A fabric perfect for the impeccable smoking. Thanks to its particular weave, it has a unique aspect and glow. It is best represented in black or midnight blue, and in special occasions it may be also worn in white.
Glossary
View an alphabetical list of words related to the fabric industry
The origins of the name recalls the three-cornered hat the priest used in the eighteenth century, created by the particular contrast of warp and weft threads. It is particularly used in carded fabrics for jackets.
Got its origins from the English word ‘beaver’, used to represent heavy fabrics used mainly in men’s coats, with a soft and velvety feel, like the beaver’s fur.
This is the way the visual effect of the fabric is defined, a round dot with a lighter coloured dot at its centre with a dark base, created with a combination of coloured warp threads and weft threads. Much appreciated for formal suits, depending on the different weights it may be used in different seasons, even though it is mainly used in the winter season. This fabric may be produced in a version suitable for jackets.
Wool is carded during the preparation process before being spun. Carded yarns have loose fibres, and therefore have a fluffy and warm feel.
Used mainly in the winter season, it is a worsted fabric on a Batavia base, where the dual diagonal is emphasised. Given its high resistance it wear and tear, it is used mainly for trouser with a rustic look.
Wool that has gone through the combing process, that is the fibre parallelization, which happens, in the preliminary phases within the spinning department. Only long fibres are submitted to the combing process and the yarn obtained is the finest and most valuable.
A worsted fabric on a Batavia base, with the characteristic of having a simple diagonal. In order to give it a more English style, it is created using jaspé or mouliné yarns. It is used mainly in the winter season.
Fabric with a wrinkled effect and non, with a crisp feel, created using very high twisted yarns.
This is the way this fabric is defined, obtained by the combination of coloured warp threads and weft threads, which create alternating, contrasting checks thanks to their shades. This fabric has French origins.
Floral motifs and abstract or geometric designs are embroidered on the fabric. This can be created using the same fabric threads, or by using different fibers to created a contrasting effect.
The most important measurement when evaluating wool is the fineness, meaning the diameter of the single fibre. Over time, as a result of the selection of the breeds, the wool’s fineness had become more refined, allowing fabrics to become lighter and softer. On fabrics, the fineness of the raw material is indicated according to the codes from the International Wool Textile Organisation and from the American Wool Products Labelling Act.
This may be carded or combed. A fabric used exclusively for the winter season. It’s main feature is its fluffy appearance, which is seen best in the melange blends. It is a must in a man’s wardrobe, and depending on the weight and appearance, it may be worn in a classic or contemporary way. It is very well suited for both trousers as well as suits, especially in the patterned versions called Saxony.
Historic fabric originating from the Renaissance period, created as a woollen cloak in France or as workers’ overalls in Spain. A combed Batavia weave, usually solid piece dyed, its particularity is the number of warp threads that accede the number of weft threads, making the weave very clean and smooth. It is a very compact fabric and is mainly used by connoisseurs.
Worsted fabric on a batavia base. The name originates from a French painting “grisaille” which comes from ‘gris’, a technique of highlighting shades of grey. A classic for suits whose distinctive trait is the jagged design, which moves from the right to the left of the fabric, giving great emphasis and contrast.
The origins of the name comes from the visual effect which looks like a ‘hen’s foot’, created by the coloured combinations of warp and weft threads. This type of weave, in a small dimension and with little colour contrast, is suitable for men and women’s suits and trousers. In a larger dimension with higher contrast, is suitable for female fashion and reaches its highest expression in black and white giving a 60’s look.
Fabric made on jacquard weaving looms, designed primarily for formal wear. This technique enables the creation of designs and special features, allowing the use of different weaves.
A fabric with a mottled pattern, created with the use of colourful yarns. It’s characteristic is due to the combination of threads made with 2/3 colours that create different tonalities and an irregular appearance.
Worsted fabric on a cross twill (Saia) base, mainly solid piece dyed, with the particularity of having more warp threads than weft threads giving the weave a very clean and sharp look. Very compact, is mainly used as a replacemnet to Gabardine in order to have a lighter weight.
