{{Short description|Most basic type of textile weave}} [[File:Plainweave.svg|thumb|upright|An example of the thread crossing pattern in a plain weave fabric]] [[File:Tabby1asm.png|thumb|right|Structure of plain-woven fabric]] [[File:Basketweave1sm.png|thumb|Structure of basketweave fabric]] [[File:Warp and weft 2.jpg|right|thumb|175px|Warp and weft in a '''plain tabby weave''', showing the reversals of the weft.]]

'''Plain weave''' (also called '''tabby weave''', '''linen weave''' or '''taffeta weave''') is the most basic of three fundamental types of [[textile]] [[weaving|weaves]] (along with [[satin]] weave and [[twill]]).{{sfnp|Kadolph|2007|page= 225–229 }} It is strong and hard-wearing, and is used for fashion and furnishing fabrics. Fabrics with a plain weave are generally strong, durable, and have a smooth surface. They are used for a variety of applications, including clothing, home textiles, and industrial fabrics.

In plain weave cloth, the [[warp (weaving)|warp]] and [[weft]] threads cross at right angles, aligned so they form a simple criss-cross pattern. Each weft thread crosses the warp threads by going over one, then under the next, and so on. The next weft thread goes under the warp threads that its neighbor went over, and vice versa.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Emery |first=Irene |title=The Primary Structures of Fabrics |publisher=The Textile Museum |date=1966 |location=The George Washington University and Textile Museum Library, Washington, D.C. |page=76 }}</ref> * [[Balanced plain weave]]s are fabrics in which the warp and weft are made of threads of the same weight (size) and the same number of [[Units of textile measurement#Ends per inch|ends per inch]] as [[Units of textile measurement#Picks per inch|picks per inch]].{{sfnp|Kadolph|2007|page=229 }} * [[Basketweave (weaving)|Basketweave]] is a variation of plain weave in which two or more threads are bundled and then woven as one in the warp or weft, or both.

A balanced plain weave can be identified by its [[checkerboard]]-like appearance. It is also known as one-up-one-down weave or over and under pattern.{{sfnp|Kadolph|2007|page=225–229 }}

Examples of fabric with plain weave are [[Chiffon (fabric)|chiffon]], [[organza]], [[percale]] and [[taffeta]].

== Etymology == According to the 12th-century geographer [[Al-Idrisi|al-Idrīsī]], in [[al-Andalus|Andalusī-era]] [[Almería]], imitations of Iraqī and Persian silks called «عَتَّابِيِّ» —''‘attābī''— were manufactured, which David Jacoby identifies<ref>Jacoby, "Silk Economics and Cross-Cultural Artistic Interaction: Byzantium, the Muslim World, and the Christian West" ''Dumbarton Oaks Papers'' '''58''' (2004:197–240) p. 217, crediting al-Idrīsī.</ref> as "a [[taffeta]] fabric made of [[silk]] and [[cotton]] (natural fibers) originally produced in Attabiya, a district of [[Baghdad]]." The word was adopted into Medieval Latin as ''attabi'', then French as ''tabis'' and English as ''tabby'', as in "tabby weave".<ref>{{cite web |title='Tabby': The Cat's Out of the Bag |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/the-history-of-the-word-tabby |publisher=Merriam-Webster |access-date=11 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="OED">{{cite web |last1=Harper |first1=Douglas |title=tabby (n.) |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/tabby |publisher=Online Etymology Dictionary |access-date=11 September 2020}}</ref>

== End uses == Its uses range from heavy and coarse [[canvas]] and [[blanket]]s made of thick yarns to the lightest and finest [[Cambric|cambrics]] and [[muslin]]s made in extremely fine yarns.<ref name="World Textiles">{{cite book |last1=Gillow |first1=John |title=World Textiles: A Visual Guide to Traditional Techniques |date=1999 |publisher=Thames & Hudson |isbn=0-500-28247-1 |page=70}}</ref> Chiffon, organza, percale and taffeta are also plain weave fabrics.

==References==

===Citations=== {{Reflist}}

===Bibliography=== * {{Cite book |editor-last=Kadolph |editor-first=Sara J. |title=Textiles |edition=10th |publisher=Prentice-Hall |location=Saddle River, New Jersey |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-13-118769-6 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/textiles0010kado }}

==External links== * {{Commons category-inline|Plain weave}}

{{Weaving}} {{Authority control}}

[[Category:Weaves]] [[Category:Woven fabrics]]