Crepe (fabric)

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Detail of a kimono made from black silk crepe

Crepe (from French le crêpe , a noun from old French cresp , from Latin crispus "kraus, kräuselt") is a fabric with a curled , grainy surface. It arises from the irregular interlacing of the thread during weaving or from the use of heavily twisted yarns that curl up during washing and finishing .

There are so-called "real crepe" (or "crepe") and "fake crepe". Real crepe is characterized by the fact that the crepe effect is only achieved by over-twisted yarns, a distinction being made again between full crepe and half crepe. Crepe is called fake if it is given its irregular, grainy appearance through special bindings or equipment.

The crepe textiles include lavabel , an easily washable, soft, flowing fabric with a smooth surface made of silk or man-made fibers .

Manufacturing variants

Yarn crepe

Yarn crepe is created through the use of twisted yarns (crepe yarns). The crepe fabric produced in this way is called real crepe. The fabrics show a restless, finely structured surface, they are softly flowing and have a sandy feel.

Full crepe is a fabric with crepe yarns in warp and weft . A plain weave is used to make full crepe . Full crepe are known as georgette (also crepe georgette ) and chiffon ( crepe chiffon ).

Half crepe is a fabric with crepe yarns in only one thread system (warp threads or weft threads). A crepe effect with fine stripes in the transverse direction can be achieved with S or Z twisted crepe yarns in the weft. The crepe yarns are inserted in the weft because it is easier than winding crepe yarns onto the warp beams . The trade names for this variety are Crêpe Marocain , Crêpe de Chine (also Chinakrepp), Crêpe Satin and Chinette .

Tension crepe is characterized by alternating blistered and smooth longitudinal stripes and is known under the trade name Seersucker . This can be achieved through different warp thread tensions, possibly supported by groups of crepe threads. This effect can also be achieved with shrinking and non-shrinking warp threads.

Binding crepe

Binding crepe as well as sand crepe have a grainy, irregular appearance. This is achieved with technical binding measures. Crepe binding can be produced by adding or leaving out and rearranging the warp and weft threads. A regular rapport cannot be seen, and no stripes, bond ridges or floats that are too long should appear. These substances are known under the trade names Eiskrepp and Sable (or Sandkrepp ).

Equipment crepe

Crepe fabrics can also be created using three different finishing processes.

  1. Embossing crepes are based on thermoplastic materials made of acetate or polyester, which are embossed according to pattern with the help of heated metal rollers. Crepe into which crepe structures have been pressed in using an embossing calender are called Gaufré , Crash or embossed seersucker .
  2. In the case of lye crepe , the desired effect is created using a sodium hydroxide solution . For this reason, mainly pure cotton fabrics and mixed fabrics with a large proportion of cotton are used in this process . The crepe character can be created in two different ways:
    • On the one hand, by locally printing thickened sodium hydroxide on cotton fabric without simultaneously exerting tension. The material contracts in the areas with the pattern, which creates the crepe effect, because the unprinted areas pucker.
    • You can also pull the base fabric through a full bath with no tension. A lye- resistant thickener is printed on as a reserve beforehand. The effect desired by leaching occurs after the reserve has been removed.
    Attention should be paid to the length jump of about 15% and width jump of 16 to 24%, depending on the strength of the crepe effect. This variant is known under the trade names Krauselkrepp , Seersucker and Blasenkrepe and is mainly used for bed linen and for women's outerwear such as blouses .
  3. Tension crepe: Some seersucker fabrics have a washable crepe effect due to different warp thread tensions or shrinking yarns. A bubble structure in the direction of the chain can also be caused by post-treatment with sodium hydroxide solution. It is characterized by regular bubbles in the direction of the warp. They get their bubbly, crepe appearance in the textile finishing . In the caustic process, caustic soda is printed selectively or in strips on cotton fabric. The printed areas shrink and create blistered, raised patterns in the fabric. The market there are equipment Kreppe under the names Kräuselkrepp , bubble crepe and Borken crepe .