND MAINTENANCE OF FABRICS

L.No Title of Lesson SKILLS Activity

9 Care and Maintenance Critical and Creative Thinking, Importance and methods
of Fabrics Problem Solving and Decision Making of stain removal

Summary

Fabric prevents growth of bacteria and fungus, which prevents from spoilage and many skin problems.
They need care and maintenance to prolong their life and strength. Well-maintained fabrics give a
groomed look.
When we wear clothes they become dirty due to stains, dust, perspiration etc. and need laundering. Some
clothes cannot be washed every time they are worn. Thus, before putting them away for reuse, shaking,
brushing or airing becomes necessary.
For care and maintenance of the fabrics, one should know the following pre-laundering steps:
 Collecting soiled clothes
 Mending them to enhance durability
 Sorting them as per type, colour, size, weight, dirt, utility, soaking time etc.
 Understanding labels to get information about the do’s and don’ts of washing a fabric
 Removing the stains
A stain is an unwanted mark of discolouration on a fabric caused due to contact with another substance.
While removing stains, some following precautions should be taken:
 Remove the stain while it is still fresh otherwise it might penetrate deep into the fabric
 For delicate or coloured fabrics, do the chemical test on the inner side of the seam first and check for damage
 Use dilute or mild reagents
 Rinse thoroughly after removal of the stain

What’s Important to Know?

Classification of stains and techniques of stain removal:
Category of stains Stains Method of stain removal for white cottons
Vegetable Tea, Coffee, Fruit Boiling water, Borax
Henna Dip in warm milk
Animal Blood, Milk, Egg Cold water + soap
Grease Oil, Ghee, Butter, Curry Hot water + soap , dry on grass in sun
Shoe polish, Paint, Lipstick Scrape, sponge with spirit/ kerosene/ turpentine
Mineral Rust Lime juice + Salt
Miscellaneous Grass, Ink Soap + water
Betal leaf (Paan) Paste of onions, leave in sunlight
18 :: Learner’s Guide

Principal Points

Build Your Understanding Did You Know?

Methods of Washing Different fabrics are ironed on different
1. Washing by friction temperatures because of their different
 Hand friction: used for cleaning very soiled composition and heat sensitivities. Wool and
small-sized areas such as cuffs, collar etc. synthetic fibers are ironed at 1500 C, Cotton
 Scrubbing wash: suitable for cleaning floor and rayon at 1800 C while cotton and linen at
and kitchen dusters
extra hot 2000 C.
 Beating stick: used for large clothes such as
bed sheets and towels
2. Washing by kneading and squeezing: used Extend Your Horizon
for delicate fabrics such as silk, wool etc.
3. Washing in machines: saves labour and Reema had mistakenly spilled ink over her white
provides friction required for washing school uniform. Identify the stain and suggest her
some stain removal techniques.
Evaluate Yourself

1. What are the steps of stain removal? Maximize your marks

2. Why can’t we iron woollens with hot iron?
 Read and evaluate some labels
Give reason for your answer.
 Practice stain removing techniques to
3. Why is it essential to store only completely understand them better.
dry clothes?
 Learner’s Guide :: 19

FIBRE TO FABRIC

L.No Title of Lesson SKILLS Activity

10 Fibre to Fabric Critical Thinking and Creative Thinking Importance and types of
Problem Solving and Decision Making fibre and fabric

Summary
Fibre is the basic unit of fabric. Fibre may be long or short strands with a smooth structure. A fibre is
a fine hair-like strand and is the basic unit of textiles from which yarns are made. From these yarns fabric
is constructed.

Clothes are made out of fabrics. They cover the

body, protect from adverse climates, enhance the
personality and is an indication of the status of a
person. Certain fabrics define religion and
occupation e.g. a military uniform indicates that
the person is a defence personnel. Fabric can be
used to make upholstery, curtains etc. Fibre has
to undergo various processes to become a yarn
such as cleaning––to remove the unwanted material; carding––to arrange fibres in a parallel manner;
combing––to separate short and long fibres; spinning and winding.

Weaving is interlacing of two sets of yarns––warp and weft, at 90° angles to each other. Straight yarns
in a fabric are known as warp yarns and horizontal yarns are known as weft yarns. Along the length
of the woven fabric, on both sides, end yarns are woven very densely and the portion is named selvedge.
Knitting is the process of formation of loops of yarns and drawing of new loops through those formed
previously (interlooping).

Principal Points Build Your Understanding

 Short length fibres are called staple fibres. They
Silk is a natural, protein filament produced
are measured in inches and centimetres e.g.
by silk worm. Silk is soft, fine, smooth,
cotton, wool and linen
lustrous, warm and stronger than wool. Silk
 The long fibres are known as filaments and are
is known as the ‘Queen of fibres’.
measured in yards or meters e.g. silk and all
You have received a silk outfit. How will you
man-made fibres
determine whether the silk fabric is pure or
 Rayon is also called ‘artificial silk’. These fibres
artificial.
are thermoplastic in nature (heat sensitive)
20 :: Learner’s Guide

Did You Know?

