Characteristics of gabardine: fabric composition and application features

An elastic, but at the same time thin and soft fabric made of wool, cotton or silk with a special type of weave is called gabardine. Gabardine material can be distinguished from many fabrics presented on the market by the front and back sides. From the back side it will be smooth, but from the front side it will be slightly rough, embossed. This relief is called a rib, and this is the main feature of this fabric. What is sewn from gabardine, as well as much more, is discussed below.

History of the origin of gabardine fabric

The world learned what gabardine was at the end of the 19th century. The material was invented by the founder of the fashion house "Burberry" T. Burberry. The fabric that resulted from his experiments became indispensable in creating things to protect against English bad weather. Gabardine quickly gained popularity and replaced rubberized fabrics, as it surpassed them in functionality. It was durable, lightweight, and thanks to a special impregnation, it did not let moisture and wind through.

T. Burberry invented a new fabric, but not a name for it. The name for the fabric was taken from a dictionary of the Middle Ages. In the 15th-16th centuries, this was the name for the cloaks of the poor, in which they wrapped themselves, saving themselves from rain and wind, and later - the clothes of the working class.

At first, gabardine was made exclusively from merino wool (a breed of sheep), and then it began to be woven from other types of threads. So, today, gabardine is a dense fabric, in the composition of which you can find:

• cotton;
• viscose;
• polyester threads;
• combined textured threads;
• silk;
• flax.

As before, today the threads for making gabardine are impregnated with a water-repellent composition, but you can also find fabric on sale without it.

Production technology, composition and types

The description of gabardine fabric states that it is a group of dense (density 290-440 g/m²) fabrics, distinguished by the method of weaving the fibers. The weaving of threads invented by T. Burberry is called twill.

A distinctive feature of this type of weaving is the different patterns on the front and back sides:

• the reverse side is smooth with a shiny sheen;
• The front side is distinguished by the presence of a characteristic pattern, which is called a fine-patterned rib.

The rib in twill weave forms a weave of fibers, it goes from left to right at different angles. Most often, this angle is 60-70°, but you can also find material with an angle from 30 to 70°.

Now on store shelves you can find not only products made from wool gabardines, but also clothes, gabardine for which can consist of:

• wool and synthetic fibers (gabardine-synthetic);
• polyester only;
• wool and silk;
• wool and cotton;
• wool and flax.

Semi-wool gabardines (the percentage of different threads in the fabric depends on the manufacturer) may contain natural wool, synthetic fibers, linen or viscose.

Staple gabardine is made from short threads and is impregnated with a water-repellent composition.

Cotton, woven from twisted threads - a material with a dense diagonal weave.

Silk gabardine can be completely natural or made of synthetic fibers. Artificial silk is made of viscose and polyester, and the percentage of synthetics can vary. The material for which a thread with a tight twist was chosen is soft and has a silky shine. If the twist of the silk fiber is weak, gabardine will look different. It will be matte with a satin effect on the smooth side.

With the discovery of stretchable threads, gabardine stretch fabrics, which consist of wool, viscose and lycra (elastane), began to appear on the market. Stretch material is indispensable in clothing that should fit well, change shape, not wrinkle and not hinder human movement.

Gabardine melange - what kind of fabric is it? It can be described as follows: a particularly attractive material in appearance, fibers of different colors are used for its production, so it shimmers in the light, changing color from dark to light.

Gabardine properties: pros and cons

Gabardine was invented with one purpose - to protect people from bad weather, so it has many positive properties:

• Waterproofness. This is achieved by special capturing of fibers and/or adding special impregnations.
• Wear resistance or durability. Fabric, especially if it is made from expensive threads, “lives for centuries”, retaining its appearance and properties.
• Elasticity. The material does not deform, clothes made from it do not stretch, but retain their original shape.
• Gabardine "breathes". The fabric is comfortable, the skin underneath does not sweat, air freely penetrates between the weaving threads.
• Easy to care for. Clothes made from gabardine are easy to clean and wash, and convenient to iron.

In addition to the advantages, this fabric has one, but significant disadvantage - fraying. A torn or untreated edge immediately unravels, so it needs to be processed quickly: put a patch, sew or glue.

