Testing Fabric Properties

Comfort
Aim to determine if a fabric is a good or bad conductor of body heat.
Sew your fabric into a rectangular mit to cover one hand and secure it at the wrist with
a ribbon or loose elastic band. Describe how your hand felt after:
2 mins
10 mins
30 mins
Is your hand feeling warm? clammy? comfortable?
Do a few minutes of vigorous exercise how does your hand feel now?

Absorbency
Aim to determine how readily a fabric absorbs water.
Place a sheet of blotting paper on the desk. Lay your fabric sample on it (your sample
should be pre-washed to remove any starch).
Use an eyedropper to drop a set amount of water eg. 30mls (1T) onto the fabric.
Observe the following:
Did the water bead on the surface of the fabric?
Did the water soak into the fabric quickly?
Did the water spread through the fabric making a large stain?
Did the water pass through the fabric and soak into the blotting paper?
Wet your sample thoroughly. Wring. Hang to dry. Note how long it takes for your
fabric to dry.
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Strength wet and dry
Aim to determine how easy it is to tear a dry fabric and if it tears differently when
wet.
Cut 2 samples exactly the same size eg. 12 cm square. Wet and wring one sample.
Make a small nick with scissors on each sample and attempt to tear. Observe:
Is the fabric easy or difficult to tear when it is dry?
Is the fabric easier or harder to tear when it is wet?

Laundering
Aim to determine how a fabric is affected by conventional washing.
Cut 2 samples exactly the same size eg. 12cm square. Use one sample as a control.
Vigorously wash the other sample in hot, sudsy water. Rinse and wring. Hang to dry.
Observe:
How badly was the fabric creased when dry?
Did your fabric shrink?
Did your fabric hold its dimensional stability? (ie. was it out of shape)
What iron temperature did it take to remove the creases?
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Handle
Handle the fabric and describe how it feels against your skin.

Stain Resistance
Aim to see how easily water based and oil based stains may be removed by
conventional washing.
Cut your sample approx 10 x 20 cms in length. Use a laundry pen to mark the fabric
in half. On one side mark a large W and on the other a large O.
Smudge a water based (orange juice, coffee, tea) stain under the W and an oil based
stain (margarine, milk) under the O. Allow the fabric sample to dry. Wash the sample
in hot, sudsy water. Rinse, wring and hang to dry. Observe the degree to which the
stains have been removed.

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Resilience
Aim to see how readily a fabric recovers from short term creasing.
Cut your sample to an exact size. Fold the fabric like a paper fan and place between
two plates of glass (or two books). Place a weight on the glass for a set amount of
time eg. 1 minute. Remove the sample and observe:
What is the response of the fabric when the weight and glass plate is removed.
Note the severity of the creasing. Measure with a ruler the height of the zig zags in
the fabric.
Note the ironing temperature required to remove the creases.

Flammability
Aim to see how readily and quickly a fabric is consumed by the upward draft of a
flame.
Set your samples suspended between 2 retort stands with a metal dish underneath as
per diagram. Have a stopwatch at the ready. Set each fabric sample alight at the
bottom and note the time it takes for the sample to be consumed by the flame. Also
note the characteristics of the burning? (for safety - burn only one sample at a time)

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Abrasion resistance
Aim to observe the changes that take place when a fabric is subjected to repetitive
abrasion.
Firmly tape a fabric sample to the desktop. Wrap a duster with very fine emery paper
and rub the sample with even pressure counting the number of rubs.
Observe: When signs of wear appear; when pilling appears; when holes appear.

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Fabric Stiffness
Aim to observe when a fabric will bend under its own weight.
Cut fabric sample 3cm x 30cm. Tape a right angle triangle to the leg of a table as per
diagram. Place fabric sample under a ruler and gently slide the ruler over the edge of
the desk above the triangle. Stop sliding the ruler when the fabric has bent low
enough to lie along the hypotenuse of the triangle. Measure the length of the fabric
projecting from the edge of the table.

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Drape
Aim to quantify a fabrics drape. NB. Drape is a subjective property it is either
suitable or unsuitable for the end use of the fabric and the taste of the wearer.
Method 1. Draw the shadow created by a light over a circle of fabric as per diagram.
Compare different fabrics shadows.

Method 2. Fold a rectangular fabric sample like a paper fan and hold above a ruler.
Note the distance of the bottom edge of the fabric. Compare different fabrics.