143 List Types of Fabric Description – Types of Fabric – Your Guide to Exploring the World of Fabrics

Types of Fabrics A-Z information

Alpaca fleece is the natural fiber harvested from an alpaca. It is light or heavy in weight, depending on how it is spun. It is a soft, durable, luxurious and silky natural fiber.
Angora is normally referred to as either just ‘angora’ or ‘angora wool’, ‘angora hair’ or ‘angora fibre’. Internationally it is traded as wool. It is not normally referred to as ‘fur’ as it is harvested at regular intervals from a living rabbit.
Abaya: This type of fabric is suitable all year round and materials used for abayas include lexus, which is a combination of wool peach and polyester, perfect for colder seasons.
Aerophane: was a popular material for millinery. While it wasn’t as popular from the 1860s onwards. In 1865 “white crape or aerophane” was recommended as a support fabric for beetle-wing embroidery.
Aertex Fabric Types : The Aertex® trademark registered on 18^thAugust 1895, is the hallmark of Fine British Style & Performance.
Airdura: is a synthetic fabric used for motorcycle clothing with summer or warmer riding conditions.
Airguard: is a fabric made of polyamide hollow fibres. Air pockets of the fibres provide heat insulation. The polyamide material ensures a degree of abrasion-proofness and tear-resistance.
Antique satin: was developed in the 1950s by combining acetate (warp threads) and rayon (weft threads) mainly as a decorative fabric used primarily for draperies.
Ballistic nylon: type of material used for soft body armor, ballistic fabric is a basket-woven material, with a 2 x 2 weave. It’s commonly made of 1050 denier nylon, but can be made in lighter fabrics, such as a 840 denier.
Bamboo: fabric is very soft, often described as feeling like cashmere. Another unique quality with bamboo fiber is it’s antibacterial qualities also has excellent wicking. From a designer’s perspective, bamboo is also an excellent fabric choice. It is a light, strong fabric that requires less dye than cotton.
Barkcloth: The original barkcloth fabric was literally made from the bark of trees. In order to make the fabric, the inner bark of certain types of trees (primarily trees of the Moraceae family) is beaten flat and pressed into sheets.
Batik: fabric is created using a manual, labor-intensive technique of wax-resist dyeing. Batik fabric has been used in quilting for decades.
Batiste: The term ‘batiste’ was used to describe the type of soft lustrous finish that the fabric was given. Nowadays, although a linen batiste may still be found, the most common batiste fabric is a cotton batiste made from 100% cotton or, more usually, a cotton blend. Occasionally batiste may be made from wool, silk, polyester or viscose, or blends of these.
Bengaline: is a woven fabric with wide, raised crosswise cords or ribs that create a sturdy texture. It may be made of natural textiles, such as cotton, wool or silk, or from synthetic fibers, such as rayon or nylon; it also often is made of a combination of two different materials.
Boiled Wool: has become highly popular all over the world and people are even creating this type of fabric at home by following some simple instructions.Type of fabric created by boiling woolen fabric to shrink and soften it, is widely used for making various garments for men, women and children.
Boucle: is woven wool that combines two or more shades of a color to create texture. Depending on the weave, the weave varies from loose to firmly woven. This fabric has the characteristic curly yarn finish similar to poodle cloth.
Broadcloth: is made using an extra-wide loom, the fibers tightly woven before being immersed in water and stretched, followed by a final treatment using wooden hammers to pound the material. The resulting broadcloth has the same supple, soft and sturdy properties of the wool variety, in a much lighter weight material.
Brocade: is an ornate shuttle-woven fabric, often made with colorful threads silk, cotton, polyester, and sometimes with gold and silver threads. Ornamental features in brocade are emphasized and wrought as additions to the main fabric, sometimes stiffening it, though more frequently producing on its face the effect of low relief.
Buckram: is also used to describe a fabric used in bookbinding, here we are concerned with millinary buckram, used in hat making.
Burlap: The types of burlap used in home decorating are lighter in weight than utilitarian burlap. Generally constructed of jute fibers, burlap may also consist of other natural fibers such as flax, cotton or hemp.
