PurposeThe purpose of this article is to design and make fabrics with colorful melange yarns spun by a three-channel rotor spinning machine.Design/methodology/approachThe three-channel digital rotor-spun machine controls the blending proportion by adjusting the feeding of three-primary color fiber slivers online, so that a piece of colorful yarn presents a variety of colors along the longitudinal direction where constant yarn linear density can be produced flexibly. Various fabric patterns can be produced by three-channel rotor-spun colorful melange yarn with different periods of color.FindingsThe fabric, made by the rotor-spun colorful melange yarn, is rich in color, clear in layers, soft in the hand and has a hazy three-dimensional effect. The product is environmentally friendly and saves energy.Originality/valueAn innovative idea to develop various colorful fabrics is proposed by combining their pattern with colorful melange yarn produced by a three-channel rotor spinning machine.