Fabric can have many terms and jargon surrounding it. So we decided to put together an all in one jargon buster

Fabric Jargon and Terminology

When working with cloths and fabrics, there are a number of terms that can seem a bit baffling. Baize is no different. Fortunately, much of the general terminology that applies to most fabrics, can be applied to baize too. Here are some of the commonest terms related to fabrics.

Faced Fabric Right Side/Wrong Side

A faced fabric is a fabric that has a distinct presentation or right side. With printed fabrics, this will be the side on which the print is and is usually easy to identify. With woven fabrics like baize, which can have a faced side, it’s a little trickier to identify. Fortunately, we have written a How to Identify the Face and Nap of Faced Baize, which includes a video.

Selvedge or Selvage

Another common term is selvedge. This is a result of the cloth weaving process. It refers to the edge of the fabric that has been finished in such a way as to prevent it from fraying or unraveling while on the roll.

End of Roll

The end of roll is the piece of fabric that attaches to the inner tube. A light adhesive is sometimes applied to the tube to hold the fabric. This creates areas of pull on one side of the fabric. This doesn’t make the fabric unusable and end of roll pieces – with care – and in the right situation can be cost-effective. This is because end-of-roll pieces will most often be cheaper. Our baize remnants marked “end of roll” are the best way to buy cheap baize.

Worsted Yarn

This is a term that applies to baize closely. Before spinning, worsted yarns have long, straight, parallel yarns. The term is closely associated with woolen fabrics, like baize.

Twill

Twill is one of the three major textile weave patterns. Fabrics woven with a twill weave will have a right side and a wrong side, as opposed to plain weave fabrics that are the same both sides. Historic military fabrics like whipcord and serge have a distinctive twill weave.

Other Fabric Terms

Here are just a few of the jargon words we can think of, we’ll add to them over time, so be sure to bookmark this page for future reference. If you have any other terms you think we should include, we’d love to hear them. Simply leave them in the comments below,