Lesson video

Hello, thank you for joining me for your design and technology lesson.

My name is Mrs. Conway and I will be guiding you through your learning today.

So today's lesson outcome is I can explain and compare small-scale and industrial reforming processes.

And these are our keywords.

We have reform, recycle, upcycle, fibers and yarn.

I'll go through each one of these in more detail as we work through the lesson.

So the first thing we're going to look at then are small-scale reforming processes.

Now, reforming in textiles means reshaping a material into a new form without changing its basic chemical structure.

Now, this can include: turning fibers, which are thin strands of a material, into yarn; using a range of techniques to make new textile products; reshaping old fabrics.

So let's have a look at some reforming processes.

Needle felting uses a special tool to tangle and compress wool fibers together.

It is used to create 3D forms or decorative flat pieces.

Now, there's no sewing involved as the fibers are matted together when it is repeatedly punched with the tool.

It's a very time consuming process and normally used for crafts.

So here we have an example of needle felting, which compresses the fibers together into a solid shape.

You can imagine how time consuming this is.

So a needle felting tool has barbs or spikes to help catch the fibers as it's pulled in and out.

Okay, quick check for understanding on that then.

True or false? Needle felting uses yarn to stitch fibers together.

Is that true or is it false? Pause the video here.

Just take a moment to think about your answer.

The correct answer, it is false.

It actually uses barbed needles to interlock fibers, not yarn or thread.

Now, yarn is a thick, continuous length of twisted fibers used for knitting or weaving.

Knitting creates fabric by looping yarn together, and this is one that you might be very familiar with.

Now, there are different types of knitting stitches, depending on the look and stretch required.

It's a time consuming process and takes a while to master as well.

If you've ever given it a go, you know that you can't just pick it up and do it straight away, which is why it's used for small-scale or customized garments more frequently.

Knitting usually requires two needles, as you can see in the image there.

And there are different types of stitches that can be done, and these also have to be learned.

So you've got examples such as cable stitch, garter stitch, stockinette stitch, and ribbing stitch.

Crochet is a technique for creating fabric by looping yarn with a single hooked needle.

Now, crochet is used to make a variety of items such as blankets, toys, and accessories.

Crochet is usually done on a small-scale because it is a detailed, once again, time-consuming craft and larger projects require significantly more time and also yarn.

So crochet requires one hook.

So this is where it differs a little bit from knitting.

And crochet hooks come in different sizes and also shapes and also materials as well.

Here's an example of a crochet toy that can be made with crochet.

Okay, quick check for understanding on crochet then.

Why is crochet usually done on a small-scale? Is it A: It can only be done with very fine thread? B: It requires special machines for larger projects? C: It's a detailed and time consuming process? Or D: Large crochet items are not possible? Pause the video here, just take a moment to think about your answer.

And the correct answer.

It was C.

So crochet is usually done on a small-scale because it's a very detailed and time consuming process.

Well done if you got that right.

So let's have a closer look at yarn.

Now, yarn can be made on a small-scale.

The fibers are carded using a special machine, and you can see the machine in the example in the image there in the middle.

Now, they're passed through the machine's rollers covered with fine teeth, and these brushes comb the fibers into a smooth, fluffy layer called slivers.

If we just have a look at the machine in a little bit more detail.

So you can see there the rollers covered in fine teeth.

The tangled fibers go in and then the straight slivers come out the other side.

Here's an example of a hand carding machine.

Now, the next processing step is to then spin the slivers into yarn.

Drawing combines slivers and gently stretches them through rollers to make them thinner and stronger.

And the slivers are fed into a spinning machine that draws out the fibers and spins them around each other.

And this is called twisting.

If we just have a quick look at a diagram.

Here, you can see the drawing of the slithers through the roller.

They are then twisted and that collects the yarn.

And a spinning wheel helps to form the yarn.

Hand weaving on a loom is one of the oldest methods of reforming fibers into fabric.

It involves interlacing the warp and weft threads to create fabric.

Remember, warp is the vertical and weft is the horizontal.

Hand weaving is used to create fabric for items such as clothing, rugs, wall hangings, as patterns can be woven into the design.

Now, this requires specialist knowledge and it is a time-consuming process.

So here's an example in the image, and you can see the warp threads are from the top to the bottom and the weft threads go between right and left.

Quick check for understanding on this then.

Which statement is true about warp and weft? A: The weft holds the loom in place while weaving.

B: The warp is fixed vertically on the loom and the weft is woven between right and left.

C: The warp runs right to left and the weft runs top to bottom.

Or D: Both are sewn into fabric after weaving.

Pause the video here just to take a moment to think about the answer.

And the correct answer.

It was B.

So the warp is fixed vertically on the loom and the weft is woven between right and left.

