Comprehensively interpreting the cultural charm of denim clothing from fabric to craftsmanship

1. The Origin of Cowboys

When it comes to the origin of denim clothing, we have to trace back to the birth of denim. Denim, also known as denim in English, has an interesting story behind its name. About five hundred years ago, when Columbus discovered the New World, this tough, practical, and rough fabric had already emerged and was initially used as sail material. This fabric originated from the French town of Nimes and was therefore named "Serge De Nimes". Later, when this twill serge fabric was introduced to England, British merchants found it difficult to pronounce the French name accurately, so it was simplified to Denim, which is the denim fabric we know today, sometimes also translated as denim.

Denim is not only a coarse twill cotton fabric, but also carries profound cultural significance. Denim clothing and accessories made from denim, together with movie stars, young people, and fashion designers, embody a fashion legend and always occupy the center of the stage. As one of the oldest fabrics, denim shines with youthfulness and becomes an everlasting fashion symbol due to denim clothing.

2. Diversified types of denim fabrics

Nowadays, there is a wide variety of common denim fabrics on the market, including elastic, non elastic, bamboo knots, non bamboo knots, hemp cotton, silk gloss, and coatings, among other high-quality choices. In addition, there are various sub types such as regular denim, combed denim, polyester cotton denim, and ring spun denim, each with its own unique characteristics, bringing different visual and wearing experiences to the fashion industry.

How to distinguish the differences between various denim fabrics?

Firstly, we can differentiate based on the thickness of denim fabric. The common denim thickness standards in the market include 4.5A, 6AN, 8A, 10A, 11A, 12A, 13.5A, and 14.5A. These different thicknesses of denim have differences in texture and durability, providing consumers with diverse choices.

4.5A denim fabric is very lightweight and suitable for summer wear, often used to make women's vests and sleeveless shirts; The 14.5A version is quite heavy and suitable for winter wear, and can even be used to make men's cotton jackets and cotton clips. The jeans we wear on a daily basis mostly have a fabric thickness between 8 and 12 amps.

In addition, denim fabrics are classified according to different textures, including plain weave, diagonal weave, herringbone pattern, interwoven pattern, bamboo knot, dark pattern, and plush denim. From the perspective of composition, denim can be divided into combed and plain combed types, with a variety of materials including 100% cotton, elastic fibers (such as Lycra), cotton linen blends, and Tencel.

3. The technological characteristics of denim fabric

The sewing process is a crucial step in making denim clothing. The common ways of car lines include 2-point single-sided double visible lines, 2-point single-sided double visible lines, and 2-point double-sided double visible lines. The color of the car lines is mostly contrasting lines such as earthy yellow, and sometimes color matching lines are also used, all of which need to match the color of the washed fabric. In addition, special craft lines such as zigzag thread and bold hand embroidery thread are also common elements in sewing. In terms of ingredients, denim clothing often uses I-shaped buttons, four in one buttons, clasps, corns, leather tags, and metal zippers. And the mark is an indispensable identifier on clothing, including the main mark, size mark, washing mark, flag mark, and side mark, which together constitute the unique style of denim clothing.

In recent years, in order to improve the comfort of wearing jeans, many well-known brands have adopted three-dimensional cutting technology, adding pleats at the knees or using multiple fabric pieces to better ensure the freedom of movement. At the same time, the cutting technique of denim suits can better reflect the technical level of the pattern maker. Especially when using high stretch fabrics, how to make the sleeve mountain both flat and wrinkle free with a beautiful appearance has become a key test of the printmaker's craftsmanship.