The name originated from the weave on the Panama hat, and is commonly know as Nattè, from the French word ‘to weave’. The fabric is derived from the plain weave, but with higher alternation of the threads (eg. 2-2). It is widely used, with thicker yarn, for the blazer.
The easiest and mostly diffused weave. It allows the cloth to gain an excellent uniformity and is mainly used in fabrics for suits and Spring/Summer trousers collections because is weave ensures the utmost in breathability. One of the variations of the plain weave is the Basket or Panama, giving a more three-dimensional look to the fabric.
A fabric that is characterised by a particular design: large checks with alternating patterns or small checks or houndstooth. Over the years it has become a must in classical menswear collections. It became popular thanks to the Duke of Wales, who with his eccentric dress codes in those years, revolutionised men’s fashion, making it more informal and dictating new aesthetics, still admired to date. The Prince of Wales fabric is best seen in black and white, however it may be created in different shades depending on the season.
In satin weaves, warps are more dominant than the weft, giving the fabric a smoother and polished finish: fabrics produced mainly for evening suits and important occasions.
A fabric with an embossed motif, obtained thanks to the difference in tension of the threads used. Created in India in cotton and silk, it evolved in different versions keeping the same characteristics, the same naturally wrinkled effect. It is ideal for jackets and trousers used in the summer months for an informal look.
This is a type of silk fabric that has Eastern origins. It is easily recognised thanks to the mottled texture, obtained through the highlights in the weave. Perfect for cocktail jackets in black and white.
Fabric exclusively used for suits. It was mainly woven in cotton, but now it is highly appreciated in pure wool. On a Levantine/Gabardine base, different coloured threads are intertwined to create a vibrant effect. It is produced best on a herringbone weave, but good results are obtained with other less-traditional weaves.
Tex is a unit of measure for the linear mass density of fibres, yarns and thread and is defined as the mass in grams per 1000 meters. For example, if yarn is marked by 1/80.000, this means that in order to obtain 1kg, 80.000 metres are needed.
A strong fabric made from carded wool, of Scottish origins, with a porous feel and medium weight. It was originally created in black and grey shades with a herringbone weave, nowadays produced in different textures, such as the houndstooth, checked, over-checked and in many shades, including traditional Scottish Tartans. Through time, from the classic tweeds, many fabrics were created. The Harris Tweed from the Harris Island, made famous by the Countess of Dunmore, this tweed has contrasting light and dark shades and is different from the classical tweed because it is less refined. The Donegal, originally from the county of Donegal in Ireland, is characterised by colourful buttons contrasting with the background colour.
These weaves are characterised by a herringbone diagonal line. Amongst all twill weaves, the most popular ones are the Saia and Batavia, ideal for all seasons depending on the titration of the yarn.
A weave is the intertwining of the warp yarns and the weft of a fabric produced on a mechanical weaving loom. Depending on the development, weaves are divided into three families: Plain weave, Twill, and Satin. A weave is generally drafted on graph paper.
It is the mostly used animal fibre in the fashion world. Its physical aspects, its finesse and length, depend on the different types of sheep breeds, from their place of origin and the shearing period. Quality is defined mainly by parameters of length, fineness and curling: the finer and curlier the fibre, the more prestigious. Thanks to its particular structure, it has excellent characteristics like good hygroscopicity and breathability, supreme thermal insulation, elasticity, resistance to wear and tear and open flame. Wool is also mould-proof and an eco-sustainable fibre and is recyclable.
There are numerous ranges of yarns, which differ in several ways. The simple yarn is made up of a single head, a single colour, with a single count (weight) and number of twists. There are also twisted yarns, obtained by joining two or more simple yarns, equal or different. From the simplest combination of two yarns it is possible to create the most complex of twisted varieties. The knowledge of the twisted and the large number of effects obtainable with them is critical in the design phase of the tissues. The knowledge of twisted threads and the large number of possibilities obtainable with this technique is essential when designing the fabrics.