Calico: is a plain-woven textile made from unbleached and often not fully processed cotton. It may contain unseparated husk parts, for example. The fabric is far less fine than muslin, but less coarse and thick than canvas or denim, but it is still very cheap owing to its unfinished and undyed appearance.
Cambric: This fabric is either made of linen or cotton and is finely woven and then glazed or heat processed to achieve a lustrous and stiff fabric.
Canvas: is an extremely durable plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, and other items for which sturdiness is required. It is also popularly used by artists as a painting surface, typically stretched across a wooden frame.
Carbon Fibers:, having supreme characteristics, are adopted in wide varieties of uses.
Cashmere: The best cashmere fabric is made from fiber collected from the white goats. The yarn from these fibers is then dyed to produce the different colored fabrics available. Cashmere also comes in brown and grey.
Challis: is a lightweight woven fabric, originally a silk-and-wool blend, which can also be made from a single fibre, such as cotton, silk or wool, or from man-made fabrics such as rayon.
Chambray: Fabric refers to a lightweight plain woven fabric consisting of white yarns filling out the weft and colored yarns lining the warp. chamois
Chantilly lace: This fabric is timelessly popular for a range of its features, such as soft silky feel and elaborate floral patterns woven on a honeycomb shaped ground. It is also valued for high durability, as Chantilly lace patterns are outlined by thicker thread.
Charmeuse: is a lightweight fabric woven with a satin weave, in which the warp threads cross over four or more of the backing weft threads.
Cheesecloth: is a gauzy, lightweight, woven cotton fabric with tiny holes that allow air to flow through the fabric.chenille
Chiffon: is a lightweight, sheer fabric that’s commonly used in window scarves, sheers, bed canopies and some accessories.
Chino cloth: is a twill fabric, originally made of 100% cotton. The most common items made from it, trousers, are widely called chinos.
Chintz: is a closely woven plain weave cotton fabric with a shiny and lustrous finish. The fabric is processed with glazed finish to give it a polish look.
Conductive: a conductive textile is a fabric which can conduct electricity. Conductive textiles can be made with metal strands woven into the construction of the textile.
Coolmax: The fabrics employ specially-engineered polyester fibres to improve “breathability” compared to natural fibres like cotton.
Cordura: is the brand name for a collection of fabrics used in a wide array of products including luggage, backpacks, trousers, military wear and performance apparel. Cordura fabrics are known for their durability and resistance to abrasions, tears and scuffs.
Corduroy: is a textile with a distinct pattern, a “cord” or wale. Modern corduroy is most commonly composed of tufted cords, sometimes exhibiting a channel (bare to the base fabric) between the tufts. Corduroy is, in essence, a ridged form of velvet.
Cotton: is the most commonly used fabric worldwide for clothing. Approximately 25 million tons are produced internationally per year. Cotton is often used because it is soft and breathable.
Cotton duck: is a handy and versatile woven cotton canvas fabric. Also known as duck cloth, duck canvas, or natural canvas, cotton duck is known for its durability and has historically been used for a diverse range of heavy-duty applications.
Crepe: The characteristic crepe fabric surface is possibly the result of tight knotting, weaving or twisting of the fiber, making use of irregular patterns during the weaving process or by embossing the final finished fabric with rollers that are etched with a crepe pattern.
Crinoline: a crinoline is a type of petticoat worn under the skirt to give it volume. Once worn in multiple layers to create a large skirt, crinolines remain an important fashion accessory, often worn under an elaborate wedding gown.
Crochet: fabrics are created using various stitches and techniques such as Tunisian, filet, broomstick and hairpin. These fabrics can have a lacy look or a sturdy look with less holes. The fabric is what is created with the different stitches in rows.
Damask: is a reversible figured fabric of silk, wool, linen, cotton, or synthetic fibres, with a pattern formed by weaving.
Denim: is a type of cotton textile known for its use in blue jeans and other clothing. It uses a sturdy twill weave with a characteristic diagonal ribbing. Originally used for workmen’s clothes, denim is now ubiquitous and has even entered the world of high fashion.
