As I discussed in my last post, textiles are all made out of fibers. But what are fibers? Fibers are the small units that make up textiles. If you pull out a single strand from a clump of wool, you’ve got yourself a wool fiber.
Animal Fibers
Fibers are categorized by their origin. Animal (also called proteinaceous or protein) fibers are made of, you guessed it, proteins from animals. Some of the most popular animal fibers are the hair or wool of familiar creatures such as sheep, alpacas, and goats. However, humans have also used dog, mollusks, bison, vicuna, qiviut, horse, and their own hair to make textiles around the world.
Silk also counts as an animal fiber since it is made from the cocoon of silkworms. When the caterpillar is ready to pupate it will extrude liquid silk to form its cocoon. This cocoon is then unwound to produce silk textiles. Other insects and arthropods produce silk as well, most notably spiders. Unlike silkworms, they have not be used to produce textiles on a large scale.
Vegetable Fibers
Vegetable, plant, cellose, and cellulosic are all synonyms for this category of fiber. These fibers are mainly made up of cellulose. This is the main component of the cell wall in plants. Plant fibers are divided into three subcategories: seed, bast, and leaf. Seed fibers include kapok, coir, and the world’s most popular natural fiber, cotton. These fibers are single cells that grow in seed pods, hence their name.
Bast fibers are grown in the inner bark of plant stems. In order to access these inner fibers, people must remove the other parts of the plant. The bast fibers can then be spun and turned into textiles. The most popular bast fibers are flax (called linen as a fabric) and hemp. However, there are many fibers in this category including nettle, jute, ramie, kenaf, and more.
As you’ve probably guessed, leaf fibers are made from leaves. The fibers must be scraped away from the leaves by hand in a laborious process. Most of these fibers like sisal and abacá are used to create heavy duty textiles such as ropes, canvases, and floor coverings. However, piña, made from pineapple leaves in the Philippines, has been used to make beautiful and delicate garments.
Mineral Fibers
Technically there are fibers made from minerals including asbestos, basalt fiber, and fiberglass. Generally they have not been used to create things that most people would consider a textile with one major exception. Asbestos was used to create flame retardant textiles such as fire fighter uniforms, fire blankets, and ironing board covers.
Human Made Fibers
Note: Semi-synthetic and synthetic fibers are often called by their trademarked names. These names vary by company, time period, and country to make things extra confusing. I will try to use the generic names for fibers first and include brand names afterwards since most people will be more familiar with them.
Semi-synthetic fibers are the bridge between natural and synthetic fibers. Manufacturers take animal and plant fibers and then dissolve, modify, and reform them. Rayon, made from regenerated cellulose, was one of the first human made fibers to be used commercially in the 1890s. Forms of rayon such as Lyocell, Modal, SeaCell, and viscose as well as other regenerated cellulose fibers such as bamboo continue to be very popular today.
Semi-synthetics can also be made from regenerated proteins as well. These fibers, called azlons, were made from protein rich plants like peanuts, soy, and corn as well as from milk. Semi-synthetic protein fibers were popular as wool substitutes during the 1930s-1950s, but have largely been forgotten. However, they serve as a reminder of the multitude of materials that textiles can be made from!
Synthetics are most often made from petrochemicals. The polymers are extracted from petroleum and extruded into the desired shape of the fiber. Poly(amide), most commonly called nylon, became the first mass produced fully synthetic textile fiber in the late 1930s. Since then a myriad of synthetic fibers have dominated the market including polyester, acrylic, and elastane.
Conclusion
There are four main types of textile fibers. Animal fibers are the proteins of animals such as sheep, silkworms, and goats. Cellulose is the main component of plants fibers such as cotton, flax, and hemp. There are three types of plants fibers: seed, bast, and leaf. Mineral fibers also exist, but these are rarely used in textiles. Semi-synthetic fibers are made from regenerated cellulose and proteins. This category includes fibers such as rayon, viscose, azlons, and many others. Synthetic fibers are entirely human made from petrochemicals. There are numerous synthetic fibers and even more brand names. Some of the most popular synthetic fibers are nylon, polyester, acrylic, and elastane.
What are your favorite fibers to craft with or wear? What other information would you like to know about textile fibers? Comment below or contact me at spinsterconservation@gmail.com!
Sources
Chemical Principles of Textile Conservation by Dinah Eastop and Agnes Timar-Balazsy