A slub in textiles production refers to thickened areas of a

fiber Fiber (spelled fibre in British English; from ) is a natural or artificial substance that is significantly longer than it is wide. Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The strongest engineering materials often inco ...

yarn Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, used in sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery, ropemaking, and the production of textiles. '' Thread'' is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern ...

. Slubbed or slubby fabric is woven from slubby yarn (yarn with a very variable diameter). Both high and low slubbiness may be sought. Slubs in spun fibers may be produced deliberately by varying spinning tension (see Novelty yarns#Slub). They are also produced when short,

staple Staple may refer to: *Staple food, a foodstuff that forms the basic constituent of a diet *Staple (fastener), a small formed metal fastener **Surgical staple Arts, entertainment, and media *Staple (band), a Christian post-hardcore band **Staple ( ...

fibers are spun into a single yarn. Slubs may be valued or deliberately produced for aesthetic effect, but they may also be regarded as a defect caused by either uneven spinning or using low-grade, lumpy or short-staple fiber.

Types

Slubby cotton fabric includes: *

Madras (cloth) Madras is a lightweight cotton fabric with typically patterned texture and tartan design, used primarily for summer clothing such as pants, shorts, lungi, dresses, and jackets. The fabric takes its name from the former name of the city of Che ...

, woven from short-staple cotton *Some

denim Denim is a sturdy cotton warp-faced textile in which the weft passes under two or more Warp (weaving), warp threads. This twill weave produces a diagonal ribbing that distinguishes it from cotton duck. Denim, as it is recognized today, was f ...

used for jeans; the slubs cause the cloth to fade unevenly, in a pattern called

Linen Linen () is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant. Linen is very strong and absorbent, and it dries faster than cotton. Because of these properties, linen is comfortable to wear in hot weather and is valued for use in garments. Lin ...

is often slubbed.

Wool Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have some properties similar to animal w ...

fabrics, such as

tweed Tweed is a rough, woollen 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. Colour effects in the yarn may be obtained ...

s, may also be slubbed. Hand Dyed Silk Noil

Silk is a

filament The word filament, which is descended from Latin ''filum'' meaning " thread", is used in English for a variety of thread-like structures, including: Astronomy * Galaxy filament, the largest known cosmic structures in the universe * Solar filament ...

fiber, and the only natural fiber type to come in filament length naturally (strands can be over 1.5 km long). However, some silk fibers are shorter in length, and must therefore be processed as shorter-staple fibers, not as filament fibers, to make cloth. These shorter fibers, known as

silk noil Noil refers to the short fibers that are removed during the combing process in spinning. These fibers are often then used for other purposes. Fibers are chosen for their length and evenness in specific spinning techniques, such as worsted. The s ...

, may also be used unspun (for instance, as wadding in a quilted garment), but are often plied into threads (which are then at least twice as thick as the filament) and used in the production of slubbed silks. Slubbed silks include: *

Pongee Pongee is a type of slub-woven fabric, created by weaving with yarns that have been spun by varying the tightness of the yarn's twist at various intervals. Pongee is typically made from silk, and results in a textured, "slubbed" appearance; po ...

Shantung (fabric) Shantung is a type of silk plain weave fabric historically from the Chinese province of Shandong. It is similar to dupioni, but is slightly thinner and less irregular. Shantung is often used for bridal gowns. Structure Shantung is a fabric with ...

Dupioni Dupioni (also referred to as douppioni, doupioni or dupion) is a plain weave silk fabric, produced using fine yarn in the warp and uneven yarn reeled from two or more entangled cocoons in the weft. This creates tightly woven yardage with a highl ...

* * *

Thai silk Thai silk (, , ) is produced from the cocoons of Thai silkworms. Thailand's silkworm farmers cultivate both types of the domesticated silkworms that produce commercial silk: '' Samia ricini'', commonly known as the eri silkworm, which produces ...

*Some

tussah Tussar silk (alternatively spelled as tussah, tushar, tassar, tussore, tasar, tussur, or tusser, and also known as (Sanskrit) ''kosa'' silk) is produced from larvae of several species of silkworms belonging to the moth genus '' Antheraea'', incl ...

silk *

Eri silk Eri silk is a type of peace silk produced by the domesticated silkworm ''Samia ricini''. It is primarily produced in the Northeast India, northeastern Indian states of Assam, Nagaland and Eri silk in Meghalaya, Meghalaya, but it is also found in B ...

Slubby mixed-fiber fabric include: *

Bourette Bourette is a silk fabric with bumps often blended with other yarns made of Bourette fibers. The name " Bourette" is from its constituting fiber. It has a rough surface incorporating multicolored threads and knots of spun silk. The fabric is made ...

* "Antique" satin

Synthetic fiber Synthetic fibers or synthetic fibres (in British English; see spelling differences) are fibers made by humans through chemical synthesis, as opposed to natural fibers that are directly derived from living organisms, such as plants like cott ...

s can readily be produced in filament form, as very long lengths of consistent diameter, but it is sometimes slubbed for effect.

References

{{textiles Textiles