There are so many different types of fabric out there – Contrado prints on over 100 different textiles. We make each and every fabric differently. Different fabrics have different characteristics, and with so many available, keeping track of them all can be puzzling at best. Check out our A-Z of fabrics, including a brief description of each of them.
Your A-Z Guide
Aida
Aida is woven. A material which we use for tapestries. We use this type of canvas, most commonly, as a base for needlework. It is usually a flexible, open-weave canvas.
Blackout
This is a loose term for a range of fabrics which block out light to varying degrees. Often used as window treatments, they’re opaque and most frequently have a stiff handle.
Canvas
These cotton-type fabrics are strong and durable. Canvas tends to feature a plain weave or a variation of a plain weave. Usually a heavyweight, firm textile. Canvas is closely woven.
- 300/380/500gsm 100% Poly Woven Canvas
- 480gsm 100% Poly Sailor’s Woven Canvas
- 250gsm 100% Poly Portobello Canvas
- 309gsm Organic 100% Cotton Canvas
Chenille
Chenille is a soft fabric. Often bulky and is made of chenille yarn. This yarn characteristically has small tufts of yarn around the central core, giving it a look similar to a caterpillar.
Chiffon
A sheer textile woven in a plain weave, Chiffon is lightweight and surprisingly strong considering its delicate nature. Chiffon frays easily, and is prone to seam slipping, but is incredibly soft.
Cotton
Cotton is a general term. We use it for fabrics woven with cotton fibres or yarns. Blends and alternatives for cotton are becoming very commonplace. Cotton is used to make a variety of fabric types.
Crepe
A fabric with a typically ‘crinkled’ surface. This effect is obtained using both knitted and woven fabrics. Crepe is typically springy and prone to fraying, especially when woven.
- 150gsm 100% Poly Fashion Crepe
- 150gsm 100% Poly Butterfly Smooth Crepe
- 85gsm 100% Poly Crepe de Chine
- 150gsm 95% Poly 5% Elastane Crepe Jersey
Denim
Denim is a strong woven fabric typically made with a warp-faced drill weave. Traditionally made from cotton, it has great washability but will often naturally fade over time.
Elastane
This is a generalised term for fabrics that incorporate elastane fibres. A generic name for a man-made fibre which is almost rubber-like. Elastane has exceptional stretch and amazing recovery.
- 210gsm 82% Poly 18% Elastane Slinky Matt Lycra
- 140gsm 90% Poly 10% Elastane Matte Lyrca
- 160gsm 85% Poly 15% Elastane Lycra Soft Sheen
Felt
Felt is neither woven or knitted but is rather a web of entangled fibres. Felting is one of the oldest and most inexpensive methods of making a fabric. It is made from any fibre, however, amongst the most popular is wool.
Fleece
Characteristically soft and warm with great insulating properties. We originally created fleece fabric as an imitation of animal fleeces. Amongst the most popular type of fleece is Polar Fleece which is a plush, napped fabric.
Georgette
Georgette is a fine, lightweight, woven fabric. It’s a crisp, grainy crepe fabric which tends to have a dull surface texture. It doesn’t crease easily, in fact, poly Georgette barely creases at all but it does fray easily. Georgette has a springy handle.
Herringbone
A generalised term for fabrics which we weave with a ‘herringbone’ texture. Herringbone is a reversed broken twill. Herringbone gets its name from the fact that visually the pattern looks like the backbone of a herring. We also sometimes call it feather or arrowhead twill.
Imitation
Imitation fabric is one which is imitates something else. Perhaps the most common of these would be faux leather. Other examples include silk, fur, suede and many other fabrics, the majority derived from animals or animal byproducts.
- 700gsm 100% Poly Fire-rated Warm Leatherette (100% PVC Backing)
- 600gsm 90% PVC 5% Poly 5% Cotton Fire-rated Furnishing Leatherette
- 41gsm 100% Poly Silk Impression
Jersey
Jersey is another generic term, applied to all types or weft-knitted fabric whether it has been knitted by hand or using machines. The name comes from the Channel Island where the fabric originated. Jersey fabrics were originally used to makes sweatshirts or jumpers for fishermen.
