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•••<br />
Chino<br />
A popular twill weave, chino is always produced with<br />
cotton fiber. Not as densely woven as gabardine (see left),<br />
the diagonal twill texture is more noticeable and less fine<br />
than gabardine.<br />
Chino is one of the most popular fabrics used in men’s slacks,<br />
providing an alternative to dressier wool-blend gabardine,<br />
for more casual wear-to-work slacks. The twill weave makes<br />
the fabric more drapable than canvas or bottom-weight poplin.<br />
Chino quality can vary according to how densely the fabric is<br />
woven. The more tightly woven the fabric, the finer the diagonal<br />
surface. The looser the weave, the coarser the appearance of the<br />
diagonal surface. Coarse-weave chinos are less expensive than more<br />
tightly woven chinos.<br />
Slacks produced from chino fabric, after sewing is completed,<br />
are most often garment-finished with wrinkle-resistant and stainresistant<br />
finishes for easy care and maintenance. Today, most cotton<br />
chino garments are also garment washed to achieve a soft hand.<br />
The cotton twill fabrics shown below are often considered very<br />
similar to chino.<br />
This gray cotton<br />
chino is a popular<br />
fabric for men’s<br />
casual slacks that<br />
can move from the<br />
golf course to a<br />
business meeting.<br />
Its smooth surface<br />
and drapable hand<br />
is ideal for tailoring<br />
casual jackets,<br />
pants, and skirts.<br />
Facts and figures<br />
Distinctive features<br />
• Fine, diagonal-line surface texture.<br />
• Good drape.<br />
• Smooth surface.<br />
Strengths<br />
• Very durable fabric, especially<br />
abrasion-resistant.<br />
• Easily available fabric.<br />
• Good fabric for tailoring.<br />
• Drapes well.<br />
Weaknesses<br />
• Looser weaves are not durable<br />
• Must be preshrunk before sewing.<br />
• Dark colors are not colorfast.<br />
Usual fiber content<br />
• 100 percent cotton.<br />
• Cotton/polyester blends.<br />
DESIGN RESPONSIBLY<br />
The popularity of cotton chino pant<br />
fabrics for men’s and women’s slacks has<br />
been accelerated by offering garment<br />
finishing using nano-finishes. While the<br />
obvious benefits have made caring for<br />
100 percent cotton slacks much easier,<br />
no effort has been made to understand<br />
whether nano-finishing is harmful to<br />
the environment or the wearer. Nanomolecules<br />
used in these convenience<br />
finishes have not been studied to<br />
determine whether they pose a health<br />
risk when they enter the water supply<br />
or are absorbed into the wearer’s skin.<br />
High-quality cotton twill<br />
Note the steep angle of the diagonal texture<br />
of this cotton twill, which is typical of a<br />
more densely woven chino. This sample<br />
has a washed finish.<br />
More pronounced cotton twill<br />
This loosely woven fabric uses larger cotton<br />
yarns to widen the spaces between the<br />
diagonal lines of the twill, producing a<br />
lower-quality chino than the sample on<br />
the left.<br />
Gabardine • Chino<br />
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