By the time of the Industrial Revolution, machines had been developed to produce denim faster on electric looms. Indigo dye is now artificially synthesized to reduce costs and make the material more accessible than ever before.
Today, denim is made through the following process:
Step 1: Collect the cotton and put it in the machine, where it is unwound and spun into a strong thread.
Step 2: Immerse the thread in the synthetic indigo dye bucket several times.
The third step: the indigo thread is woven together through selvedge or warp and weft.
Step 4: Then sanforized the denim, which means it will be stretched, heated and contracted.
Step 5: The denim is ready to be shipped to the store!
Prepare cotton
Cotton is collected from fields all over the world and goes through a process called combing, in which it is placed in a machine equipped with curved wire teeth (card) brushes. At this point, each fiber (called silver) is untied, cleaned, and spun together to form a thicker line segment.
Dye yarn
Before weaving together, the thread is immersed in a bucket full of synthetic indigo dye. Large yarn balls called ball warps are immersed in the dye several times to maintain the color. Eventually, the dye will lose its vitality, which is why denim will fade after repeated washing. However, a small amount of sulfur is used to stabilize the dye layer, ensuring that a large amount of blue can still be seen in the final product.
Braided yarn
Indigo yarn is woven together in two different ways. The first is the most common process, called 3×1. The blue lines that form the warp (long vertical lines) are combined with the white lines that form the weft (shorter horizontal lines).
In this process, more warp threads (blue) are used than weft threads (white), giving the denim a brighter color. Another method of weaving is through a process called selvedge. The production speed is much slower, which reduces the tension of the yarn and creates a softer, more durable fabric. Due to the cost and the demand for skilled workers, selvedge selvedge is only performed in Japan and Italy.
Finish denim
In order to prevent the fabric from twisting, denim is prefabricated, which means it will be softened, stretched, heated and contracted. This ensures that the fabric maintains its size and durability. The denim is also brushed off to remove any loose threads and lint, and then washed to make it look faded. Denim manufacturers attach great importance to quality control and monitor any defects or color changes.
Sell to different places!
After being shipped to retailers everywhere, the denim can be sold and added to your wardrobe!