Basic Weaves

M K BANSAL

NITRA TECHNICAL CAMPUS

Ghaziabad

Representation of woven structure on graph paper:

In
representing
weave on graph paper
each distance between
the two vertical lines
represents one warp
thread and the distance
between two horizontal
lines represents one
weft thread.
Small squares illustrates the place
where certain warp threads meets with
certain weft thread. Thus the square
marked a will indicate the interlacement
of warp thread no.1 with 1st pick, mark
b will indicate the interlacement of warp
thread no. 2 with 1st pick. like wise mark
g will indicate the interlacement of warp
thread no. 3 with 2nd pick and so on.

Different kinds of graph paper used in designing

The proper selection of graph paper is ascertained by the no. of warp and
weft threads required per inch in the finished fabric. For example a fabric
of 80 EPI and 120 PPI will require a graph of corresponding proportion or
as 80 is to 120 = 8x12, similarly EPI= 80 & PPI= 60 will require a 8x6 graph
paper.

Indication of any kind in a certain

square inside the repeat of the
weave upon the graph paper mean
warp up , and squares left empty
inside the repeat of the weave on
graph paper mean weft up in its
corresponding position in the
fabric.

Warp up

Weft up

Basic Fabric Structure ( Weaves)

There are three basic weaves.
Plain Weave

Twill Weave

Satin Weave

All other Structures are a variation or a combination of these weaves.

Description:

Plain Weave

Plain weave is the most basic of three fundamental types of weaves.It is strong
and hard-wearing, used for fashion and furnishing fabrics.
In plain weave, the warp and weft are aligned so they form a simple criss-cross
pattern. Each weft thread crosses the warp threads by going over one, then under
the next, and so on. The next weft thread goes under the warp threads that its
neighbor went over, and vice versa.

Terms as tabby, Calico, alpaca, and taffeta are

applied to plain cloth.

Plain Weave

Fabrics produced on plain weave base

Some examples of plain weave fabrics with different textures are

Chiffon

fill-a fill

Organdy

Seersuckers

Taffeta

Plaids

Lawn

Muslin

Voile
Cotton Checks

Plain sheeting

Fancy effects produced with the plain weave:

There are lot of methods of ornamenting and varying
the structure of plain weave.
1.
2.
3.
4.

5.

Threads which are different in color, material, thickness or twist are

combined,
The number of threads per dent of the reed, or picks in a given space is
varied.
The ends are brought from two or more warp beams which are
differently tensioned.
By means of specially shaped reeds which rises and falls the threads are
caused to form Zig-Zag lines in the cloth.
By the process of dyeing, printing and finishing.

Plain Check & Stripes

Twill weave
Twill weave produce diagonal lines in
the cloth. In simple twills point of
intersection move one out ward and
one upward on succeeding picks.
Twill weave can be made on any
number of threads that exceeds two.
Twill lines are formed on both sides
of the cloth and direction of the lines
may be right or left.
Twill weaves enables greater weight,
closer setting, and better draping
quality than plain weave in the cloth.

2 by 1 twill

Popular Twill fabrics

Serge
Denim

Cashmere
Drill
Gabardine

blanket

Denim 3/1 Twill weave

Satin & sateen Weave

The term satin is used for warp face
structure and sateen is used for weft face
structure. In pure sateen and satin weaves
there is one interlacing for each warp yarn
and only one interlacing for each weft yarn
in each repeat of the weave. This result in
production of fabrics with a maximum
degree of smoothness and luster and without
any prominent weave effect.
Buckskin, Venetian, and damask are fabrics
made on satin structures

satin thread interlacement

5 shaft Warp face

satin Weave

sateen thread interlacement 5 shaft Weft face

sateen Weave

4x4 Matt

Plain weave derivative

Matt, basket or Hopsack weave:

Basket weave is made by extending the plain
weave both vertically and horizontally so that in
both directions there are two or more threads
working together in the same order. When the
groups of yarns are equal, the basket weave is
termed regular, otherwise it is termed irregular.
The two by two (2x2) basket weave is the most
common. In this weave as given below the warp
yarns in pairs interlace in plain weave order with
the weft yarns in pairs. The weave repeats on
four ends and four picks, and require only two
heald frames to make.

Matt or Basket Weave

Regular 2x2 basket

Regular 3x3 basket

Regular 4x4 basket

Irregular 3x2 basket

Irregular 4x2 basket

Rib Weaves

Rib weaves are usually made by having two or more warp yarns
together, inter- lacing as one yarn with the individual weft yarns,
or two or more weft yarns together, interlacing as one yarn with
individual warp yarns. The groups of yarns interlace in plain
weave order with the single yarns. Fabrics with a rib weave are
reversible unless one side is made the face by finishing or
printing.

Warp Rib Weave:

Warp ribs are produced
by extending the plain
weave vertically.
3x3
warp
rib

4x4
warp
rib

Ornamenting warp rib:

The warp ribs can be
emphasized even more
strongly by the use of
alternate coarse and fine
ends, slack and tight
ends, and Thick and fine
picks as shown in Figure
A, B, and C

Weft Rib Weave:

Weft ribs are produced
by extending the plain
weave horizontally.

3x3 weft rib

4x4 weft rib

Twill weave

Twill weave produce diagonal lines

in the cloth. Twill weave can be
made on any number of threads
that exceeds two. Twill lines are
formed on both sides of the cloth
and direction of the lines may be
right or left.

2/1 Twill
(shifting warp wise)

Angle of inclination of twill weaves

Twill Angle:
Twill angle is the angle which is produced by twill
line with respect to the horizontal line.
This twill angle depends on following factors.
1. Ratio between EPI and PPI.
2. Difference between warp and weft count.
3. Rate of advancement it interlacement warp and
weft.

In simple twills point of intersection move one out ward and one
upward on succeeding picks. Twill weaves enables greater
weight, closer setting, and better draping quality than plain
weave in the cloth. Denim, blanket and Gabardine fabrics are
made of twill weave basis.

2/2 Twill
Shifting warp wise

4/4 Right hand Twill

4/4 Left hand Twill

4/1 warp face Twill

4/1 weft face Twill

Mixing of two Twill weaves

Mixing of three Twill weaves

4/2 & 3/1 Twill

4/4, 3/3, 2/2 Twill

Mixing of four Twill weaves

4/2, 3/1, 1/3, 2/4

Twill weave derivative

Zigzag or waved twill

Warp face & weft face & balanced twill
Steep or elongated twill
Herringbone twill
Reverse twill
Broken twill
Mixed twill
Combining twills end to end pick to pick

Fancy twills
Transposed or re arranged twill
Diamond and diaper twill designs

Zigzag or waved twill

The simplest forms of modified twill is the waved twill
achieved by reversing the direction of the twill at suitable intervals.
The reversal can occur either upon a warp direction in which case
horizontal wave is produced , or upon a weft pick which results in
a vertical weave or a zig-zag effect .
The horizontal wave effects are economically produced in
point drafts and good styles may be woven on few healds. The
vertical line effects, however mostly require dobby shedding motion,
because of comparatively large number of picks in the lifting plan.

Method-I Converting 3/3 Twill into zig-zag twill

1 2 3 4 5 6 5 4 3 2
In Horizontal direction

2
3
4
5
6
5
4
3
2
1

In Vertical direction

1 2 3 4 5 678 7 6 543 2

1 2 3 4 5 678 7 6 543 2
Converting 3/1,1/3 Twill into zigzag Twill

Converting 4/4 Twill into zigzag Twill

Medium zigzag of 2/2 Twill

Small zigzag of 2/2 twill
(one repeat)

1 2 3 4 3 2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

Large zigzag of 2/2 Twill

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15161514 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

Herringbone Twill These twills, also depend upon the reversal of the
direction to achieve the desired effect . The twill does not
come to a point where it changes the direction but instead
one twill line is said to cut into the other at the point of
reversal . The following design shows construction of 2 and 2
herringbone twill which runs from left to right for the desired
number of ends (8) where upon the reversal of direction takes
place by introducing on the 9th end, the mark which are exactly
opposite to those of the 8th end .

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 910111213141516

Herringbone twill of 2/2 Twill

(16x4)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Herringbone twill of 3/3 Twill

(12x6)

Herringbone Twill of 4/1,3/1 Twill (18x9)

Herring bone Twill of 9 repeats of 4/4 Twill (48x24)

Herring bone

Zig-Zag

(b) Reverse Twill

In this weave the number of threads in warp & weft of one

repeat remains same in the design . In the following design
one repeat of design has 8 threads in warp & weft. Reverse
twill design should have same number of threads in face &
back i.e. 2/2 ,3/3 , 4/4 etc.
(8x8)

(6x6)
(4x4)
2/2Reverse Twill

3/3 Reverse Twill

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
5x5 Regular Twill

(10x10)

4/4 Reverse twill

1 2 3 4 5 10 9 8 7 6
5/5 Reverse Twill

(10x10)

Broken Twill -

It is produced by breaking a regular twill.

