A material made mainly natural or synthetic fibers. Modern textile production may be prepare from number of combinations of fibers, foams, furs, or leather, yards, films, sheets,. They are found in apparel, household and commercial furnishings, vehicles, and industrial products. See also Manufactured fiber; Natural fiber.
Cloth as a thin, flexible material made from yarns; yarn as a continuous strand of fibers; and fiber as a fine, rod like object in which the length is greater than 100 times the diameter. The bulk of textile products are made from cloth.

The natural progression from raw material to finished product requires: the cultivation or manufacture of fibers; the twisting of fibers into yarns (spinning); the interlacing (weaving) or interloping (knitting) of yarns into cloth; and the finishing of cloth prior to sale.

The process of weaving allows a set of yarns running in the machine direction (warp) to be interlaced with another set of yarns running across the machine (filling or weft). The weaving process involves four functions: shedding (raising the warp yarns by means of the appropriate harnesses); picking (inserting the weft yarn); battening (pushing the weft into the cloth with a reed); and taking up and letting off (winding the woven cloth onto the cloth beam and releasing more warp yarn from the warp beam;

Construction design for plain weave; filling yarns pass under and over alternate warp yarns, as shown at right. When fabric is closely constructed, there is no distinct pattern. (After M. D. Potter and B. P. Corpsman, Fiber to Fabric, 3d ed., McGraw-Hill, 1959)
Construction design for plain weave; filling yarns pass under and over alternate warp yarns, as shown at right. When fabric is closely constructed, there is no distinct pattern. (After M. D. Potter and B. P. Corpsman, Fiber to Fabric, 3d ed., McGraw-Hill, 1959)

Three-shaft twill. Two warp yarns are interlaced with one filling yarn. (After M. D. Potter and B. P. Corpsman, Fiber to Fabric, 3d ed., McGraw-Hill, 1959
Three-shaft twill. Two warp yarns are interlaced with one filling yarn. (After M. D. Potter and B. P. Corpsman, Fiber to Fabric, 3d ed., McGraw-Hill, 1959)

Interlocking yarns of (a) course and (b) wale in a Jersey knit cloth. (After B. P. Corpsman, Fiber to Fabric, 5th ed., McGraw-Hill, 1975)

Single-warp (one-bar) tricot knit. (After B. P. Corpsman, Fiber to Fabric, 5th ed., McGraw-Hill, 1975)
Single-warp (one-bar) tricot knit. (After B. P. Corpsman, Fiber to Fabric, 5th ed., McGraw-Hill, 1975)

Newly constructed knit or woven fabric must pass through various finishing processes to make it suitable for its intended purpose. Finishing enhances the appearance of fabric and also adds to its serviceability. Finishes can be solely mechanical, solely chemical, or a combination of the two. Those finishes, such as scouring and bleaching, which simply prepare the fabric for further use are known as general finishes. Functional finishes, such as durable press treatments, impart special characteristics to the cloth. For discussions of important finishing operations See also Bleaching; Dyeing; Textile chemistry; Textile printing.