Patchwork joins scraps of fabric together in patterns and then adds a backing.

Sometimes quilting can be included with this process where wadding is placed between the patchwork and the backing.

Patchwork is a way to upcycle as it allows the reuse of small fabric pieces.

Upcycling turns old or unwanted material products into something useful.

Whilst this reforming process has high visual impact, it is very labor intensive.

And here's some example of patchwork, and this is a patchwork wall hanging that's made from fabric remnants.

Just want you to have a go at this small task then.

I'd like you to try and match the technique to the description.

So you have A: uses hook to form loops from yarn.

B: joins fabric scraps.

C: compresses fibers using barbed needle.

And D: twists fiber into yarn.

And your options to match those with are: 1: needle felting, 2: spinning, 3: crochet, and 4: patchwork.

Pause the video here to have a go at this task.

How did you get on? Let's look at the answers then.

So A: uses a hook to form loops from yarn matches with 3, crochet.

B: joins fabric scraps matches with 4, patchwork.

C: compresses fibers using barbed needle matches with 1, that's needle felting.

And D: twists fibers into yarn matches with 2, spinning.

Now, textiles can be reformed by adding structure as well.

Boning is where thin strips of plastic or metal are inserted into channels in fabric to keep it stiff and upright.

It's commonly used in corsets or costume wear, just like the example you can see in the picture.

You can see in the image there, there is a channel and that is where the plastic or metal is inserted into.

Starch can also be applied to fabrics to make them firm enough to hold their shape and it can be used in shirts and also decorative textiles.

Now, there are benefits and limitations to small-scale reforming processes.

Let's have a look at them in a little bit more detail.

So some benefits for you: They use basic tools and materials, they're good for upcycling and resource conservation, and they encourage creative expression.

The limitations, however, are that they are mostly slow and labor-intensive, They're not suited for higher-volume production, and they do require manual skill.

Okay, it's going to be over to you now to have a go at a few tasks.

The first thing I'd like you to do is define the term "reforming" in the context of textiles.

I'd then like you to compare hand knitting with crochet as small-scale reforming techniques.

And lastly, I'd like you to explain one benefit and one limitation of patchwork.

Pause the video here to have a go at these three tasks and good luck.

Right, how did you get on? Let's take each one of these tasks in turn.

So the first thing I asked you to do was to define the term "reforming" in the context of textiles.

Here's an example answer for you to compare yours to.

Reforming means reshaping a material into a new form without changing its basic chemical structure.

For example, spinning, knitting or weaving.

The next thing I asked you to do was to compare hand knitting with crochet as small-scale reforming techniques.

And the example answer reads: Both use yarn to make textiles by hand.

Hand knitting uses two needles and creates interlocked loops; crochet uses a single hook and forms loops one at a time.

Just compare your answers to these and check you've got those key points included.

And lastly, I asked you to explain one benefit and one limitation of patchwork.

The example answer reads: Patchwork allows the reuse of scrap fabrics, supporting sustainability, however, it is time-consuming and requires good sewing skills.

Now, you might have slightly different benefits and limitations to patchwork here, but just check against this and make sure that you've included the key points or check your answer with someone else's in the class or with the teacher to make sure that what you've included is relevant and correct.

Next, we're going to look at industrial reforming processes.

So we've looked at small-scale, we're gonna move on to industrial.

Now, in industry, reforming processes must be fast, also accurate, and repeatable.

Automation where possible can help with this.

And automation can also save time and labor costs and ensure a consistent quality.

Now, this ensures that manufacturers can keep up with the changing trends and also consumer demands.

Quick check for understanding on that then.

Which is a feature of industrial reforming processes? Is it A: handmade processes? B: slow and flexible? C: can be customized? Or D: fast and consistent? Pause the video.

Just take a moment to think about your answer.

And the correct answer.

It was fast and consistent.

So industrial reforming processes are fast and consistent.

Now, knitting machines are an example of an industrial reforming process, and they can be automated to produce large quantities of knitted fabric.

It works by using programmed patterns and also mechanical needles.

Now, this is ideal for industry because it increases production speed, ensures consistent quality and reduces the need for manual labor.

And you can see an example of one in the image.

As the patterns are programmed, they can be adapted quickly and easily to respond to market trends.

Circular knitting machines create tube-shaped garments with minimal waste.

Now, the arrangement of needles knit the yarn in a tube shape, which is used for garments like tights, socks, and sportswear leggings.

As these garments can be seamless, this eliminates the additional joining process.

If we just have a closer look at this circular knitting machine, the circular knitting creates tube-shaped garments and you can see hopefully that kind of example of the garment that is tube-shaped there.