Recommendations for purchase

If you decide to sew curtains, a dress or a suit from gabardine, it is recommended to pay attention to the following:

• Composition - when and where the item will be worn (a skirt for summer or autumn weather, a suit for every day or for going out, etc.).
• The scope of application of the future item and the wear resistance it should have (workwear or not).
• Cost. Price is the correct characteristic of gabardine. The cheaper the fabric, the worse its composition. Good expensive material cannot cost little.

What do they sew from it?

The answer to the question of what can be sewn from gabardine is simple: almost everything. This fabric is used to make underwear, interior items, and special-purpose outerwear.

Business clothes

When choosing a suit for work, the buyer is faced with the name of the fabric it is made of: gabardine. Most consumers do not know what kind of fabric it is, and have not heard of its important properties in sewing clothes.

Business clothes must meet several requirements:

• do not wrinkle for a long time;
• do not restrict movement;
• breathe;
• warm;
• get dirty little;
• repel water.

During the working day, a person makes many movements, and sometimes sits at a table for several hours. The suit fabric from which his clothes are sewn must be as comfortable as possible, so that he can raise his arm high in a jacket or squat in suit trousers, not tear the fabric, be wear-resistant and visually attractive, not wrinkle or deform.

Curtains and decorative items

Gabardine fabrics are dense and do not transmit light well, so they are often used for sewing curtains.

This is important in the following cases:

• if the windows of the house face the sunny side;
• if the neighboring houses are located too close;
• if there is a small child at home who needs to sleep during the day;
• if the household members like semi-darkness.

An undoubted advantage of this material is that it does not need to be ironed after washing. Curtains made of gabardine can be hung immediately after drying, after some time they will “hang down” and become perfectly smooth.

This fabric is used to upholster furniture (chairs, sofas, armchairs), and is used to sew pillowcases for decorative pillows, as well as other interior items.

Fabric for skirt

Business and casual women's clothing is almost always a dress or a jacket with a skirt.

Skirts often wrinkle and wear out, so the materials used to sew them must meet several requirements:

• be wear-resistant;
• not deform;
• fit the figure;
• emphasize advantages and hide disadvantages;
• keep its original shape.

Care instructions

Care for gabardine products will depend on the composition of the fabric. Any wool requires delicate cleaning, so only dry cleaning is suitable for it.

Synthetics and semi-wool items can be washed independently in a washing machine on a delicate cycle or by hand.

Iron items made of this fabric from the inside out through gauze or thin cotton with a warm iron. Before ironing, it is advisable to check how the fabric will react to the temperature set on the iron by ironing the item of clothing from the inside out in an inconspicuous place.

Which is better: gabardine or blackout

To darken a room, people use blinds or curtains. If earlier on the market there were only natural fabrics (satin, cotton, etc.) from which tulle and curtains were sewn, now for window decoration and darkening you can buy technological, modern ones, consisting of the latest generations of synthetic materials. Such materials include fabrics that hide light almost 100%. These are the so-called blackouts.

Blackout curtains are heavy and expensive (more expensive than gabardine), so not everyone can afford them. But they darken the room much better, and every meter of this material is worth the money.

Manufacturers and brands

Gabardine can be found in any price category (from economy class to top, luxury brands) and from many manufacturers (domestic and foreign).

High fashion houses Armani and Versace, as well as Tom Ford and the Boss brand, make gabardine suits, skirts and trousers.

In the domestic market, this fabric is used in sewing uniforms for pilots, police officers, and flight attendants.

The Gabardini company (St. Petersburg) produces gabardine of various colors under the FUHUA brand.

Consumer Reviews

Buyers in Russian stores are offered several types of gabardine: from synthetic to completely woolen.

In their reviews, based on regular wearing and cleaning of items made from these fabrics, consumers note both pros and cons:

• cheap synthetic materials become covered with pilling (roll up), lose their shape, do not breathe, and the frayed edge of the product crumbles;
• any gabardine is difficult to iron;
• expensive fabrics last forever;
• The cheap material is perfect for making costumes for school plays, and the bright colors are perfect for sewing masquerade outfits.

Here is the conclusion made by one of the users with the nickname annette112 on the Otzovik forum: “Taking into account all the nuances, I recommend gabardine fabric for sewing items intended for short-term use, or for outerwear that does not come into close contact with the body.”

As several centuries ago, today these fabrics are widely used for sewing many things. This material is durable, clothes made from it last a long time, do not lose their shape and look attractive.