World Textile | British Textiles

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Textiles
|British Textiles a very British fashion
World Textiles
British Textile Industry

Introduction
World Textile | British Textiles

The British textile industry drove the Industrial Revolution,

triggering advancements in technology, stimulating the coal
and iron industries, boosting raw material imports, and
improving transportation, which made Britain the global
leader of industrialization, trade, and scientific innovation.

"By the middle of the 19th century, Britain was producing

half the world's cotton cloth, yet not a scrap of cotton
was grown in Britain".

Mill girl
 1
British Textiles 2 3

1790s - 1800s 1800s - 1809s Browse and cl

Timeline & Evolution

1800s - 1900s

The nineteenth century opened with a fashion

landscape that was changing dramatically and rapidly
from the styles of a generation earlier. The French
Revolution brought fashions that had been emerging
since the 1780s to the forefront.

Neoclassicism now defined fashion as both men and

women took inspiration from classical antiquity. For
women, the high-waisted silhouette in lightweight
muslin was the dominant style, while fashionable men
looked to the tailors of Britain for a new, refined look.
 Use of Wool Use of Silk

A Brief History
Search for a
& linen in more affordable in 17th
Early 15th fabric as Cotton century to
century. in the late 18th make sheer
century. fine Silk
A Brief history on backdrop of history and evolution of textiles velvet.

Evolution of textile materials & trade

The British textile industry has been a vital piece of the British economy for centuries. The textile industry traces its roots in Great Britain back to shepherds in
the Scottish midlands. The British textile industry can surely be dated as far back as the Middle Age, but it is originally very much a rural, cottage-located
industry – fabrics were manufactured for local use only, produced locally and sold locally Before the Industrial Revolution, wool was the primary textile product
produced in Great Britain contributing higher end fabrics such as velvet through silk trade,

English trade channels and merchant ships became the blood veins as during the Industrial Revolution, cotton processing became a major industry in the British
economy, companies such as “East India Company” also became the channels to penetrate the local ecosystems as a merchant company, which later became
a medium to colonies antire nations through divide and rule the colonization also gave the opportunity to exploit the resources, the is the one of the reasons
why, by mid - 19th century Britain was producing half of the world’s cotton textiles, yet not a scrap of the cotton was home grown.

English silk designers distinguished their work from the prevailing French taste for generalized floral types by producing spare floral
patterns often based on actual botanical specimens or engravings. It is during the early eighteenth century that the identities of
individual silk designers became known. One designer, an Englishwoman named Anna Maria Garthwaite (1690–1763) is notable for
the fact that a large collection of her designs have survived, and silks woven to these designs have been identified.
 Before the Industrial Revolution, the creation of a patterned silk textile required resources, investment and
the skills. The warp was threaded on the loom according to the design of the textile, after which two people
were required to weave the textile—a weaver who inserted the wefts and a “drawboy” who controlled the
pattern mechanism. As a result, patterned silks and velvets, especially those embellished with precious
metal threads, were produced in relatively few major centers in Europe where raw materials, specialized
looms, and skilled artisans could be gathered together efficiently.

Patterned silk velvet was the most expensive and prestigious of all
woven textiles, but other patterned silks, such as damasks and
brocades, were costly as well. The city-states of the Italian peninsula
produced the majority of European luxury silks during the Middle
Ages and the Renaissance, and continued to dominate the
production of luxury textiles well into the seventeenth century.

Under King Louis XIV (r. 1643–1715), the superintendent of finance

Jean-Baptiste Colbert (1619–1683) launched an ambitious scheme to
organize and promote the textile industries in France, both at home
and abroad. Lyon, which had previously been an important trade
center for merchants importing Italian textiles, emerged as the
center of the reorganized industry, and subsequently overtook Tours
as the largest French producer of luxurious silk textiles.
MDM Company

17th Century
1

Before the textile revolution of the mid 18th century,

clothing in the United Kingdom was a cottage
industry. Most garment wear in Medieval Britain was
influenced by either Scandinavian invaders or the
Roman Empire. The rich would wear imported silk,
linen and patterned wool. The poor would wear local
or homespun wool - often without colour and edged
British imports made up much of the fabric of 17th
with hand embroidery or tablet woven bands.
Century America. Cotton, silk, and wool fabrics
comprised the majority of colonial textiles. Taffeta, a
As prosperity grew more complex clothing followed.
version of silk fabric, was used in the production of
By the 17th century 'point lace' became popular in
aprons, gowns, and hoods. Men and women wore silk
England, reflecting floral patterns of that period.
stockings in either woven or knitted styles.
 Pre-Industrial revolution Textile industr
y

Before the 17th century, the manufacture of goods was performed on a Share your great ideas by typing
over the pre-filled text inside the
limited scale by individual workers, usually on their own premises. Goods sticky notes.

were transported around the country by clothiers and a large amount

was exported. In the early 18th century, artisans were inventing ways to
become more productive. Silk, wool, fustian (a cloth with flax warp and
cotton weft), and linen were eclipsed by cotton, which was becoming
the most important textile.
 Calico Act
It was during this surge in popularity that the
East India Company continued to increase
its imports of calico, a cheap cotton fabric
from India. This met the growing demands
from the poorest in Britain and found itself
on the mass market.

This subsequently had a negative impact

back in Britain for the local manufacturers,
so much so that in 1721 the Calico Act was
passed by Parliament, enforcing a complete
ban on calicoes in clothing or for domestic
use. Two legislative acts, one of 1700 and
one of 1721, that banned the import of most
cotton textiles into England, followed by the
restriction of sale of most cotton textiles.
World Textile | British Textiles

Industrial Revolution

The first cotton mill started during the

industrial revolution in 1733. It began the
never-ending spirit of improvements,
curiosity and discoveries, sparking immense
amounts of creativity, productivity and
innovation.

The textile industry was indeed at the

center of the British's industrial expansion
and technological advances meant that
At the beginning of the 18th century, Great Britain was overloaded with
cotton, wool, silks and dyestuffs could be
resources and raw materials from the colonies. On the other hand, the
produced at unprecedented rates, with
improved way of life and the demand for more textile increased, hence,
results exported around the Empire.
prices became reasonable and production grew.
Time line Several
inventions in
textile machinery
occurred in a
1733 Flying shuttle invented by John Kay: an improvement to
relatively short
looms that enabled weavers to weave faster. time period
during the
1742 Cotton mills were first opened in England.
Industrial
Revolution.
1764 Spinning jenny invented by James Hargreaves: the first
machine to improve upon the spinning wheel.

1764 Water frame invented by Richard Arkwright: the first

powered textile machine.

1769 Arkwright patented the water frame.

1770 Hargreaves patented the Spinning Jenny.

1773 The first all-cotton textiles were produced in factories.

World Textile | British Textiles

Flying shuttle loom

In 1733, John Kay invented the ‘Flying

Shuttle’, which allowed wider cloth to
be weaved and at a faster speed.
Before this invention, weavers had to
pass the shuttle through the warp
threads by hand. The Flying Shuttle put
the shuttle on wheels and controlled it
with a driver.

The weaver controlled the shuttle by pulling a cord attached to the driver. When this cord was pulled to the left,
the driver caused the shuttle to fly through the warp in the same direction. Pulling the cord to the right sent the
shuttle back. The loom replaced the work of two people plus the weavers could only go as far as their arm length,
but the shuttle allowed them to go farther. The “Flying Shuttle '' is especially important as it spurred the inventions
of spinning machines taking a step towards automatic weaving.
World Textile | British Textiles

Derby Rib

In 1759, the stocking frame invented in 1589

for silk became viable when Jedediah Strutt
introduced an attachment for the frame
which produced what became known as the
“Derby Rib'', which allowed stockings to be
manufactured in cotton. Nottingham, a
traditional center for lacework, had allowed
the use of the protected stocking frame
since 1728.

In 1761, the Duke of Bridgewater's canal connected Manchester to the coalfields of Worsley and in 1762, Matthew
Boulton opened the Soho Foundry engineering works in Handsworth, Birmingham. His partnership with Scottish
engineer James Watt resulted, in 1775, in the commercial production of the more efficient Watt steam engine, which
used a separate condenser. changed the way the world experienced production – the steam engine made it
possible for heavy machinery to be used in factories.
World Textile | British Textiles

Spinning Jenny

In 1764, James Hargreaves invented the ‘Spinning Jenny’, introduced

in 1764 by Thomas Highs (1718-1803) of Lancashire and named for
his daughter. Highs wanted a machine for spinning cotton that
would multiply threads more quickly, and he built a device with six
spindles.

One machine that could spin from six to eighty, multiplying the spun
thread capacity of a single worker. Hargreaves acquired the patent
for it in 1770, but by then the device had been widely copied.

Silk was too delicate and expensive for mass consumption. Cotton, on the other hand, was hardwearing, comfortable
and inexpensive. Unlike wool, its production was not controlled by ancient practices because it had only become widely
available after the East India Company began exporting it from India in the late 17th century. Inventors, therefore, bent
their minds to creating cotton-processing machines, and cotton spearheaded the British industry into the factory
system.
World Textile | British Textiles

Water Frame

In 1769, Richard Arkwright patented

the ‘Water Frame’. This, as its title
would suggest, used water as a
source of power but it also
produced a better thread than the
spinning jenny.

