MAROCAIN. A ribbed or corded variety of dress fabric of comparatively light texture, constituting one of several varieties of the crepe or crimped type, of which crepe georgette, crepe-de Chine and crepe voile are the more typical examples. Although fabrics of this class are usually woven on the principle of the simple plain weave and other elementary structures, the peculiar crepe effect which is the distinctive characteristic feature of these fabrics is not due to the weave, but results partly from the ab normal amount of twist in the warp, weft, or both series of threads, and partly from the employment of yarn spun with the twist in reverse directions. Hence, some threads are spun "twist way," and others "weft-way," corresponding (in the worsted in dustry) to "crossband" (left twist) and "openband" (right twist), respectively. The threads of reverse twist are usually disposed in the fabric with a "two-and-two" thread disposition, i.e., two threads spun "twist-way," and two threads spun "weft-way," in succession, uniformly. Also, the relative counts of warp and weft, as well as the relative number of warp-ends and picks per inch in the fabric, are factors which have a marked influence in the de velopment of a more or less pronounced crepe or crimped effect.
This crepe or crimped effect, which characterizes fabrics of this class, results from the natural tendency of the highly-twisted threads of "reverse" twist to untwist in reverse directions, and thereby assume a wavy appearance resulting from their slight dis tortion from a perfectly straight line. Also, the ribbed or corded effect results from the disparity which exists in respect both of the relative counts and amount of twist in the warp and weft yarn, as well as in the relative number of warp and weft threads per inch, in the fabric.
Marocain fabrics are usually produced from a combination of two different classes of textile material consisting either of a silk or artificial silk warp, and worsted weft; whilst an inferior imita tion marocain fabric is produced from all-cotton yarn both for warp and weft. They are also made in a variety of textures from various counts of yarn and with different proportions of warp ends and picks per inch, according to quality.
A typical example of marocain fabric is woven either with a warp of silk, or else artificial silk, and highly twisted worsted weft of fine counts, with 170 warp threads of 15o denier silk, and 7o picks of 6o's worsted weft, per inch, which produces a fabric having a distinctly fine-ribbed effect, with the ribs extend ing transversely across the width of the fabric, i.e., in the direction of the hard-twisted and coarser picks of worsted weft.
An imitation marocain fabric of very light and open texture is woven from a cotton warp and artificial silk weft, with 56 warp threads of 2/80's highly-twisted cotton yarn (disposed in the fabric with a two-and-two end arrangement of "twist-way" and "weft-way" yarn, uniformly), and 8o picks of 120 to 15o denier artificial silk weft, per inch. Hence, the fine ribs extend length wise of the fabric, i.e., in the direction of the warp threads.
(H. N.)