Impact of wash types and stitching parameters on shrinkage of knitwear made from pique fabric
International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology
ISSN: 0955-6222
Article publication date: 12 December 2018
Issue publication date: 3 April 2019
Abstract
Purpose
In the field of knitwear, dimensional stability is assumed as a critical problem that affects the quality and salability of a product. Although much work has been done in this area with a focus on the factors affecting fabric shrinkage, however, there is a lack of work on knitwears with respect to their dimensional stability. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of stitching parameters and wash types on the dimensional properties of knitwear.
Design/methodology/approach
The crew-neck t-shirts were prepared by using pique knitted fabrics. Different sewing and finishing parameters were used that include stitch density, stitch type, stitching thread and wash type. The critical measurements of the selected garment are taken as output variables which are body width, sleeve length, body length and across shoulder. After laundering process, shrinkage percentage was calculated by using before-wash and after-wash measurements.
Findings
This study shows that the stitching parameters affect significantly on knitwear’s shrinkage. Thus, when patterns are being developed for the cutting of fabric, expected shrinkage, known as residual shrinkage, must be considered to avoid unexpected changes in garment shape.
Originality/value
This research will be useful for knitwear manufacturing industry.
Keywords
Citation
Ramzan, M.B., Rasheed, A., Ali, Z., Ahmad, S., Naeem, M.S. and Afzal, A. (2019), "Impact of wash types and stitching parameters on shrinkage of knitwear made from pique fabric", International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology, Vol. 31 No. 2, pp. 232-242. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCST-04-2018-0057
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited