News about Silk from India

Banarasi Saree to Receive GI registration

The Banaras Bunkar Samiti, an organisation of Banarasi handloom weavers and eight other organisations are making efforts to receive the IPR to the silk brocade and Banarasi saree.
The GI acts as a certification that the product possesses certain qualities, or enjoys a certain reputation, due to its geographical origin.

Banana Shirts

Weavers of Anakaputhur, about 20 kms from Chennai have brought in this new product with technical support from the National Research Centre for Banana ( NRCB) Trichi.
At Rs. 450 a piece, such shirts keep the body cool. Banana fiber after processing, is odorless and can be dyed in any color. The shirts don't shrink, fade and keep the stiffness even without starch. However, a blend of 60% cotton with this fiber given maximum durability. Banana fiber is also cost effective with 40/- a kg and can yield two 100% banana shirts.
Other suppliers of banana fiber can be found here.

16 Things to ensure while Making Industrial Apparel Patterns

The following is a list of 16 things to ensure while making an industrial apparel pattern manually:

1. All the features of the style
   
2. Pattern count ( Number of pattern sections) according to the style 
   
3. Seam allowance based on style
   
4. Type of fixtures required on sewing machine in the manufacturing
   
5. Final drafting measurements based on the shrinkage value ( both warp and weft way) for garmens which are subject to further treatment such as washing or dyeing.
   
6. Grading the pattern based on the size specification.
   
7. Marking the grain lines by an arrow head.
   
8. Provide guide notcher for precision assembly, punch holes for positioning of components and darts.  
   
9. Use of white hard board paper for drafting.
   
10. Use of black color for drawing the original draft line.
    
11. Identify the pattern by its style number, customer's name, date of preparation and mention of its status as "sample"
    
12. On preparation of the sample garment, place all the pattern sections in a paper bag mentioning pattern count, style number, customer's name 
    
13. On receipt of customer's feed back on sample garment effect the changes, if any, by manipulating the draft with Blue color and endorse with signature and date.
    
14. On approval from the production manager, change the status of patterns from "sample" to "production"
    
15. On finalisation of drafting , prepare "ready patterns" on two tone paper for small components meant for cutting section, sewing section and for monitoring purpose.
    
16. In order to prevent curling and chipping of the edges of the pattern section, protect the edges by metal foils.  

Tags: Pattern+making, drafting, garment+manufacturing

Rapid Dyes

The Rapid dyes are stabilized azoic dyestuffs.

 They are applied to the fibers in one operation.

 Bright full colors are obtained with very good fastness properties.

 These are used for printing backgrounds so that the foreground becomes prominent. Hence these are suitable where large areas of ground need to be colored.

 Rapid dyes are mixed with water and boiled with caustic soda and a gum paste. A receipe for rapid dyes is given here.

The shades in rapid dyes are unpredictable since the color that is mixed is different from the final color.

True colors emerge only after the fabric has been printed and washed in a mild sulphuric acid solution.

Also these dyes should be used on the same day.

Some colors such as pure blacks are extremely sensitive to weather. Similarly red colors in rapid is vibrant in summers and mediocre in winter

Care of Rayon Fabrics

Rayon has a low wet strength. Thus the fabric may shrink or stretch when wet. Dry cleaning is recommended. When hand washing, do not wring, use towel to take out moisture and dry flat.

Some dyes used on rayon migrate to the surface, when moisture contacts them, they form a "ring" which are difficult to remove. Thus it makes sense to protect the garment from moisture.

Also when pressing, avoid spitting by steam irons. Press on wrong side or use a press cloth to protect shine or iron imprints.

Rayon fabrics stretches during regular use or drycleaning. This tendency is more common in fitted garments.

In full bias skirts or dresses, uneven hemlines may appear in rayon crepe fabrics in damp climates. This happens because rayon is less stable when wet.

Yellowing in the rayon fabrics may occur due to oxidation of starch present in the fabric. This problem is noticeable in white fabrics. Wet cleaning, accompanied by bleaching will correct the problem. However this treatment can cause additional damage due to shrinkage and limpness.

View a fact sheet on rayon by Joyee A Smith here.