What is your favorite fabric?

[Democracy White]

Silk and satin does it for me. I also like spandex type materials. I can't stand wool though.

Dee

[eyepaddle]

1. I LOOOOOVVVVEEE wool!

More for me I guess! ;)

A lot depends on the use I guess. Just loungin', well it's hard to beat cotton, If I'm canoeing for a week or more, I want wool and polypropylene. You never see it on the outside of a garment but gore-tex is a wondrous thing.

But just for the mental associations I get, I love wet neoprene! (While it smells funny, if you smell it, you're doing something really fun--like paddling or diving! :D )

[Writer]

2. I prefer the invisible kind.

YAR-HAR!

[Left Is Write]

3. Cotton.

[supernova]

4. Silk, baby!

I even have silk sheets! :woohoo:

[miss_kitty]

5. All natural stuff

and Rayon, which is made from wood fibre, IIRC.

Pima cotton is nice. I have some high thread count sheets on my bed, which is really soft.

[Reverend_Smitty]

6. Can't beat 100% cotton

especially on a hot day like this

[Dukkha]

7. velvet

I could drape myself in it. Especially crushed black velvet. Women who wear that as a dress is a huge turn on.

[Shoeempress]

8. Anything natural, and especially ones that have texture.

[kodi]

9. good gracious doesn't anyone know the difference between fiber and fabric?

fibers are defined as the type of chemical moiety that makes up the fiber. poly-ester, poly-amide (nylons, silk, nomex, and kevlar), poly-propylene, cotton is a poly- saccharide

fabrics are the three dimensional composite structure made up of fibers; twills, denims, satins, sateens, cambrays, almost an infinite variety of ways to interlock the warp and filling yarns.

[jmowreader]

12. Okay, how's this for the difference?

My favorite fabric is spunbonded.

My favorite fiber is PBI Gold (40 percent PBI, 60 percent Kevlar), a fiber which cannot burn in air.

[kodi]

16. you forgot who i am JM, i taught grad courses in fiber and polymer science

of course, you remember our discussions a few years back?

but PBI/aramid fabrics cost $10-20/square yard and are essentially useless for most moderately costed textile FR barrier products conmpared to Visil, a 30% silica doped rayon that sells at $2.25-2.50 (denier dependent)... but the flexibilities of visil are comparable to the aramid/ hetero blend. in fact, i have had to develop spinning/slashing lubricants for that fiber blend when i formulated spin finishes and sizing agents for Dupont, BASF and allied-signal, usually low MW polyester sizing agents for water jet looms.

btw: flame retarding melt polymers is easy, use a 2/1 ratio of decabromodiphenyloxide and antimony oxide at 3% of the spinning dope polymer mass, PET/PP/PE all pass NFPA 701 and UL 94 but be sure to employ a polymer dispersant with the FR additive viz., a low melt flow index PPPE as the additive drives up the MFI in the extrusion process.

I am running trials at the last remaining US rayon plant next month to produce an inherently FR rayon that should capture the market in barrier fabrics for home furnishngs to pass CA TB 603 for mattresses. it will knock Visil's dick in the dirt on cost and performance.

nice to see you again, still in new england?

[jmowreader]

17. Naah...haven't been in New England since 1990

Did my first AIT at Fort Devens in 1982, did BNCOC at Devens in 1990, and haven't been back since.

And believe you me, I've been kicking myself over that. North Carolina ain't Massachusetts by any stretch of the imagination.

When did Visil come out and how's it handle welding heat? I have a PBI lineman's shirt I paid a fortune for, but I figured it was worth it because I wear it when I weld.

[kodi]

19. Visil has been around since 2002-3, good thermal barrier properties

but since it is 70% cellulosic, it does burn, and char.

it comes out of finland. google it.

on an aside, there is a company called "Carbtex" from angleton texas that makes an oxidized PAN fiber, polyacrylonitrile. the fiber is outstanding for use in gloves for FR properties and it prevents cuts on your hand. it is commercial and the gloves are used in a lot of major US automotive plants where other types of gloves are too bulky to wear. they will send you a pair if you call them and ask for a pair.

check them out on google. i do business with them in the FR business.

if you work with sharp objects that can cut thru most fabrics, their gloves are an excellent alternative. they also make fabrics with the stuff too that might be of value to you.

email me and i will give you the name of my contact. he's a pretty cool guy.

[chaska]

10. I kid you not, an ex-girlfriend and I, our song was...

"the touch, the feel, the fabric of our lives..."

I swear to god, we used to sing it to each other.

I sure miss her. :cry:

[wovenpaint]

11. handwoven, of course!

I especially love fabric made from mixed yarns with lots of interesting texture/color. Right now, I love "collapsed" weaves and the added use of felting.
Think of when you threw a sweater into the wash and it came out doll size and mix that with stuff that doesn't shrink....
probably more info than you needed, tho....can you tell that I'm a weaver??
:hi: :evilgrin:

[DeposeTheBoyKing]

13. Soft, thick velvet

And satin.

[LeftyMom]

14. Hemp

Really, it lasts forever and it stays cool and doesn't look sweaty in the heat. Awesome stuff.

[RevCheesehead]

15. French Terrycloth (in cool weather), and Peachskin.

[sakabatou]

18. Cotton