Slub (textiles)
A slub in textile production is a thickened section of a fiber or yarn. Slubbed or slubby fabric is woven from slubby yarn. Both high and low slubbiness may be sought.
Slubs in spun fibers may be produced deliberately by varying spinning tension. They are also produced when short staple fibers are spun into a single yarn. Slubs may be valued or deliberately produced for aesthetic effect, but they may also be regarded as a defect caused by either uneven spinning or using low-grade, lumpy or short-staple fiber.
Types
Slubby cotton fabric includes:- Madras , woven from short-staple cotton
- Some denim used for jeans; the slubs cause the cloth to fade unevenly, in a pattern called
File:Hand Dyed Silk Noil.jpg|thumb|Unspun short-fiber silk noil; see sericulture
Silk is a filament fiber, and the only natural fiber type to come in filament length naturally. However, some silk fibers are shorter in length, and must therefore be processed as shorter-staple fibers, not as filament fibers, to make cloth. These shorter fibers, known as silk noil, may also be used unspun, but are often plied into threads and used in the production of slubbed silks. Slubbed silks include:
Slubby mixed-fiber fabric include:
Synthetic fibers can readily be produced in filament form, as very long lengths of consistent diameter, but it is sometimes slubbed for effect.