1 2 3 4
2/2 Regular Twill

1 2 4 3

2/2 Broken Twill

at a break of 2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
4/4 Regular Twill

1 2 3 4 5 6
3/3 Regular Twill

1 2 4 3 5 6 8 7
4/4 Broken Twill at a break of2

1 2 3 6 5 4
3/3 Broken Twill
at a break of 3

2 1 4 3 6 5 8 7
4/4 Broken Twill at a break of2

1 2 3

6 5 4 7

8 1 4 3

4/4 Broken Twill at a Break of 3

2 5 6

2 1

8 3 4 5 8

7 6

(24x8)

1 2 3 4 5 2 1 8 7 63 4 5 6 7 4 3 2 18 5 6 7 8 1 6 5 4 3 2 7 8 12 3 8 7 6 5 4
4/4 Broken Twill at a Break of 5

(40x8)

Mixed Twill
This has been developed by combining the two regular twill designs.
This can be of two types. The first is warp mixed twill weave and
second is weft mixed twill weave. One twill say A is first indicated
on the odd vertical spaces and to complete the design, twill B is
indicated on the even vertical spaces . Each twill must be carried
out on 6 ends and picks and hence the design C consist of 6
threads of A and 6 threads of B and thus repeats on 12 ends and
6 picks .

Diamond Twill Diamond weave is symmetrical about their vertical and horizontal axes
which can be produced with the aid of point draft and vertical waved
twilled peg-plan.
True diamond shapes converge most designs of this type can be
constructed economically on the pointed draft basis.

construction of a diamond design based upon 3/ 3 twill weave is

given below:

1
2
3
4
5
6

1 2 3 4 5 6 5 4 3 2

Zig-Zag weave (10x6)

1
2
3
4
5
6
5
4
3
2

1 2 3 4 5 6 5 4 3 2

Diamond weave (10x10)

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22

Diamond weave of 4/4,2/2 (22x22)

Diaper Weave
Diaper weaves are symmetrical about their diagonal axes, these are based
on herringbone draft and vertical waved twilled peg-plan.

Diaper weave based on 2/2 Twill weave

Diaper weave on 3/3, 3/3 Twill

Uses of Twill Weave:

Twill weave are extensively used in manufacturing cloth for
garments household cloth and industrial cloth.
Generally dimond,diaper and zigzag twill are used for making
pillow,cover,screen,unpholstery,bed sheet,towel etc.
Continious twill are used for making fabric for shirting,suiting and
pantin(denim,gaverdine).
For making various type of ornamental cloth,other derivatives of
twill weave are used.
Herring bone twill are used in the cloth of suiting and overcoats.

Satin & sateen Weave

The term satin is used
for warp face structure
and sateen is used for
weft face structure. In
pure sateen and satin
weaves there is one
interlacing for each
warp yarn and only
one interlacing for
each weft yarn in each
repeat of the weave.
This will result in
production of fabrics
with
a
maximum
degree of smoothness
and luster and without
any prominent weave
effect.

Ref: Fabric Structure by N. Gokerneshan

Thumb rules for making satin weave

Move can not be one or less than one of the
satin no.
Move no. should not be factor of satin no.
There should not be any common factor
between move no. & satin no.

Regular Satin and Sateen weave

Possible moves

5 end satin/sateen

2,3

7 end satin/sateen

2,3,4,5

8 end satin/sateen

3,5

9 end satin/sateen

2,4,5,7

10 end satin/sateen

3,7

11 end satin/sateen

2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9

12 end satin/sateen

5,7

Irregular Sateen: These are entirely free from twill lines

4 end sateen (Satinette)

6 end sateen

In eight end irregular sateen 3 is counted

to the right for four picks; on the fifth
pick the count is equal to half the
number of threads in the repeat i.e. 4 and
then on succeeding picks 3 is counted to
the left.

