Most Popular Textile fabric in Nepal l A year in review

Today’s blog is all about Fabric. And more specifically about fabrics that have become popular among Nepalese shoppers in recent days.

Fabric is the basic material for manufacturing garments. In fact, new fabrics are emerging as a result of technical developments which play a important role generating new fashion trends.

So What is Fabric?

In simple terms fabric is any cloth made by entwining fibers or yarn by the method of weaving or knitting or crocheting. Generally, a fabric is termed according to the fiber used to manufacture it.

Fabric is a finished product of the textile industry. Some fabrics are used in the garment industry for making clothing apparel while others are used in making upholstery items.

Now lets have a basic understanding about types of Fabric. Fabric can be divided Into two sets of categories:

Based On the types Of fabric Used (Natural and Synthetic)

1. Natural fabric: Natural fabrics are made out of natural fibers that come from plants, animals, or minerals. There are two general categories of natural fibers: animal-based and plant-based.
2. Synthetic fabric: Synthetic  fabrics are made of synthetic materials which are usually formed through chemical processes. The textile industry began creating synthetic fibers as a more cheaper and mass-produced alternatives to natural fibers.

Based On Production Process of fabric (Knitted and Woven)

1. Woven Fabric: Woven fabric is produced through weaving two sets of yarn.
2. Knitted fabric: Knit fabric is produced by Interloping (or knitting) one set of yarn.

   

Now, without any further due, let’s dive into some of the most popular fabrics in Nepal.

For the purpose of this blog we have determined a simple popularity index of the fabric based upon the following criteria:

1. The volume of web search (across various search engines)

2. Focused primarily on the keyword “shopping” (what shoppers mostly searched for)

3. Time duration of past 12 months (August 2021-August 2022)

4. Google trend has been used for determining the volume of web searches

Here is the list of the Top 9 most popular fabric in Nepal between (August 2021 to August 2022)

1. Cotton :

Cotton is a light, silky natural fabric that is known as the world’s most popular material. Ginning is the process of extracting fluffy fiber from the seeds of the cotton plant. After that, the fiber is spun into cloth, which can be woven or knitted.

The comfort, adaptability, and longevity of this fabric have all been acknowledged. It’s hypoallergenic and breathes. However, cotton is very prone to wrinkles, shrinking and takes a long time to dry.

Cotton is used in almost all types of clothing, including shirts, skirts, and underwears. Furthermore, Cotton is popular fabric for sheets and pillowcases holds over 60% of the market in this segment.

Type Of Fiber Used: Natural Fiber from cotton plant
Production process: knitted and woven types
Top search queries: Cotton pants for men, Cotton pants, Cotton vests

Most Popular across: Western, Far-Western, Central, Eastern regions of Nepal (refer to above map)

2. Chiffon:

Chiffon is a fabric that is plain-woven in a mesh-like pattern and is slightly transparent. It’s made of cotton, silk, or even synthetic materials and each has its own set of characteristics.

It’s a lot of pleasure to wear as it hugs the body and creates a soft feminine aspect, making it a bit popular among female population.

From Bollywood to ball gowns, chiffon is a popular, decorative, lightweight fabric that is associated with elegance and luxury. There are different types of chiffon ranging from Silk chiffon, Cotton chiffon, and Polyester chiffon.

Due to its light and flowing material, it is commonly used to manufacture scarves, blouses, dresses, especially bridal gowns and prom dresses.

Type of fiber used: Natural fiber like silk and synthetic fiber like rayon.
Production Process: Generally Woven
Top Search Queries: Chiffon Saree, Chiffon Gown

Most Popular Across: Central, Western and Eastern regions of Nepal

3. Denim:

Denim is a strong cotton fabric made using a twill weave, which creates a subtle diagonal ribbing pattern. The diagonal ribbing is what makes denim fabric different from canvas, which is also a sturdy woven cotton fabric. Blue jeans are made from denim that is colored with indigo, and is also used for making jackets.

Denim is well-known for its vibrant texture, strength, durability, and comfort. Denim fabric does not wrinkle and are easy to care for.

Type of fiber used: Natural fiber like cotton, synthetic fiber like polyester, lycra or a combination of both
Production Process: Woven fabric
Top Search Queries: Denim jeans, Denim jacket

Most Popular Across: Central, Western and Eastern regions of Nepal

4. Velvet:

Velvet is a soft, lavish fabric that has long been linked with royalty due to its splendid finishing and complex manufacturing process. This heavy, shiny woven warp pile fabric has a smooth pile effect on one side.

Velvet has long been a staple of interior design and fashion. The elegant appearance and feel makes it perfect for sophisticated designs.