Dobby: is a woven fabric produced on the dobby loom, characterised by small geometric patterns and extra texture in the cloth. The warp and weft threads may be the same colour or different. Satin threads are particularly effective in this kind of weave as their texture will highlight the pattern
Dotted Swiss: also known as Swiss Dot, is a sheer cotton fabric that is embellished with small dots. The dots can be applied in a number of different ways and colors, and is used for baby clothes, wedding dresses and curtains.
Drill: is stout durable cotton fabric with a strong bias (diagonal) in the weave. The most common use of drill in uniforms and casual wear is in the form of khaki.
Dupion: is a plain weave crisp type of silk fabric, produced by using fine thread in the warp and uneven thread reeled from two or more entangled cocoons in the weft.
Duvetyne: is a twill fabric with a velvet-like nap on one side. It may be woven from cotton, wool, or in rare cases, mainly in the early 20th century silk. Duvetyne has a matte finish and its high opacity makes it ideal for blocking light.
Egyptian cotton: is a made from a high-quality long staple fibre which means it is extremely soft, strong and resistant to stress. It is also naturally resistant to pilling and will soften with age, so with the right type of care, Egyptian cotton can last for years.
Eyelet: fabric is a type of lace made by creating holes in a fabric medium. Each hole is edged using a buttonhole stitch. The holes are precisely sized and situated to create a pattern or patterns, often floral designs or abstract geometric arrangements. Eyelet fabric is beautifully elegant and yet more durable than most other types of lace.
Faille: is a type of fabric which is woven with a faintly ribbed pattern, creating a distinctive textured feel. This fabric is often used on formal dresses and gowns, and it can also be used to make jackets, vests, skirts and other garments.
Faux: fur These faux fur fabrics feature animal prints in some delightful pattern choices. Included in this fake fur fabric are polyester faux fur fabrics with animal prints are zebra, tiger, giraffe, mink, raccoon, wildcat, wolf and other wild creatures.
Felt: is a textile material that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood pulp-based rayon.
Flannel: fabric is a soft woven material distinguished by the tightness of its weave and whether it has a nap. The flannel that is used to make warm clothes isn’t perfect for making summer fashion items.
Fleece: fabric is a popular choice for garments and other items. Fleece fabric is available in not only different colors and patterns, but also in different types of fleece.
Gabardine: is a tough, tightly woven fabric used to make suits, overcoats, trousers, uniforms, windbreakers and other garments.
Gauze: It is a sheer, light weight, leno weave fabric, usually made of filament yarns, mosquito netting, agritextiles to shade delicate plants, and some bags for laundry, fruit and vegetables.
Georgette: is made in solid colors and prints and is used for blouses, dresses, evening gowns, saris, and trimmings.[1] It is springier and less lustrous than the closely related chiffon.
Gingham: is a type of simple, woven cotton or linen cloth. Originally it had a regular bright coloured stripe but later appeared as a check or plaid pattern.
Grosgrain: was made from wool, silk, or a combination of fibers such as silk and wool or silk and mohair. Is commonly used to refer to a heavy, stiff ribbon of silk or nylon woven via taffeta weave using a heavy weft which results in distinct transverse ribs.
Harris Tweed: is a cloth handwoven by islanders at their homes in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, finished in the Outer Hebrides, and made from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides.
Hemp: can be fabricated for clothing, canvas, rope, and other uses. While hemp is not as soft as cotton, it is stronger than other cellulosics, such as flax, and more absorbent than cotton.
Herringbone: also called Broken Twill Weave describes a distinctive V-shaped weaving pattern usually found in twill fabric. It is distinguished from a plain chevron by the break at reversal, which makes it resemble a broken zigzag.
Hopsack: is one of my go-to fabrics in the Spring and Summer. It’s not technically a fabric, it’s a method of weaving a fabric most often a lightweight wool.
