The Jacquard mechanism is attached to a loom and operated by a punched card system which selects individual warp threads by mechanically operated Jacquard machines which are electronically controlled. The Jacquard mechanism was the first to use binary code and is considered by many to be the first c

The attribute of colour perception by which colour is judged to be violet, blue, green, yellow, orange, red or some combination of these.

The term is used to describe the feel of a fabric. See Drape.

A term formally used for a silk fabric in which the warp or filling is composed of a different fibre. Common examples are silk warp and wool weft.

A general term for the plain base or background of a decorated textile. See Figure.

A lustrous shiny surface that is produced on some fabrics, often through the process of calendaring.

The portion of yarn in a woven fabric that extends or floats, unbound, over two or more adjacent ends or picks.

A stem fibre commonly grown in Europe and Russia. The fibre, produced after retting and put through the scutching process, is used in the production of linen and paper. The seed of the flax plant produces linseed oil. See linen.

Chemicals used to impart flame resistance to a fabric.

A fabric that burns but self-extinguishes rapidly, with or without the removal of the ignition source. Flame resistance does not mean that the fabric will resist all possible damage from fire.

A yarn made of one or more continuous parallel filaments of manufactured fibres or silk. Usually a fine, smooth yarn. By tradition, filament yarns are processed by a throwster to make high-twist, plied or textured yarn.

A general term for the pattern or decoration of a fabric. See Ground.