Now, on an industrial scale, weaving is done using large automated looms that rapidly interlace warp and weft threads to produce fabric really efficiently.

Large quantities of fabric for clothing and upholstery can be made to a consistent quality with this process.

And here's an example of an automated loom.

They reduce the need for manual labor.

Okay, quick check for understanding on that then.

Why are weaving and knitting machines ideal for industrial use? Is it A: they increase speed and consistency in fabric production? B: they slow down production to improve accuracy? C: they allow for unique handmade designs? Or D: they reduce the need for electricity in factories? Pause the video here.

Just take a moment to think about your answer.

And the correct answer.

It was A.

So weaving and knitting machines are ideal for industrial use as they increase speed and consistency in fabric production.

Well done again if you got that right.

Now, bonded fabrics are made on an industrial scale by fusing fibers or layers together using heat, pressure or adhesives.

And this process can be done with a series of barbed needles that punch the fibers together.

Here you can see that in the image.

So you have the barbed needles repeatedly moving up and down in a reciprocating motion.

There you can see the matted fibers around those barbed needles.

And the machine plate has gaps for needles to move through.

The bonded fabrics are used for items like disposable medical gowns, cleaning wipes, and interfacings in clothing.

Natural or synthetic fibers can be used to make bonded fabrics.

Now, bonded fabrics with natural fibers are made as follows: First, you have the raw fibers going in, then you have fibers that are carded into straight lengths.

The high pressure water jets intertwine fibers and emboss them, and then the fabric is dried.

And then the fabric is wound onto a roll at the end of the process.

Now, bonded fabrics with synthetic fibers are made as follows: First, you have the molten polymer which enters the tank.

The spinneret extrudes thin filaments of fibers.

And the fibers are cooled and dispersed to create a web.

Next, the web fibers are bonded with heat pressure and adhesive, and then the embossing is an optional stage.

Lastly, the fabric is once again wound onto a roll.

Okay, true or false question for you here.

Non-woven fabrics are made by spinning fibers into yarn first.

Is that true or is it false? Pause the video.

Just take a moment to think about your answer.

And the correct answer is, it is false.

They are made by bonding fibers without spinning or weaving.

Now, textiles can be reformed by adding structure.

Darts are angled folds sewn into fabric to shape it around curves of the body, such as the bust or the waist.

And modified machines can sew these quickly.

and also precisely.

Interfacing is a separate layer of fabric, which is either ironed or sewn in.

And this is used to stiffen areas like collars and cuffs, and it helps fabric to hold its shape.

Here you can see the fabric layer one and then the fabric layer two below it.

The interfacing is bonded to layer two.

Regenerated fibers are made by breaking down natural celluloids from sources like wood or bamboo using chemicals and then reforming into fibers through a spinneret to create yarn.

Now, examples of this include a viscose, modal or lyocell.

They're commonly used for activewear as regenerated fibers are absorbent, soft and breathable.

Regenerated fibers are more sustainable than synthetic fibers and can be biodegradable.

However, chemical processing involves heavy use of the resources.

Another quick question for you here then.

What are generated fibers made from? Is it A: animal hair and wool? B: synthetic chemicals? C: recycled plastics? Or D: natural materials like wood pulp or bamboo? Pause the video.

Just take a moment to think about your answer.

And the correct answer is D.

So regenerated fibers are made from natural materials like wood pulp or bamboo.

Now, there are benefits and limitations to industrial reforming processes, just like with small-scale processes.

So the benefits are they are high speed, they reduce waste with automated methods and they have a consistent quality.

But the limitations are they are expensive to set up.

The environmental impact of chemicals and energy use is not great and they have less flexibility in design.

Okay, going to go over to you then to have a go at a few more tasks.

First thing I'd like you to do is to name two industrial reforming processes and describe what they are used for.

Next, I'd like you to consider this question: What is a regenerated fiber? And I'd like you to give one example and its use.

And lastly, I'd like you to compare industrial and small-scale weaving in terms of speed and production scale.

Okay, pause the video here to have a go at these three tasks and good luck.

How did you get on? Let's take each one of these tasks in turn.

The first thing I asked you to do was to name two industrial reforming processes and describe what they're used for.

Our example answer is this.

Industrial weaving is used to make strong woven fabrics for clothing and upholstery.

Bonded fabrics can be made from fibers fused together with heat pressure and adhesive.

They're commonly used for surgical gowns and disposable face masks.

The next task I asked you to do was answering the question, what is a regenerated fiber? And I asked you to include one example and its use in the answer.

Here's an example answer for you.

A regenerated fiber is made by chemically processing natural materials like wood or bamboo.

An example is viscose, which is used for sportswear.

Just compare your answers to the example ones there and see if you've included all of the key points.