Houndstooth: is a duotone textile pattern characterized by broken checks or abstract four-pointed shapes, often in black and white.
indian cotton: fabric is used to make a sari that is lightweight. This material is a favorite because it keeps the wearer cool and is easily washed.
irish linen: is a yarn or fabric made from the cultivated flax plant, named Linum usitatissimum. This domesticated species is believed to have been developed during cultivation.
Jacquard: woven fabric is produced on a special weaving loom fitted with a jacquard patterning mechanism. This device enables the individual selection and lifting of any of the warp threads (which run vertically along all fabrics), allowing a wide variety of complex patterns and designs to be produced.
Jean: In the 2010s, jeans are a very popular article of casual dress around the world. They come in many styles and colors. However, blue jeans are particularly identified with American culture, especially the Old West.
Jersey: is a knit fabric used predominantly for clothing manufacture. It was originally made of wool, but is now made of wool, cotton, and synthetic fibres.
Jute: the types of jute used to make goods are purchased in several grades as well as blends of jute and other fibers.
Kente: is a type of silk and cotton fabric made of interwoven cloth strips and is native to the Akan ethnic group of South Ghana. Kente is made in Akan lands such as Ashanti Kingdom
Lace: is an open work fabric consisting of a network of yarns formed into intricate designs. Lace may be hand or machine made, and intricate patterns can be produced by either technique.
Lambswool: is wool which is 50mm or shorter from the first shearing of a sheep, at around the age of seven months.It is soft, elastic, and slippery, and is used in high-grade textiles.
Lame: is a shiny metallic-looking fabric often used for clothing, and accessories such as handbags, and it may also be used in upholstery. Although it usually comes in shades such of gold and silver, this woven fabric is available in a number of colors.
Lawn: cloth or lawn is a plain weave textile, originally of linen but now chiefly cotton. When lawn is made using combed yarns.
Leather: is a durable and flexible material created by tanning animal rawhide and skin, often cattle hide. It can be produced at manufacturing scales ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry.
Linen fabric (also called weave) is made of fiber from the flax plant. It is most popular and most liked by many users due to its vast benefits such as durability, softness, strength, natural origins, antibacterial and antifungal properties.
Madras: is often used to make shirts and dresses. A lightweight, hand woven cotton fabric with a plaid, striped or checkered pattern that’s made with semi-permanent vegetable dyes known for bleeding to give it the soft, muted colors it’s known for.
Marocain: A dress fabric of ribbed crêpe, made of silk or wool or both.
Matelasse: This cotton fabric looks just like what its name means in French: padded. Made on a jacquard or dobby loom, it has a raised pattern that gives bedspreads and other home fabrics a quilted look.
Melton: cloth is traditionally made of wool and is woven in a twill form. It is a very solid cloth in which the twill weave pattern is completely concealed due to the finishing processes.
Mesh: It is a soft, thin material that is extremely durable, and it is also used as furnishing fabric. Its durability helps it withstand wear and tear and daily use!
Microfibre: these types of microfiber are woven in a miniature corduroy type pattern that is more rough and aggressive than terry, but still retains the high absorbancy and cleaning ability of microfiber. They are lint free and have minimal streaking (streaking occurs if the cloth is over saturated).
Mohair: fibres have a relatively smooth surface; the outer layer having around half the number of scales found on fine sheep’s wool.
Moiré: fabric is created by the application of a finishing technique to a woven fabric section. Often created with the use of silk fabric as the foundation, moiré fabric finishing can result in a deep luster to the material, or dull the finish by essentially regulating the degree of crushing that is done to the fibers.
Muslin: is a popular utility fabric that has been used for centuries. This plain woven cotton fabric comes in a number of weights and widths, but the best quality muslin feels smooth with an even texture and no slubs.
Neoprene: is a foam product that is typically cast as sheets with a 70D Nylon jersey material bonded to each side. Neoprene is sold either as solid rubber or in latex form, and is used in a wide variety of applications, such as laptop sleeves, orthopedic braces (wrist, knee, etc.).
Net: or netting is an open mesh form of fabric construction that is held together by knots or fused thermoplastic yarns at each point where the yarn cross one another.
Nomex: and related aramid polymers are related to nylon, but have aromatic backbones, and hence are more rigid and more durable.
