Editing Denim (section)

==Creating denim==
All denim is created through generally the same process:<ref>{{cite book|last1=Chauncy|first1=Barbara|title=Denim by design|date=2011|publisher=Krause Publications Craft|isbn=9780896895980}}</ref>
# Cotton fiber is spun into yarn
# The warp yarn is dyed, while the weft is left white (usually) 
# The yarns are woven on a [[flying shuttle|shuttle loom]] or [[Power loom#Decline and reinvention|projectile loom]]
# The woven product is [[sanforized]]

===Yarn production===
Traditional denim yarn is composed entirely of [[cotton]]. Once cotton fibers are cleaned and combed into long, cohesive lengths of similar-length fiber, they are [[yarn#spun yarn|spun]] into [[yarn]] using an industrial machine. Throughout the creation of denim, washes, dyes, or treatments are used to change the appearance of denim products.

Some yarns may substitute an [[Elastomer|elastic component]] such as [[spandex]] for up to 3% of the cotton, the woven form of which (typically called 'stretch denim') may have a [[elasticity (physics)|elasticity]] of up to 15%.

===Dyeing===
Denim was originally dyed with [[indigo dye]] extracted from plants, often from the genus ''[[Indigofera]]''. In South Asia, indigo dye was extracted from the dried and fermented leaves of ''[[Indigofera tinctoria]]''; this is the plant that is now known as "true indigo" or "natural indigo". In Europe, the use of ''[[Isatis tinctoria]]'', or woad, can be traced back to the 8th century BC, although it was eventually replaced by ''Indigofera tinctoria'' as the superior dye product. However, most denim today is dyed with synthetic indigo dye. In all cases, the yarn undergoes a repeated sequence of dipping and oxidation—the more dips, the stronger the color of the indigo.<ref name="Bojer">{{cite web |last1=Bojer |first1=Thomas Stege |title=How Denim Is Made: Indigo Dyeing |url=https://www.denimhunters.com/how-denim-is-made-indigo-dyeing/ |work=Denimhunters |access-date=2 September 2019 |date=16 December 2016 |archive-date=3 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190903003208/https://www.denimhunters.com/how-denim-is-made-indigo-dyeing/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Before 1915, cotton yarns were dyed using a skein dyeing process, in which individual [[hank (textile)|skeins]] of yarn were dipped into dye baths. Rope dyeing machines were developed in 1915, and slasher or sheet dyeing machines were developed in the 1970s. These methods involve a series of rollers that feed continuous yarns in and out of dye vats. In rope dyeing, continuous yarns are gathered together into long ropes or groups of yarns – after these bundles are dyed, they must be re-beamed for weaving. In sheet dyeing, parallel yarns are laid out as a sheet in the same order in which they will be woven; because of this, uneven dye circulation in the bath can lead to side-to-side color variations in the woven cloth. Rope dyeing eliminates this possibility because color variations can be evenly distributed across the warp during beaming.<ref name="Bojer"/><ref>{{cite news |last1=Mercer |first1=Harry |title=Rope Dyeing Vs Slasher (Sheet) Dyeing |url= https://www.denimsandjeans.com/denim/manufacturing-process/rope-dyeing-vs-slasher-sheet-dyeing/3117 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161012171205/https://www.denimsandjeans.com/denim/manufacturing-process/rope-dyeing-vs-slasher-sheet-dyeing/3117 |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 October 2016 |access-date=2 September 2019 |work=Denims and Jeans |date=19 May 2011 |via=Archive.org}}</ref>

Denim fabric dyeing is divided into two categories: [[indigo dye]]ing (Indigo dye is a unique shade of blue) and [[sulfur dye]]ing (Sulfur dye is a synthetic organic dye and it is formed by sulphurisation of organic intermediates, this contains nitro or amino groups). Indigo dyeing produces the traditional blue color or shades similar to it. Sulfur dyeing produces specialty black and other colors, such as red, pink, purple, grey, rust, mustard, and green.

===Weaving===
[[File:Джинсовая ткань (изнаночная сторона).jpg|thumb|Denim under a microscope.]]
[[File:Full Count Selvedge ID.jpg|alt=|thumb|Selvedge identifier visible in white at the interior of a pair of jeans]]

Most denim made today is made on a [[Rapier loom|shuttleless loom]]<ref>{{Cite book|last=K W Yeung|first=Yan Li, L Yao|title=The China and Hong Kong Denim Industry|year=2003|pages=11}}</ref> that produces bolts of fabric {{convert|60|in}} or wider, but some denim is still woven on the traditional [[Shuttle (weaving)|shuttle loom]], which typically produces a bolt {{convert|30|in}} wide. Shuttle-loom-woven denim is usually recognizable by its ''[[selvedge]]'' (or ''selvage''), the edge of a fabric created as a continuous cross-yarn (the [[weft]]) reverses direction at the edge side of the shuttle loom. The selvedge is traditionally accentuated with [[warp (weaving)|warp]] threads of one or more contrasting colors, which can serve as an identifying mark.

Although quality denim can be made on either loom, selvedge denim has come to be associated with premium products since final production that showcases the selvedge requires greater care of assemblage.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Cadigan |first1=Erin |title=Sourcing and Selecting Textiles for Fashion: Sourcing and Selection |date=13 February 2014 |publisher=A&C Black |isbn=978-2-940496-10-5 |page=55}}</ref>

The thickness of denim can vary greatly, with a yard of fabric weighing anywhere from {{cvt|9 to 32|oz}}, with {{cvt|11 to 14|oz}} being typical.<ref name="Weight">{{cite web |last1=Rubin |first1=Ellen |title=The Denim Weight of Jeans |url= https://www.unsustainablemagazine.com/the-denim-weight-of-jeans-guide/#:~:text=While%20there%20are%20no%20official,type%20of%20clothing%20being%20made. |work=Unsustainable |access-date=28 May 2023 |date=24 April 2022}}</ref>