A machine to create cotton thread

first used in 1768. The design was
partly based on a spinning
machine built for Thomas Highs by
clockmaker John Kay, who was
hired by Arkwright.
World Textile | British Textiles

Spinning/ Crompton's mule

In 1779, Crompton’s ‘Mule’ was invented by Samuel Crompton. This

combined the good points of the water frame and the spinning
jenny and resulted in a machine that could spin a thread better
than any other machine.

A machine used to spin cotton and other fibers in the British mills,
used extensively from the late 18th to the early 20th century. The
machines were worked in pairs by a minder, with the help of two
boys: the little piecer and the big or side piecer.

The spindles were placed on a carriage that went through an operational sequence during which the rollers stopped while
the carriage moved away from the drawing roller to finish drawing out the fibers as the spindles started rotating.
Crompton’s mule was able to produce finer thread than hand spinning at a lower cost. Mule spun thread was of suitable
strength to be used as warp and finally allowed Britain to produce good-quality calico cloth. The spinning mule spins
textile fibers into yarn by an intermittent process. In the draw stroke,the roving pulled through rollers and twisted. On the
return it is wrapped onto the spindle
World Textile | British Textiles

Vertical power loom

Realizing that the expiration of the Arkwright patent would greatly

increase the supply of spun cotton and lead to a shortage of
weavers, Edmund Cartwright developed a vertical power loom
which he patented in 1785. Cartwright’s loom design had several
flaws, including thread breakage. Samuel Horrocks patented a fairly
successful loom in 1813; it was improved by Richard Roberts in
1822, and these were produced in large numbers by Roberts, Hill &
Co.

It meant that all stages in the making of cotton could now be done in one factory. In 1790 he also patented a wool combing
machine that was used to arrange and lay in parallel by length the fibers of wool, prior to further treatment. By the 1790’s,
Boulton and Watt’ steam engine was used in increasing numbers in textile factories. Therefore there was less reliance on
water and the availability of water was a lesser factor for building a productive factory. As the new machines used steam
engines, factories now tended to be built near coal mines as a result.

19th Century
Countries such as Japan had begun to set up their
own factories and were now producing material with
much lower costs. In 1933 Japan became one of the
largest cotton manufacturers, leaving the northern
powerhouses of British industry behind.
Cotton had such a profound impact on Britain,
changing its fortunes and facilitating innovation and
new ideas. It became the centrepiece of the
developing industrial revolution which impacted the
country socially, economically and culturally for
generations.
After the Second World War (1939-1945) it was a
remarkably creative era in British textile design.
Designers created radical, buoyant styles that
elevated textile design despite ongoing austerity and
1
restrained colour palettes.
During the war the British government introduced the
Utility Scheme (1941), which aimed to ensure peoples
access to consumer goods, despite cutbacks. At the
end of the war, textile design remained limited to
simple woven and printed patterns which were cheap
to produce. One of the chief practitioners of the day,
Enid Marx design abstract geometric pieces with
small scale repeating patterns such as Spot and
Stripe, Honeycomb, Ring and Chevron, which the
manufacturer Morton Sundour Fabrics trialled. Once
approved by the Board of Trade Design Panel, these
designs went into production.
Some designs were made in a dark brown, which was
later dropped from the final – undeniably dull –
palette of rust, green, and blue and cream. Marx was
 Post War
1
After the Second World War (1939-1945) it was a remarkably creative era in British textile design. Designers created
radical, buoyant styles that elevated textile design despite ongoing austerity and restrained colour palettes.

During the war the British government introduced the Utility Scheme (1941), which aimed to ensure peoples access to
consumer goods, despite cutbacks. At the end of the war, textile design remained limited to simple woven and printed
patterns which were cheap to produce. One of the chief practitioners of the day, Enid Marx design abstract geometric
pieces with small scale repeating patterns such as Spot and Stripe, Honeycomb, Ring and Chevron, which the
manufacturer Morton Sundour Fabrics trialled. Once approved by the Board of Trade Design Panel, these designs went
into production.

