Creation of seamless woven fashion via Jacquard technology

Research on seamless or full-fashioned technologies in fashion has been gaining popularity over the last five decades. However, immature design approaches and undeveloped biaxial manufacturing systems in the weaving field have so far constricted the development of seamless woven garments. In this research, seamless woven fashion (SWF) is proposed as a kind of hybrid of the new shapeable and layered textile structures and clothing constructions that leads to innovative results in fashion. Developments in computerised Jacquard weaving technologies, the advent of special stretch materials and new three-dimensional woven structure designs jointly offer new opportunities for SWF. Firstly, based on the requirements of fashion design and the nature of Jacquard woven textile design, the crucial design issues were identified with which the theorisation of an integrated design mode for SWF was established. Secondly, the design mode was further explored and evaluated from theory to practice in two explorations with respect to "sectional fabrics" and whole "forms" for SWF. The experimental results were critically analysed so as to identify the rules that exist between the woven design elements and the attributes of the specimens by which creative woven seamless fashion were created. Both the technical features and the aesthetical merits of the shaped woven textiles or fashion created by the new design mode were systematically revealed. Thirdly, applications of the proposed design mode were demonstrated by a series of creations, and the diversely creative effects of SWF were presented. The validity of the integrated forming design mode of SWF was testified. The expanded creative dimensions of woven textiles contributed an added value to woven products produced by current machines. Meanwhile the new features of SWF further widened the creative scope of fashion design. It is envisaged that the knowledge yielded by this research has contributed to the future research and development of the theory and practice of design and manufacture of end products via this new weaving designs.