Nylon: the largest applications for Nylon are bearings, cams, valve seats, gears and other bearing and wear applications that require quiet operation, wear resistance and low coefficients of friction.
Organdy: is a balanced plain weave.Because of its stiffness and fiber content, it is very prone to wrinkling.
Organza: Often it is used to make tablecloths, light curtains, and formal dresses.
Osnaburg: is a cheap, coarse fabric originally named for the city of Osnabrück, Germany. In the 18th century, it was made from flax (linen) fibers. In the 19th century it was made from cotton.
Ottoman: is a fabric with a pronounced ribbed or corded effect, often made of silk or a mixture of cotton and other silk like yarns. It is mostly used for formal dress and in particular, legal dress and academic dress.
Oxford: is a type of woven dress shirt fabric, employed to make a particular casual-to-formal cloth in dress shirts that may be called Oxford shirts.
Paisley: such designs became very popular in the West in the 18th and 19th centuries, a droplet-shaped vegetable motif of Persian origin.
Percale: is a closely woven plain-weave fabric often used for bed covers. Percale has a thread count of about 200 or higher and is noticeably tighter than the standard type of weave used for bedsheets.
Pique: A durable cotton fabric covered with a tiny, textured pattern that makes it appear quilted. It’s used to make dresses, blouses, children’s clothes and draperies.
Plisse: Is cotton fabric with a crinkled or pleated striped texture created by applying a solution that shrinks part of the fabric, leaving it puckered. It can be found in summer shirts, sportswear and nightgowns.
Plush: is a textile having a cut nap or pile the same as fustian or velvet. Its softness of feel gave rise to the adjective “plush” to describe something soft or luxurious, which was extended to describe luxury accommodation, or something rich and full.
Polar: fleece is used in jackets, hats, sweaters, sweatpants, cloth nappies, gym clothes, hoodies, blankets, and high-performance outdoor clothing.
Polyester: the polyester fibers are generally available in two varieties- PET (polyethylene terephthalate) and PCDT (poly-1, 4-cyclohexylene-dimethylene terephthalate).
Pongee: is a soft thin woven cloth. Pongee is still woven in silk by many mills across China, especially along the banks of the Yangtze at mills in Sichuan, Anhui, Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces.
Poplin: is made with the plain weave. Poplin describes the weave rather than the fabric. Poplin has very fine, closely spaced, crosswise ribs and contains a heavier filling yarn and several number of warp yarns.
Qiana: is a silky nylon fiber developed in 1962 at the DuPont Experimental Station by Stanley Brooke Speck. The fiber was named Qiana when introduced by DuPont in 1968.
Quilting: is the process of sewing two or more layers of fabric together to make a thicker padded material, usually to create a quilt or quilted garment.
Ramie: has been used for over five thousand years in China, India and Indonesia, so it’s older than cotton. It was traditionally very popular in Japan, although it is hardly known in North America.
Raw: silk taken directly from the filature is too fine to be woven. Before it is woven into fabric, it goes through a series of operations which conditions for the loom.
Rayon: is moisture absorbent (more so than cotton), breathable, comfortable to wear, and easily dyed in vivid colors. It does not build up static electricity, nor will it pill unless the fabric is made from short, low-twist yarns.
Rib: knit a knitted fabric with alternating raised and lowered rows. More elastic and durable than plain knits, they tend to fit the body and are used frequently in T-shirts, as well as for the trims of socks, sleeves, waists and necklines.
Ripstop: fabrics are woven fabrics, often made of nylon, using a special reinforcing technique that makes them resistant to tearing and ripping.
Sailcloth: encompasses a wide variety of materials that span those from natural fibers, such as flax (linen), hemp or cotton in various forms including canvas, to synthetic fibers, including nylon, polyester, aramids, and carbon fibers.
Satin: fabric tends to have a high luster due to the high number of floats on the fabric. Because of this it is used in making bed sheets. Many variations can be made of the basic satin weave including a granite weave and a check weave.