The behaviour of the fibres on approaching the flame, in the flame, on burning by the flame and the residue
left after burning can help to identify if the fibre is natural or man-made.

Burning test for identification of fibres

Fibre Near flame Type of burning Odour of Residue
burning
Cellulosic Fibres Catches fire easily Continues to burn, Burning paper Light, feathery,
bright flame, greyish-black
afterglow smooth ash
Protein Fibres Smoulder and burn Slow flickering Burning hair, Silk: crisp dark ash
flame, sizzles feather Wool: dark
and curl irregular crushable
ash

Extend Your Horizon

Twists given to fibre strands for formation of a yarn can be either ‘S-twist’
(clockwise) or ‘Z-twist’ (anticlockwise). The quality and strength of yarn is
affected by the number of twists per inch. Lesser the number of twists per
inch, bulkier and less strong is the yarn. If there are more number of twists
the yarn is finer and stronger.
Take a strand of the cloth you are wearing and untwist it to see if it is S-twist
or Z-twist.

Evaluate Yourself
What’s Important to Know?
1. Your friend feels very hot in summers. He wants
CLASSIFICATION OF YARNS to know what fabrics would suit him in summers.
Suggest two fibres and fabrics suitable for
summers.
2. What kind of fibre and fabric will you select for
your undergarments and why?
3. Your mother wants to buy new eco-friendly
clothes. Suggest some fabrics that she can buy.

Maximize your marks

 Learn definitions
 Diagrams can help in understanding and
memorising various techniques
 Learn the tables given in the chapter
 Learner’s Guide :: 21

FABRIC FINISHES

L.No Title of Lesson SKILLS Activity

11 Fabric Finishes Critical Thinking and Creative Thinking Importance and types of
Problem Solving and Decision Making fabric finishes and dyeing

Summary

The fabric which comes out of a loom is very dirty, stained, wrinkled, dull, rough, grey or off-white in
colour. They are known as grey fabrics. No one buys a fabric in this condition even if sold at a low cost.
Therefore fabrics are given various finishes to make grey fabric lustrous, wrinkle and stain free, wider,
colourful, good texture and print. This makes the fabric more useful and suitable for use. A finish is a
treatment given to a fabric, to change its appearance, handling/ touch or performance. Its purpose
is to make the fabric more suitable for its end use. It improves the feel and touch. These finished
fabrics lure the consumers to buy them even if they are costly.
There are two categories of finishes––basic and special finishes. They can be further classified into three
types:
 Functional
 Performance
 Mechanical and chemical in nature.
These are chosen as per the use of the fabric and the type of the fibre.
The process of producing colours and designs on a fabric is called dyeing and printing respectively.
Dyes and printing makes the fabric beautiful and gives variety in design and colour. Dyes are divided
into two major categories––natural and synthetic dyes. Dyes can be applied at different stages such as
the fibre stage, the yarn stage or the fabric stage. All these stages give uniform colour. Colour is not
uniform when fabric is dyed at garment stage.

Principal Points
Classification of finishes as per function
Finishes Types Process involved Effect on fabric
Basic / Scouring/Cleaning With warm water and soap Improves whiteness, absorbent
Aesthetic Bleaching Chemical:
Hydrogen peroxide-protein fibre Whiteness
Sodium hypochloride- cotton fibre
Starching Soaking in starch Stiff, heavy, shiny, smooth
Calendering Industrial ironing Remove wrinkles
Functional / Pre-shrinking Dipping in water No further shrinkage
Special Mercerization Sodium hydroxide Strong, lustrous, absorbent
Parchmentisation Use of mild acid Permanent stiffness
Wash n wear Wrinkle resistant
Dyeing and printing Natural and chemical colours Variety in colours and design
22 :: Learner’s Guide

Build Your Understanding What’s Important to Know?

There are various types of dyeing and printing Finishes as per performance and nature
techniques:
 Tie and dye Finishes Durability Example/Effects
 Batik Temporary Run off with Starch, blue
 Block printing one wash
 Screen printing Semi- durable Run off with Bleaching, dyeing
 Roller printing several wash
 Stencil printing
Durable Not so Wrinkle resistant,
permanent permanent pleats
Did You Know?
Permanent / Entire life Water proofing
chemical/ wet
Did you know nature offers us many sources of
Mechanical/ Do not last Beating, brushing,
dyes? Can you guess some? Some of them are
dry long calendering, filling
mentioned below:

Dye Source Effect Type

Natural  Vegetable  Eco-  Turmeric
dye  Animal friendly  Henna Extend Your Horizon
Mineral  Dull colour  Madaar
 Not fast  Indigo Design three samples of handkerchief using
different types of dyeing or printing
 Direct techniques.
Synthetic  Chemical  Pollutes
dye  Allergic  Basic
Fast and  Acid
bright  Disperse
colours  Vat Evaluate Yourself

1. Why is it advisable to buy sanforised

fabrics?
2. Differentiate between Patola dyeing and
dyeing?
Maximize your marks 3. What is the basic difference between
dyeing and printing?
 Read carefully the words and sentences in
4. You need a raincoat, what finish will
bold in the module
you look for?
 Do some activity related to fabrics