And lastly, I asked you to compare industrial and small-scale weaving in terms of speed and production scale.

Industrial weaving is much faster because it uses automated looms and is better suited for higher volume production.

Small-scale weaving uses a manual loom.

It is slower because it takes a long time to set up the warp and weft threads.

Small-scale weaving is used for custom or artisan fabrics.

Again, just compare your answer to that one and check you've got those key points included.

So lastly, we're going to look at the conserving of resources.

The textile industry uses vast amounts of water, energy, and raw materials, and much of this ends up as waste in landfills or polluting water systems. Now, conserving resources helps to decrease waste, also extend the lifecycle of textile products and encourage sustainable consumption.

Now, which of these is a reason to recycle or upcycle textiles? A: to make clothes cheaper.

B: to reduce environmental waste, C: to make machines work faster, or D: to use more plastic? Pause the video just to think about your answer.

And the correct answer.

It was B.

So the reason to recycle and upcycle textiles is to reduce environmental waste.

Now, recycling converts waste into new materials.

And there are two main types of textile recycling: mechanical recycling, which is shredding fabric into fibers; and chemical recycling, which is using solvents to extract fibers.

Recycled fibers are used in things such as insulation, stuffing, or even new garments.

Now, stuffing for soft toys and also loft insulation can be made from recycled textiles.

The mechanical textiles reciting process is as follows.

First, we collect the textiles, then the textiles are sorted by color and also fiber type.

They are cleaned and any kind of non-textile parts such as zips or buttons are removed.

They are then shredded into fibers before reforming into yarn.

Whilst recycling textiles is good for the environment, there are many challenges that come with this.

So mixed fiber fabrics are harder to recycle and fibers get shorter and weaker each time they are recycled.

Color sorting limits design options as well.

And processing requires energy.

Recycling is helpful, but it's not always perfect.

Reduction and reuse are better alternatives.

Okay, true or false? Recycled fibers are not always as strong as new fibers.

Is that true or false? Just pause the video here to take a moment to think about your answer.

And the correct answer, it is true.

Recycled fibers are often weaker and shorter, especially after multiple uses.

Now, upcycling involves turning old or unwanted materials or products into something useful.

And upcycling also adds value and style.

So typical examples include turning old jeans into a bag or creating patchwork quilts from fabric scraps.

The benefits to upcycling are, it saves textiles from landfill, encourages creativity and uses minimal energy compared to something like recycling.

Quick question for you then.

Which is an example of upcycling.

A: sewing an old shirt into a tote bag.

B: burning old textiles to generate energy, C: melting polyester shirts to make new fabric or D: shredding cotton clothes into fibers? Pause the video here, just to take a moment to think about your answer.

And the correct answer is A.

So sewing an old shirt into a tote bag is a great example of upcycling.

Now, though recycling and upcycling have similar principles, they are different processes.

If we just have a look at that in a bit more detail then, recycling breaks down into fibers.

The energy use is high and the material quality means that the fibers, well, they can weaken.

For sustainability, it's good.

Upcycling reuses without much breakdown, which means the energy use is low and the material strength strength is maintained.

In terms of sustainability, it is considered better.

Okay, over to you to have a go at some final tasks.

First thing I'd like you to do is to define upcycling in the context of textiles.

Next, I'd like you to explain one benefit and one limitation of recycling textiles.

And lastly, I'd like you to describe the process of mechanical textile recycling.

Pause the video here to have a go at these three tasks and good luck.

Okay, let's go through each one of these in turn.

So the first thing I asked you to do was to define upcycling in the context of textiles.

The example answer reads: Upcycling is reusing existing textile materials in a creative way without breaking them down, often adding value or style.

The next thing I asked you to do was to explain one benefit and one limitation of recycling textiles.

And the example answer reads: Recycling reduces textile waste and saves resources, but recycled fibers can be weaker and harder to reuse in high quality products.

And the last thing I asked you to do was to describe the process of mechanical textile recycling.

And the example answer reads: Textiles are collected, sorted by fiber type and color, cleaned then shredded into fibers, and these fibers are then spun into new yarn or used for insulation or stuffing.

Just compare each of these to your answer and make sure you've got those key points included.

Yours will read slightly different.

That's absolutely fine as long as you've got those key points.

So let's summarize today's lesson.

Today we've been looking at reforming manufacturing processes for textiles.

Now, reforming changes textiles into new forms and small-scale methods are creative, but time consuming.

Industry uses fast, accurate reforming processes that are consistent in quality.

Recycling breaks textiles into fibers and yarn for reuse, whereas upcycling does not break down old textiles but reuses it in creative ways.

There was a lot to go through today, so well done for all of your hard work.

Thank you so much for joining me, and I will see you soon.