4. Key points of denim decoration technology

In recent years, the fashion trend of denim has undergone significant changes, not only focusing on the design of washing effect, but also attaching great importance to the treatment of decoration technology. For example, the denim frayed edge technique cleverly uses scissors trimming and special threads on the bottom and body of jeans to create a distressed beauty, which is reflected in many major brands. In addition, techniques such as machine embroidery, hot stamping, fabric embroidery, hand embroidery, and bead embroidery all add unique artistic charm to denim clothing. However, processes such as adhesive printing require careful handling to avoid affecting the feel when worn, and to ensure that the pattern is not easily peeled off during the washing process. In addition, laser technology burns all the colors of the fabric to expose the original color of the fabric embryo, creating an artistic rendering effect. At the same time, denim fabric can also be paired with other fabrics such as wool, faux leather, corduroy, and thick knitted fabrics to create a variety of styles, such as five pocket jeans, denim shirts, denim jackets, skirts, and coats, all of which provide designers with vast creative space.

5. Washing methods for jeans

Garment wash

General washing adopts a mechanized washing method, controlling the water temperature within the range of 60-90 ° C, adding an appropriate amount of detergent, washing for about 15 minutes, then rinsing with clean water and adding softener to make the fabric softer, more comfortable, and visually more natural and clean.

Stone Wash/Stone Grinding

Stone washing is the process of adding floating stones to washing water and achieving a washing effect through friction between the floating stones and clothing. When washing, the water level should be lower than the clothes to ensure that the floating stones can fully contact the clothes. Yellow stone, white stone, AAA stone, artificial stone, or rubber balls can be used for washing to achieve different washing effects. After washing, the fabric surface presents a gray and aged feeling, and the clothes may have slight to severe damage.

Enzymome Wash

Enzyme washing utilizes cellulase to degrade fiber structure under specific conditions, achieving mild fading and shedding effects while providing long-lasting softness. Enzymes can be used alone or in combination with stones, the latter being called enzyme stone washing.

Sand washing (SAND WASH)

Sand washing uses alkaline and oxidizing agents to give clothes a certain fading effect and a sense of aging after washing. If used in combination with a stone mill, a soft layer of frost white fluff will be produced on the surface of the fabric after washing. After adding softener, the fabric will become softer and more comfortable to wear.

6. Key points for the production and processing of denim fabric

Ring spun denim fabric

Ring spun yarn is a high-quality cotton yarn made through the ring spinning process, divided into two types: air flow spinning and ring spun. Among them, ring spinning technology overcomes the shortcomings of short spinning length, low production efficiency, and multiple knots of coarse yarn, making ring spun denim fabric excellent in terms of hand feel and drape. After washing treatment, this denim fabric presents a unique bamboo like texture, further enhancing its market competitiveness.

Warp and weft bamboo denim fabric

Bamboo knot yarn is a type of yarn with regular variations in thickness, including two types: long bamboo knots and short bamboo knots. This yarn can not only be used to make denim fabric with a bamboo like effect on the surface, but also to weave denim fabric with a bamboo like feel through ring spinning technology. These denim products present a unique visual style and are highly favored by the market.

Ultra indigo dyed denim fabric

The traditional indigo washing process intentionally reduces the transparency of indigo dye to fibers. In this way, when denim clothing is polished, the only thin layer of dye on the surface of the yarn will be removed, exposing more white yarn cores, causing the color to quickly fade and achieve the effect of fading immediately after polishing in a short period of time. However, the current dyeing process pursues high transparency of dyes to ensure that denim clothing can present a deep and bright color after grinding and washing.

Colored denim fabric

Colored denim fabric is dyed with reactive dyes on the basis of ordinary fabrics after desizing and washing. Due to the original blue warp yarn and white weft yarn, after re dyeing, the color difference between the warp and weft yarns creates a unique two-color effect. This technique is mostly used for making ready to wear clothing and is less commonly used for fabric dyeing. Due to the complexity of the process, the cost is relatively high.

What color denim fabric

The name of Shi Se denim comes from its dyeing process. Due to the fact that indigo dye used to dye denim only appears blue, other dyes must be used to obtain other colors. Usually, reactive sulfur reducing dyes are used for dyeing to create a colorful effect beyond blue. This type of denim is also known as colored denim.

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