Purpose Beside the development of technology and accessibility, ease of use, ability to reach various products and compare many products at the same time make online shopping even more popular. Despite the great advantages provided by online shopping for either consumers or retailers, there are certain issues that must be solved to improve online shopping advantages. Finding right size is one of the biggest barriers against apparel online retailing. Since the use of apparels is directly related with fitting, choosing right size is becoming more critical for retailers and consumers. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the solution of the problem. Design/methodology/approach For the study, the specific size measurements of male shirts (collar, shoulder, chest, waist, arm length in cm) from four different sizes (small, medium, large, x-large) and from eight different brands were collected and stored in a database. Totally, weight, height and body measurements (collar, shoulder, chest, waist and arm length in cm) of 80 male candidates, between the ages of 18 and 35, were measured individually. These data were then used for experiments. Findings Any product with known measurements can be compared with users’ body measurement based on fuzzy logic rule and the best-fitted size can be selected for users. Similarly, using the proposed web design, users are able to see desired products on users with similar body type. Originality/value In this study, a new mathematical method based on fuzzy relations for apparel size finder is proposed. Beside, this method can group users based on body measurements in order to find people with similar size.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyse dynamic drape behaviours of 100% wool woven suiting fabrics considering real-time usage.Design/methodology/approachDynamic drape coefficients of 100% wool woven fabrics were measured at different rotation speeds (25, 75, 125 and 175 rpm) with a commercially used fabric drape tester which works on image processing principle. Average daily walking speed of male and female volunteers was determined and the closest rotation speed was selected to calculate dynamic drape coefficient at walking (DDCw). Besides, bending rigidity and shear deformation properties, which are known to be related to the static drape behaviours of the fabrics, were also measured and the relationships between these parameters and DDCw were examined.FindingsAs a result of the experimental study, it was found that dynamic drape coefficients become greater, which means the fabrics take flatter position, with the increase of the rotation speed. In addition, it was also seen that parameters known to be related to static drape behaviours such as unit weight and bending stiffness have less effect on the dynamic drapes of fabrics. For the estimation of dynamic drape behaviour of fabrics, parameters such as static perimeter, dynamic perimeter, etc. are found more significant.Originality/valueTo date, although studies about dynamic drape behaviours of the fabrics claimed that dynamic drape gives more realistic results for in wearer experience, few of them focused on the rotation speed of dynamic drape tester for real-time usage. As dynamic drape behaviours of fabrics may differ for different rotation speed, determining appropriate speed in accordance with real-time usage gives more realistic results.

The use of recycled materials has gained massive importance in textile sector as well as in other sectors as the effects of reduction of natural sources are felt all over the world. In this study, it was aimed to analyse the effects of recycled cotton usage on properties of OE-rotor spun yarns and knitted fabrics produced from these yarns. For this purpose, OE-rotor yarns were produced at different proportion levels of virgin cotton and waste cotton that derived from blowroom 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%, respectively. For better assessment, properties of OE-rotor yarns that contain waste cotton were compared with 100% virgin cotton OE rotor yarn. Physical, structural and mechanical properties such as unevenness, imperfections, hairiness, breaking force, elongation, yarn-to-yarn friction, yarn-to-metal friction and yarn-to-ceramic friction were measured by Uster Tester 4 SX, Uster Zweigle Hairiness Tester 5, Uster Tensorapid 3 and CTT by Lawson Hemphill. At the second part of the study, single-jersey knitted fabrics were produced from OE-rotor spun yarns. Effects of waste cotton proportion on knitted fabric properties such as pilling, abrasion resistance, bursting strength and air permeability were also evaluated. Results showed that, the use of up to 75% per cent of waste cotton blended yarns show no statistically significant differences on yarn and fabric properties.

This study aims to design a compact three-strand spinning approach as inspired by the twist and compact spinning. In the design process, auxiliary parts of twist and pneumatic compact spinning technologies were modified. First, a three-strand funnel and three-groove delivery cylinder were designed to feed three-strand into the drafting zone and control strand space. Then, air-suction guides and suction inserts with different structures of air-inlet slots were designed to create a separate condensing zone for each of the strands. Different structures of the air-suction guide and suction insert were used for modeling the compacting zone and four different systems were introduced. The effectiveness of compacting zones was discussed according to the numerical flow-field simulation studied with SolidWorks Flow Simulation software. Numerical simulation results showed that creating separate condensing zones for three-strand yarns was achieved with all of the new designs. However, the air-guide with longer air-inlet slot channels provided better flow-velocity components and static pressure values. It was also seen that using the same guide with narrowed slots suction insert results in greater flow-velocity components. In the experimental part, the guide with longer air-inlet slots and narrowed slots of suction insert was produced with a 3D printer and used for compact three-strand production. Properties of the compact three-strand yarns were compared with ring three-strand yarns to investigate compacting effects, and it was seen that better yarn properties were obtained with the compact three-strand spinning.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate surface treatments and fiber types on adhesion properties polylactic acid (PLA) three-dimensional (3D) parts printed on woven fabrics. Design/methodology/approach The cotton, flax and jute fabrics were exposed to alkali, hydrogen peroxide, stearic acid and ionic liquid treatments to modify surface characteristics before PLA 3D printing. The modification efficiency was assessed with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses. Then, fused deposition modeling (FDM) printer and PLA filament were used for 3D printing onto the untreated and treated fabrics. The adhesion strength between the fabrics and PLA 3D parts were tested according to DIN 53530 via universal tensile tester. Findings The fabric structure is effective on adhesion force and greater values were observed for plain weave fabrics. Maximum separation forces were obtained for alkali pretreated fabrics among jute and cotton. Hydrogen peroxide treatment also increased adhesion forces for jute and cotton fabrics while decreasing for flax fabrics. Stearic acid and ionic liquid treatments reduced adhesion forces compared to untreated fabrics. Treatments are effective to alter adhesion via changing surface chemistry, surface morphology and fabric physical properties but display different effects related to fabric material. Originality/value This study provides experimental information about effects of different fiber types and surface treatments on adhesion strength of PLA 3D parts. There is limited research about comprehensive observation on 3D printing on cellulosic-woven fabrics.