Scrim: The term scrim has two separate meanings in terms of fabric. In each case, it refers to woven material, one a finely woven lightweight fabric widely used in theatre, the other a heavy, coarse woven material used for reinforcement in both building and canvasmaking.
Seersucker: is a thin, puckered, all-cotton fabric, commonly striped or chequered, used to make clothing for spring and summer wear.
Sequins: are disk-shaped beads that are typically made of plastic and used to adorn clothing, accessories and costumes.
Serge: is a type of twill fabric that has diagonal lines or ridges on both sides, made with a two-up, two-down weave
Shantung: is a type of silk fabric historically from the province of Shandong.It is similar to Dupioni, but is slightly thinner and less irregular. Shantung is often used for bridal gowns.
Sharkskin: is a smooth worsted fabric with a soft texture and a two-toned woven appearance. Lightweight and wrinkle-free, sharkskin is ideal for curtains, tablecloths and napkins.
Silk: is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles
Silnylon is a synthetic fabric used mainly in lightweight outdoor gear. It is used in the manufacture of backpacks, tarps and tarp tents, bivy bags, etc., particularly by ultralight backpackers.
Spandex: Because of its elasticity and strength (stretching up to five times its length), spandex has been incorporated into a wide range of garments, especially in skin-tight garments.
Suede: is a type of leather with a napped finish, commonly used for jackets, shoes, shirts, purses, furniture and other items.
Taffeta: is a crisp, smooth, plain woven fabric made from silk or cuprammonium rayons. The word is Persian in origin and means “twisted woven”.
Tapestry: is a form of textile art, traditionally woven on a vertical loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike cloth weaving where both the warp and the weft threads may be visible.
Tartan: is particularly associated with Scotland. Tartan is a pattern consisting of criss-crossed horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven wool, but now they are made in many other materials.
Terry: cloth is an extra thick, soft and absorbent material that is often used for towels and washcloths. It is also used to make certain garments, including robes and some sportswear.
Terrycloth: terry cloth, terry towelling, terry, or simply towelling is a fabric with loops that can absorb large amounts of water. It can be manufactured by weaving or knitting.
Ticking: is a cotton or linen textile that is tightly woven for durability and to prevent down feathers from poking through the fabric, and used to cover mattresses and bed pillows.
Toile: is a fabric, from the French word meaning “linen cloth” or “canvas”, particularly cloth or canvas for painting on.
Tricot : often used as a lining material, tricot fabric is a material that can be made from natural or synthetic fibers and has a unique weave that allows it to be smooth on one side while sporting texture on the other.
Tulle: is a fine, mesh-like fabric used for craft projects, clothing, and dance or bridal wear. It’s sheer with a crisp feel, although the stiffness of tulle varies with its fiber and weave.
Tweed: is a rough, woolen fabric, of a soft, open, flexible texture, resembling cheviot or homespun, but more closely woven. It is usually woven with a plain weave, twill or herringbone structure.
Twill: a popular weave pattern identified by diagonal lines on the face of the fabric. Denim, chino, gabardine and drill are all types of twill fabric.
Velour: or velours is a plush, knitted fabric or textile similar to velvet. It is usually made from cotton but can also be made from synthetic materials such as polyester.
Velvet: is a kind of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are distributed in an even manner in a short dense pile thus giving a very soft and smooth feel.
Vintage: apparel is both hip and highly collectible. There are many people today who collect vintage, especially on the eBay market, and as any vintage search testifies, the listings here extend into many types of fabric that may be used for all and sundry purposes.
Vinyl: fabrics come in a variety of types, textures and colors and are designed for a wide array of uses, all with the same great durability
Voile: is a soft, sheer fabric, usually made of 100% cotton or cotton blended with linen or polyester.
Wool: one of the toughest fabrics is the wool fabrics and they stay cleaner for longer as compared to the other kind of fabrics. There are other reasons for wool fabric being the favourite of many. Wool fabrics are resistant to flames and also help in preventing moisture build-ups.
Worsted fabric is cloth made of worsted yarn. Fabric manufacturers create worsted fabric by spinning long, fine, combed wool or wool-blend fibers into yarn.

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