Velvet is a versatile material that can be manufactured from cotton, linen, cold, silk, nylon, or polyester. Some of the common garments that are made of velvet include blouses, shirts, coats, skirts, evening dresses, and outerwears.

Type Of Fiber used: Natural as well as synthetic fiber
Production Process: Generally woven
Top Search Queries: Velvet Saree, velvet lehenga, velvet blanket

Most Popular Across: Mid-Western, Western, Central regions of Nepal

5. Satin:

A satin weave can comprise various types of fabrics, and its uses are beyond bridesmaid dresses and gowns. Satin refers to the weave  and most fabric characterized as satin has a soft, shiny finish that can be seen anywhere from evening bags to upholstery items.

Satin is characterized by a soft, lustrous surface on one side and a duller surface on the other side. It is popular for being durable and wrinkle-resistant. Having said so, Satin has a variety of uses from interior decorating to fashion.

Some of the most popular uses Satin includes dresses (evening gowns, wedding dresses), upholstery products like pillow, cushion coverings and bedsheets. It is also used in fashion accessories like bags and clutches.

Type of fiber used: Originally made by silk. Modern satin are usually made from polyester and rayon
Production Process: Generally Woven
Top search queries: Satin top, Satin gowns, Satin cloth

Most Popular Across: Western, Central, Eastern regions of Nepal

6. Nylon:

Nylon is a strong synthetic fabric that is commonly used to make different types of apparel and consumer goods. Unlike other organic or semi-synthetic fibers, nylon fibers are entirely synthetic, which means that they have no basis in organic material.

Nylon fabric was originally marketed as an alternative to silk stockings. To this day, women’s stockings remain one of the major use of  nylon. Furthermore, Nylon is also used in tights, yoga pants, and other types of form-fitting dresses for women.

Furthermore, Nylon is commonly used in sportswear. It is for it’s  elasticity and light weight that nylon is used extensively in sportswear.The fashion industry use nylon as a material for socks, swimwear, shorts, tracksuits, sportswear and windbreakers.

Type of fiber used: Nylon is a synthetic man-made fiber derived from petrochemicals, which is used
extensively throughout the fashion industry.
Production Process: Nylon production process
Top search queries: women stockings and hosiery

Most Popular Across: Central region of Nepal

7. Linen:

Linen is a flax-based textile that is generally used for homeware applications. While linen is similar to cotton, it is made from fibers derived from the stems of the flax plant instead of the bolls that grow around cotton seeds.

Garments made of linen are desirable in hot and humid climates. Unlike cotton, which tends to retain moisture for a longer period of time, linen dries quickly. As a result it helps reducing heat retention in an overly warm conditions.

However, manufacturing linen is much more time and resource-intensive than cotton thus making it a niche product. Furthermore linen is also used to make household items such as tablecloths, upholstery and curtains.

Types of fiber used: Linen is made from fibers of flax plant stems.
Production Process: Production process of linen
Top search queries: Linen Trousers, linen dresses

Most Popular Across: Central, Western, Eastern regions of Nepal

8. Corduroy:

Textile manufacturers use a variety of different materials to create Corduroy. It is a tough and ridged fabric. Corduroy is most notable for its unique ridged pattern, which  can be woven in a variety of widths.

Corduroy has come in and out of fashion trends several times (Potential trend: Corduory Shirt). The general public view corduroy as a versatile and durable fabric that’s ideal for shirts, jackets, pants and children’s clothes.

Textile manufacturers commonly produced corduroy using synthetic fibers throughout the 20th century. However a recent revival of interest in natural textiles has led to increased  popularity of 100% cotton and wool corduroy.

Types of fiber used: Cotton or cotton blended with man-made fabrics such as rayon or polyester.
Production Process: Generally woven
Top search queries: Corduroy Shirt

Most Popular Across: Central, Western regions of Nepal

9. Rayon:

Rayon is one of the most versatile fabrics around . It has a remarkable ability of imitating other fabrics. Rayon has been known for taking on the properties of silk, cotton, wool, and others, and can be used in nearly any type of clothing.

Rayon is a fabric made from purified cellulose fibers, which are typically created from wood pulp. Though rayon is derived from natural materials, it requires certain chemicals. This it is considered to be a semi-synthetic fabric.

Many manufacturers use rayon fabrics for inexpensive clothing as it is cheap to produce and shares many of the qualities that natural fibers have. The processing of Rayon also lets manufacturers manipulate these qualities so that the finished fabric resembles more closely to a specific fabric.

Types of fiber used:  Made from purified cellulose fibers, which are typically created from wood pulp
Production Process: knitted and woven type
Top search queries: Rayon one-piece, Rayon shirt

Most Popular Across: Central region and Eastern Nepal

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