Satin Weave

Other types of weave

Plain
Oxford
Lace
Twill
Grenadine
Herringbone
Houndstooth
Jacquard
Moire
Repp
Ribbed
Satin
Barathea
Self-On-Self
End-On-End

Warp and Weft

All weaves are made up from Warp and Weft ‘yarns’. Warp ‘yarns’ run along the length of the material, whilst weft ‘yarns’ run across the width of the material. It is the different methods of interlacing the warp and weft ‘yarns’ that create a particular type of weave. Many of the most common weaves have acquired names that come down to us over the centuries.

Satin Weave

Satin is a weave and not a material. The description ‘Satin Bow Tie’ is in truth not the full description as many satin bow ties are made from Cotton rather than Silk.

The main feature of satin weaves is the uniform distribution of the interlacings, which are never adjacent to one another. A basic satin weave repeats over at least five ‘ends’ and five ‘picks’, but the warp ‘ends’ interlace only once. This type of weave pattern leads to the creation of long ‘floats’ which because of the scarcity of interlacings (and thread density) in turn produce the smooth, even and lustrous sheen often associated with satin.

Brief Glossary of Weaving Terms

Float
A float is created when a warp or weft ‘yarn’ is passed over two or more threads.
Shed
A shed is the opening created on a loom where the weft passes between the warp ‘yarn’.
Pick
A pick (also referred to as a shot) is a single pass of the weft through the ‘shed’.
Ends
Individual warp threads.
Yarn
Yarn is the generic term for a thin, long, continuous strand of textile fibre, filament, or material in a form suitable for knitting, weaving, or otherwise intertwining (or interlacing) to form a textile fabric.