- 140gsm 100% Poly Slub Jersey
- 270gsm 93% Poly 7% Elastane Diamond Jersey
- 255gsm 97% Poly 3% Elastane Chain Jersey
- 350gsm 100% Poly Softshell Jersey
- 215gsm 95% Poly 5% Elastane Solange Silky Jersey
- 250gsm 100% Poly Loopback Sweat Jersey
- 260gsm 100% Poly Heavy Brushed Jersey
- 260gsm 97% Poly 3% Elastane Ponte Jersey
- 250gsm 96% Poly 4% Elastane Rox Sports Jersey
- 200gsm 96% Poly 4% Elastane Soft Fashion Jersey
Knitted Fabrics
Knitted fabrics are those where the yarn is formed using interconnecting loops. These textiles are separated into two generic groups: warp-knitted and weft-knitted fabrics. Warp-knitted fabrics tend to be created on a machine. Whereas weft-knitted fabrics are made either by hand, with needles or using a machine.
Lace
Lace is fine and delicate. It is an openwork or mesh fabric which is usually transparent or semi-transparent. We create it by looping, twisting or knotting fine yarns together typically giving an intricate or elaborate pattern.
Lawn
A lightweight fabric which is opaque and woven in plain weave. Made with cotton or linen yarns it is both absorbent and hardwearing. Tightly woven in its construction, Lawn has great drape and washability but is prone to creasing.
Leather
The natural skin or hide of an animal. We often think of cows when we think of leather, yet is often made from a variety of other animals too. To make leather, we remove the hair and tan the skin (a process which preserves and softens). Characteristically tough and hardwearing, leather can be embossed, dyed or coated.
- 100% Bovine 0.7-0.9mm Smooth Nappa Leather
- 100% Bovine 0.7-0.9mm Textured Nappa Leather
- Recycled 2mm Stiff Leather Board
- 100% Bovine 2.4-2.6mm Double Butt Leather
- 100% Bovine 1.3-1.5mm Fine French Calf Leather
Linen
A blanket terms for fabrics which have been made using flax yarns or fibres. Linen fabric is a term which is also made from flax blended with other fibres, giving either a linen blend or linen look textile.
- 231gsm 100% Poly Dorchester Linen Look
- 248gsm 100% Poly Haverstock Linen Look
- 300gsm 96% Poly 4% Linen Sara Linen Blend
- 228gsm 95% Cotton 5% Linen Cotton-Linen
Mesh
A very generalised term, mesh refers to a wide range of fabrics. These are woven, knitted or even lace. They are constructed to have an open mesh structure which is apparent in holes or spaces that are between the yarns which allows air to pass through the material.
- 145gsm 100% Poly Airflow Sports Light
- 180gsm 100% Poly Olympic Sports Jersey
- 185gsm 95% Poly 5% Elastane Loose Knit Jersey
Microfibre
A general term we use for fabric which is made from microfibres. These are small, man-made fibres which have an extremely low density. Due to these fibres being so fine, the fabric which is produced is characteristically remarkably strong whilst being incredibly lightweight.
Muslin
A lightweight fabric which is soft and fine. Constructed in an open-sett plain weave, muslin is usually woven as grey cloth, and then later bleached or dyed. Muslin fabric rarely weighs more than around 70 gsm, and was originally made from cotton.
Neoprene
A synthetic rubber-like material. We know this well for its protective qualities as well as insulating properties. Neoprene tends to have good elasticity, is waterproof and buoyant and is resistant to many chemicals and oil.
Non-Woven Fabric
We form non-woven fabric from the fibre, rather than weaving or knitting. As mentioned above, felt is a non woven fabric as are imitation suede fabrics and wadding. There are many ways that you can create a non-woven fabric, including needling, fluid jet entanglement, adhesive bonding, thermal bonding, chemical bonding, thermal bonding and stitch bonding.
Oilcloth
Traditionally a plain-woven cotton textile. We coat oilcloth on one side with a drying oil which makes it water-resistant. Oilcloth was one of the first waterproof fabrics. We used it widely before modern laminated alternatives became more commonplace.
Organza
A fine fabric which we weave in an open-sett plain weave with high-twist yarns. We make Organza either from silk or man-made fibres and it’s characteristically stiff and sheer with a pearl-like sheen.
Panama
We weave Panama fabrics in a hopsack weave structure. These fabrics tend to have different weights and qualities and can be anything from canvas to shirting fabric. We often use Panama canvas as embroidery fabric base.
Peach Skin
We weave the majority of peach skin fabrics finely and give them a special treatment which produces a characteristically soft handle. Made from a variety of synthetic or natural fibres. We usually use either a plain-weave or twill-weave. We then use emery covered rollers 8to create a suede-like or peach-skin finish.