8 end sateen (irregular)

In ten end irregular sateen 3 is

counted to the right for half the
number of picks; then 5 is counted
and afterwards on succeeding picks
3 is counted to the left.

10 end irregular sateen

In 12 thread irregular sateen the

count is 3 & 5 alternately for the
six picks, then 6 for the next pick

and afterwards 3 & 5 alternately to

the left.

12 ends irregular sateen

Satin weave derivative

In simple derivatives the new

design is built up by using the
original satin or sateen as base,
and subtracting or adding marks
as required in the same relative
position to each base marks.

5 end sateen

5 end satin

8 end satin

Buckskin weave

Derivative

Venetian weave

8 end satin
derivative

Crepe or oatmeal weave

The term crepe is applied to weaves, which

gives the appearance of being covered by
minute spots or seeds. Crepe weave is different
from crepe cloth in which broken surface effect
is due to entirely to the use of high twist yarns
which, upon controlled shrinkage in the
finishing, produce a highly irregular texture
although woven in the plain weave.

Construction of crepe weave on satin basis

The crepe weaves can be constructed by adding
marks in certain order to some of the sateen base.
Thumb rule to make crepe weave on this principle is
Crepe weave on 8 end
that warp floats & weft float should not be more than
satin base (move 3)
three in both side. In the example given at right
[2/1,1/1,1/1]
marks are added in Two up one down, One up one
down, one up one down order

Corkscrew Weaves

Twill Weave

Fabric Characteristics

Twill Weave
Characteristics (I)
The values of the twill weave include its strength and
drapability
The diagonally arranged interlacing of the warp and
weft provide greater pliability and resilience than the
plain weave.
Twill weave fabrics are more tightly weave and will
not get dirty as quickly as the plain weave.
The yarns are usually closely beaten, making
especially durable fabric.
Twill weave are commonly used in mens suits and
coats.

Twill Weave (II)

Characteristics
Twill line can be made more pominent by
using:
Plied yarns; high twist yarns; twill weaves with longer
floats; higher number of yarns per inch; and yarn
twist opposite to the twill-line direction.

Fabric with these lines may become flattened

by wear and pressure, and thus become shiny.

Twill Derivates
Broken Twill Weave
Many combinations and variation of twill
constructions are possible.
These produce interesting effect.
The most well-known are herringbone (broken
twill), gabardine and corkscrew twill.

Broken Twill Weave

Herringbone Weave

Broken Twill Weave

Gabardine Weave

Corkscrew Weave

Herringbone twill on point paper

3) Satin Weave

Satin Weave (I)

Similar to twill weave but the diagonal line of the
satin weave is not visible.
It is purposely interrupted in order to contribute to
the flat, smooth, lustrous surface desired.
There is no visible design on the face of the fabric.
In a true satin weave, each warp and weft yarn only
interlace once in each repeat of weave.
Thus, satin weave fabrics have relatively long floats.

Satin Weave
5 shaft warp face
satin

Warp face satin

On graph paper

5 shaft weft face

satin

Weft face
Satin on
graph paper

Satin Weave (II)

In a warp face satin, the face is predominantly
warp yarn, while for a weft face satin, the weft
yarns are predominant on the face.
Satin weave may be designated by the
number of harnesses they require in weaving,
such as five-harness satin.

Satin-weave Fabric
Satin fabric is made from filament yarns, with the
warp yarns predominant on the face.
Satin fabrics are smooth and lustrous because
lustrous filament yarns are used; there are few
interlacing points, that gives long floats; and the face
yarns are fine and closely packed.
Since the greatest lustre is in the lengthwise (warp)
direction, garments using this fabric in warp direction
show lustre effect.

Sateen Fabric
Sateen fabric is a durable cotton fabric, usually
with weft face satin weave.
It is not lustrous as satin fabric as spun yarns
are used.
Since it is also heavier, with thicker yarns, it is
not as drapable as satin fabric.

Characteristics (Satin fabric)

Satin weave fabric drapes well because the weave is
and heavier than the twill weave.
The compactness of the weave gives the fabric more
body as well as less porosity, which makes the fabric
warmer.
The quality of drapability makes satin fabric
preferable for evening wear and the warmth
contributes to its value as lining material.
Although the long floats of the yarn provide lustre to
the satin weave fabrics, they are responsible for the
poor wearing quality of many of these fabrics

Comparison of Basic Weave Properties