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2010.01.31 23:41:22
A swatch, a bag, and a seam
I spent the first weekend of the semester sewing, studying, and doing homework.  I hope I can keep up these good work habits for the next four years.

I mounted the 125 swatches in the kit for my textiles lab.  Hopefully they are still in the correct order.  If by the end of the semester I can identify all 125 swatches I will consider my tuition money to have been very well spent. 
As I was mounting my swatches I was thrilled every time I found one I recognized:  muslin, corduroy, denim, and duck.  Of those muslin is the one I know the most about, and even for muslin I cannot yet fill out all the lines in the book.  As I learn more about textiles I will start making smarter choices at the fabric store.

Last semester I learned how important experience is while trying to sew.  Tomorrow my apparel construction class will make tote bags, so yesterday I made one at home.
I already had a copy of the pattern we will use, so the bag I made at home is quite similar to the one I will make in class.  I had to guess about the exact way to attach the pocket and handles.  My methods may not be the ones I will use in class, but any sewing practice is good.  I will use a serger for the seam finishes in class.  I do not yet have my own serger, so I had to find another way to finish the seams.  I used denim, so I decided flat-felled seams would be most appropriate.

I am quite fond of flat-felled seams, but they were by far the most difficult part of the project.  I do not know if I will be using them for any of my class projects this semester, but I plan to work on them a lot at home.  One year ago I would have laughed at the notion of having a favorite seam.  Now I look forward to learning additional types of seams, and I wonder if I will find any of them as pleasing as flat-felled seams.

The swatches are swimwear tricot, brushed tricot, raschel crochet, raschel knit lace, Coolmax® mesh, and pleather.  I could tell you what my book has to say about them, but I would not understand it.  Ask me again in a few months.



2010.02.01 14:46:25
Comment by:
*AJ
*Staff*
Ack! I would love to do a Textiles class like that! With a binder and samples and all that. Some schools do it that way but lots do not. I guess one approach is clinical (I think better) and the other approach is just history and memorization of written words and stuff like that. Not quite so organized nor tactile. I think it is easy to remember things when you have a tactile context...when you can feel and see them.

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2010.02.02 00:55:41
Comment by:
GreyElk
*Staff*
My textiles class meets on Mondays and Wednesdays for lecture and on Friday for lab. In the lectures we learn about both the technical details of textiles (their properties, how they are made, and what they can do) and their applications (how they may be used in fashion). I have only had one lab, but it seems that the labs will focus mostly on the science of textiles. We will examine and test textiles in order to identify them and determine their characteristics.

Last week’s lab session served as an introduction. We learned to use monocular and stereoscopic microscopes, then used them to examine cotton and polyester fibers and swatches. We also looked at a number of fabric samples and had to determine if they were made from staple or filament fibers.

In lab this week we will be working with cellulosic fibers. We will do macroscopic and microscopic analysis along with burn tests of cotton, flax, hemp, and jute. We will also examine the difference between short staple and long staple cotton.

My textiles professor is a member of the apparel design department, but it often seems that I am in a chemistry class.

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2010.02.02 12:10:53
Comment by:
*AJ
*Staff*
As much as I hated chemistry I think I would really enjoy this! As long as you don't have to balance chemical equations that is!

Reply
 
2010.02.02 16:38:10
Comment by:
GreyElk
*Staff*
No chemical equations (I hope), but there are a lot of diagrams of the molecular structure of fibers in the textbook. As a designer I will need to understand the qualities of different textiles in order to choose the best ones for my work, and I may use some very thin yarns, but I do not plan to work with anything as small as an individual molecule.

Reply
 
2010.02.07 19:52:45
Comment by:
mlssfshn
I took textile in college 15 years ago and made this same book, of course it's been updated since! I now have students who are interested in making one and hope to get enough people together to make a class of it. If your in Austin and interested let me know.

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