The History of Weaving

When looking for fabric suppliers in Durban, consider for a moment the rich history of weaving – tracing back more than 12 000 years, weaving is most certainly one of the oldest crafts in the world.

At its very core, weaving is a fairly simple concept of production – basically it consists of interlocking vertical threads with horizontal threads, combining them together to form a sheet of fabric that has a good amount of strength to it.
Traditionally, weaving was used for more primitive uses like constructing fences, shelters and baskets.
When people started weaving threads to make fabric, it was first done by hand – a slow and time consuming process. These days, machines are mostly used to speed up the process and do a more accurate and consistent job.

In the past, weaving was a more popular craft with most families weaving their own fabrics to use for blankets but it has since become much more specialised which lead to the start of the weaving industry.
In 1733, the flying shuffle was invented, which significantly sped up the weaving process. These days, weaving is done on a commercial scale by automated machines that do it faster and more efficiently than any human hands can ever do it.


Very few hand-made weaved textiles are made today, but the lost art does still exist for those purists who are interested in a more traditional fabric.