Some designs were made in a dark brown, which was later dropped from the final – undeniably dull – palette of rust,
green, and blue and cream. Marx was critical of the eventual colourways, condemning rust as "most deplorable and
responsible for much of today's low standards of public taste".
Post War
Left: Spot and Stripe, furnishing fabric, Enid
Marx, 1946, England. Right: Chevron,
furnishing fabric, Enid Marx, 1946,
England(.Image credit: Victoria and Albert
museum.)
 Festival of Britain

In 1951, the Festival of Britain provided new

opportunities for textile design and its manufacture.
One distinctive design that emerged was magnified
representations of atomic structures to create patterns
for ceramics, fabrics, wallpapers and other products.
Scientists had used X-ray crystallography (the study of
crystal structure) extensively from 1915, and in 1946 Dr.
Helen Megaw suggested that crystal patterns could be
used as inspiration for wallpaper and fabric designers
Left: Boric Acid, wallpaper, William J. Odell, 1951, England. Right: Afwillite 8.45, dress
because of their repetitive symmetry and natural fabric, S. M. Slade, 1951, England.(Image credit: Victoria and Albert museum.)
beauty.

Her idea provided a starting point for the 26 manufacturers of the Festival Pattern Group, a team set up by Mark
Hartland Thomas, Chief Industrial Officer at the Council of Industrial Design. The crystal-structure diagrams of the
arrangement of atoms of substances like boric acid, insulin, aluminium hydroxide, haemoglobin and afwillite became a
hit of the Festival.
 Contemporary Style
Others were traditional sources of 1
inspiration, such as botanical form. The
'Contemporary' style often used organic
material as inspiration for its bold abstract
patterns. Designers like Jacqueline Groag
and Lucienne Day created imaginative and
original patterns with new energy.

Textile manufacturers were initially

skeptical of these designs, but they
became hugely popular. Increasing demand
was met by a supply of fabrics at a wide
range of prices, including new textiles such Lucienne Day's famous Calyx – which debuted at the Festival of Britain and became one of her most
successful designs – was a bold, non-representational botanical pattern, unlike many of the traditional flower
as rayon. This was a man-made fibre and prints of the day. Similarly, Perpetua (1953) comprised various plant forms, linked by thin stem-like lines that
cheaper than natural fibers like cotton or spread across the fabric as if growing spontaneously.

silk.
Marian Mahler and Jacqueline Groag, both
graduates of Vienna's industrial arts school (or
Kunstgewerbeschule), contributed to the quality of
the output of the UK textile company David
Whitehead.

Like Lucienne Day, Groag was extremely versatile in

her work. Both designers, although known for their
textiles, produced patterns for other media
including plastic laminated surfaces – a popular
product of the time.

The bright and joyful designs of these innovators

were gradually adopted by the established textile
design market, elevating Britain's standing in textile
Furnishing fabric, Jacqueline Groag, 1951, England. Right: Furnishing fabric, Jacqueline Groag for David
manufacturing and becoming popular with Whitehead, 1952, England.
consumers.
Groag was influenced by her love of the
Viennese Secessionists, an art movement
formed in 1897 by a group of Austrian artists,
including Josef Hoffmann and Gustav Klimt.
Contemporary developments in fine art were
incorporated into the new textile patterns – a
result of both designers' artistic literacy and
manufacturers' drive to reinvigorate the
industry.

Designers drew on the work of favored artists

for inspiration: the spirit of the hanging mobiles
of Alexander Calder is evident in many
memorable 1950s patterns. Companies such
as Edinburgh Weavers, Ascher and the US
based Fuller Fabrics, invited artists of
international standing to try their hand at
textile design, harnessing the style of
prominent painters and sculptors such as
Pablo Picasso, Fernand Léger, and Henry
Moore.
Left: Furnishing fabric, Henry Moore for David Whitehouse & Sons Ltd.,1954, England. Right: The Blue Vase, dress fabric, Pablo
Picasso for Fuller Fabrics, 1956, US (.Image credit: Victoria and Albert museum.)
These designs were 'translated' into textiles for dress and furnishings
by adventurous manufacturers using their knowledge of production
processes. Some practitioners had knowledge and skill that bridged
both art and textile production and were able to create striking
patterns through weave structure alone. Alastair Morton of Edinburgh
Weavers was one example.
 Frequency,
furnishing
fabric,

Contemporary Style
Barbara
Brown for
Heal Fabrics
Ltd.,1969, UK.
(Image credit:
This new approach to design in the 1950s paved the way for Victoria and
Albert
subsequent trends. In the late 1960s, social change and a new museum.)

generation of designers replaced the delicacy and scale of the

1950s patterns with larger scale designs using still bolder colours.
Both Pop and Op art movements influenced design, resulting in
futuristic patterns stimulating and disorientating the eye. In this
context, Barbara Brown was a particularly prolific designer and
supplied Heal Fabrics with many notable designs.

These designs were 'translated' into textiles for dress and furnishings by
adventurous manufacturers using their knowledge of production processes.
Some practitioners had knowledge and skill that bridged both art and textile
production and were able to create striking patterns through weave
structure alone. Alastair Morton of Edinburgh Weavers was one example.
World Textile | British Textiles

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By Group : British Textiles

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