Poplin
Poplin is a very closely woven fabric. It has very fine warp-faced ribs which run in the direction of the weft, caused by the use of around twice as many warp-ends as weft-picks. Incredibly hardwearing, this fabric is prone to creasing and is also susceptible to seam puckering as it has a dense construction.
Power Net
A classic control fabric, Powernet contains enough elastane to make it ideal for body-support clothing due to the high stretch and recovery. A warp-knitted, stretch net textile. We typically use Powernet in heavier weights for foundation wear and control garments, or in more lightweight sheer versions for lingerie.
Quilted Fabric
This is a multi-part fabric. Composed of an outer layer or face fabric with a layer of wadding and sometimes a backing fabric too. We most commonly hold these two or three-layer textile with stitching. You can also fuse it together using either heat or chemicals.
Ripstop
Ripstop fabric is a textile which incorporates a reinforcement yarn. We call this a ripstop yarn and it is literally there to stop ripping. We weave these yarns into the material at regular intervals to increase the resistance of the fabric to stop tearing.
Satin
Satin fabrics are ones that we weave using a satin weave. This weave is one of the four rudimentary woven fabric structures. An entirely warp-faced weave structure. The face and reverse of a satin weave fabric are completely opposite to one another.
- 120gsm 100% Poly Lucent Satin
- 160gsm 100% Poly Monroe Satin
- 200gsm 100% Poly Duchess Satin
- 110gsm 100% Poly Velvet Fever Poly Satin
- 85gsm 100% Poly Lustrous Seduction Poly Satin
Scuba
Scuba is the fashion alternative of Neoprene. A double knit material, scuba is normally synthetic. We make it from a blend of poly and elastane fibres.
Silk
We use this as a generalised term for fabrics which are made using silk yarns. Known for their delicate nature and high-lustre attraction, silk fibres are the only natural fibres which are continuous filament fibres. Silk is an animal fibre, spun by silkworm larvae for use in the construction of their cocoons.
- 54gsm 100% Silk Real Silk Twill
- 90gsm 97% Poly 3% Elastane Silk Sensation
- 85gsm 100% Silk Real Silk Satin
Taffeta
A crisp and lustrous fabric than os woven with warp-faced ribs running in the weft direction. Taffeta has a paper-like quality to it and drapes well in general, however, it is prone to creasing and fraying.
Twill
Twill fabrics are those woven in a twill weave construction. This weave characteristically produces diagonal lines on the face of the fabric. Using twill weave we can make a heavier fabric than we would with a plain weave. This makes a more hardwearing textile and we often use it for fabrics such as drill and denim.
- 200gsm 100% Poly Twill
- 240gsm 84% Cotton 16% Poly Lima Cotton Twill
- 290gsm 100% Poly Archway Brushed Twill
- 274gsm 100% Poly Trafalgar Twill
UV
UV fabrics protect against ultraviolet rays. We achieve this protection in a number of ways. We use UV absorbing dyes, UV absorbers or special finishes. Wool absorbs almost all UV rays, and cotton absorbs around 90%.
Velour
A generalised term used for pile fabric. We also use the term velour for a napped woven fabric. This was the original velour fabric. The name comes from the Latin word ‘villous’ which means hairy.
Velvet
Velvet is a woven fabric with a short, cut warp pile. We make the pile yarns from an extra set of warp yarns. We firmly bind these to the structure of the base fabric, otherwise known as a ground fabric. This forms a heavy and rich texture to the face of the velvet.
- 280gsm 100% Poly Soft Velvet
- 220gsm 100% Poly Marbled Velvet (65% Poly 35% Cotton Backing)
- 371gsm 100% Poly Velvet Shimmer
- 250gsm 100% Poly Fire-rated Plush Velvet
Voile
Voile is a lightweight fabric that is sheer and fine. Woven in a plain weave and made with high twist yarns of either natural or synthetic fibres, characteristically voile is a soft fabric with a crisp wiry handle.
Waterproof
Waterproof fabrics are those which are resistant to penetration by water. Fully resistant textiles would be called waterproof whereas those which are only partially resistant would be called wither-repellant, water-resistant or shower-proof. Waterproof fabrics can be made using fibres which are naturally waterproof, adding protective coatings or finishes, laminating the material or by using a very close weave.
- 120gsm 100% Poly Linden Waterproof
- 70gsm 100% Poly Ella Waterproof
- 155gsm 100% Poly Breathable Waterproof
Woven Fabrics
The generic term we use for fabric constructed by interweaving two sets of yarns at 90° angles to each other. Characteristically woven fabrics are strong and stable. This firm, close construction maintains the straight nature of the yarn.
