Velvet

velvet-fabric

What is Velvet?

The term “velvety” means soft, and it takes its meaning from its namesake fabric : velvet. The soft, smooth fabric epitomizes luxury, with its smooth nap and shiny appearance. Velvet has been a fixture of fashion design and home decor for years, and its high-end feel and appearance make it an ideal textile for elevated design. Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are very evenly distributed, with a short dense pile, giving it a distinctly smooth feel. Velvet has a beautiful drape and a unique soft and shiny appearance due to the characteristics of the short pile fibers. Velvet can be made from many different fibres. It is woven on a special loom that weaves two pieces of velvet at the same time. The two pieces are then cut apart and the two lengths of fabric are wound on separate take-up rolls. Velvet is difficult to clean due to its pile, but modern dry cleaning methods perform well.

Velvet is made, ideally, from silk. More recently, synthetic velvets have been developed, mostly polyester, nylon, viscose, acetate, and mixtures of different synthetics, or synthetics and natural fibers (e.g. viscose and silk). A small percentage of lycra is used sometimes to give stretch.

velvet-chair

Velvet chair

velvet-curtain

Velvet curtain

santa-clause-velvet-hat

Santa clause velvet hat

Velvet Today

Velvet fabric is popular for evening wear and dresses for special occasions, as the fabric was initially made from silk. Cotton, linen, wool, mohair, and synthetic fibers can also be used to make velvet, making velvet less expensive and incorporated into daily-wear clothes. Velvet is also a fixture of home decor, where it’s used as upholstery fabric, curtains, pillows, jewelry box, Gift Box, Watch Box, diamond tray, fancy lace, fancy velvet boxes, pooja Aasan, Bindis, ladies shoes, Car Cover, Bag, Shoes, Sofa, Toy, Wrapping Cloth, Paintings, Sports Wears, handicraft items

Pricing of velvet per meter depends on the base fiber used. for a meter of velvet pricing can be ₹30/- to ₹10,000/-. One of the most expensive range of Velvet is the Kuba Velvet which is priced anywhere between ₹15,000/- to ₹20,000/- per piece of clothing which might be a skirt or a wrap. Apart from clothing in general, Velvet is extensively used for upholstery.

While Velvet manufacturing began as a very intricate art, today there are a number of producers across the world that make different varieties of Velvet. Turkey, Egypt, China and India are some of the leading producers. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (erstwhile Zaire) is home to the Kuba Velvet, one of the most expensive varieties of Velvet.

What is the origins of Velvet?

The first velvets were made from silk and, as such, were incredibly expensive and only accessible by the royal and noble classes. The art of velvet-weaving probably originated in kashmir around the beginning of the fourteenth century. Then the material was first introduced in Baghhdad, around 750 A.D., During the rule of Harun al-Rashid by kashmiri merchants, but production eventually spread to the Mediterranean and the fabric was distributed throughout Europe. The earliest sources of European artistic velvets were weavers in Lucca, Genoa, Florence and Venice.

Velvet today is usually made from synthetic and natural fibers, but it was originally made from silk. Pure silk velvet is rare today, as it’s extremely expensive. Most velvet that is marketed as silk velvet combines both silk and rayon. Synthetic velvet can be made from polyester, nylon, and velvet is available in many grades. You get velvet in silk as well as synthetic bases. The ones with synthetic base like rayon is inexpensive. Velvet is available in many shades of vibrant and vivid colours. Velvet is increasingly being used in home decor as well for making upholstery coverings and curtains.

New loom technology lowered the cost of production during the Renaissance. During this period, Florence, Italy became the dominant velvet production center.

How Is Velvet Made?

Velvet is made on a special loom known as a double cloth, two pieces of fabric are woven together face to face with long threads. Velvet is characterized by its even pile height, which is usually less than half a centimeter, making the surface very smooth and shiny. Velvet fabric is available in many grades. You get velvet in silk as well as synthetic bases.The ones with synthetic base like rayon is inexpensive. Velvet is available in many shades of vibrant and vivid colours. Velvet is increasingly being used in home decor as well for making upholstery coverings and curtains.

Velvet today is usually made from synthetic and natural fibers, but it was originally made from silk. Pure silk velvet is rare today, as it’s extremely expensive. Most velvet that is marketed as silk velvet combines both silk and rayon. Synthetic velvet can be made from polyester, nylon, viscose, or rayon.

Different types of velvet

There are several different velvet fabric types, as the fabric can be woven from a variety of different materials using a variety of methods.

Crincle / Crushed velvet

As the name suggests, crushed velvet has a “crushed” look that is achieved by twisting the fabric while wet or by pressing the pile in different directions. It is embossed with an irregular crumpled texture. It has a great lustre/ shimmer and visual texture which make it a very attractive fabric to sew with. The appearance is patterned and shiny, and the material has a unique texture.


Panne velvet

Panne velvet is a type of crushed velvet for which heavy pressure is applied to the material to push the pile in one direction. The same pattern can appear in knit fabrics like velour, which is usually made from polyester and is not true velvet.

Micro Velvet

This is a cotton fabric with a pile similar to velvet. The pile is about 3mm high which makes it very luxurious and more heavy than other varieties of velvet. They are great for making dresses, gowns, Lahenga cholies.

Flocked Velvet

This is different type of fabric then most of in this list. Flocking is defined as the application of fine particles to adhesive coated surfaces, usually by the application of a high-voltage electric field. In a flocking machine the "flock" is given a negative charge whilst the substrate is earthed. Flock material flies vertically onto the substrate attaching to previously applied glue. A number of different substrates can be flocked including textiles, fabric, woven fabric, paper, PVC, sponge, toys, and automotive plastic.

Embossed Velvet

Embossed velvet is a printed fabric created via a heat stamp, which is used to apply pressure to velvet, pushing down the piles to create a pattern. Embossed velvet is popular in upholstery velvet materials, which are used in home decor and design.

Stretch velvet

Stretch velvet has spandex incorporated in the weave which makes the material more flexible and stretchy.

Self adhesive velvet

These are fabric pieces available for you to do craft. These fabric has sticky back side. You can make jewellery boxes from it.

pile-on-pile velvet

This type of velvet has piles of varying lengths that create a pattern. Velvet upholstery fabric usually contains this type of velvet.