What is Acrylic Fabric?

Your Quick Reference Guide To Learning Everything You Need To Know About Acrylic Fabric

When it comes to the many different types of fabrics that can be found in the products we use and the clothes we wear each and every day, it shouldn’t come as no surprise that some of these fabrics are natural and others are synthetic.

With so many different fabrics to choose from, we figured we’d make things simple by introducing you to ten of the most widely used fabrics and going into detail regarding where they’re from, what they are, and what they’re used for.

Welcome to part 3 of this 10-part blog. Today, we’ll talk about everything you need to know about a synthetic fabric known as acrylic fabric.

What Is Acrylic Fabric?

Acrylic fabric is best described as fabric woven or knitted with acrylic yarns. As a synthetic fabric, acrylic is not something that comes from the natural world. Instead, acrylic fabric produced artificially through a synthetic polymer known as acrylonitrile. Acrylonitrile is derived from petroleum or coal-based chemicals and synthesized to for acrylic resin pellets. This resin is formed into pellets and extruded through a shower like device known as a spinneret. The spinneret  makes continuous filament acrylic fibers that are then spun into yarn. The yarn can then be woven or knitted into textiles for various uses.  

What Is Acrylic Fabric Used For?

Most commonly you’ll find acrylic fabric used in clothing . For instance, sweatshirts and hoodies, jackets, athleticwear, and even some protective equipment and clothing will contain acrylic fabric because it’s durable, rugged, and warm. In fact, acrylic is considered one of the least breathable types of fabrics in the world, which makes it perfect for retaining heat. For this very reason, it’s commonly used in sweaters, boot linings, hand gloves, and much more.

Another use of acrylic fabric is in furniture. Acrylic fabrics used for furniture usually have a rougher hand than plant based textiles. This is because acrylic is a form of plastic that needs to be texturized in order to simulate the feeling of a natural textile like cotton. For that reason, you usually find acrylic textiles on outdoor , and cheaper furniture.  

From time to time, you might even find acrylic fabrics used in a few places where you’d least expect. For instance, you can find acrylic fabric in hair extensions, wigs, and even area rugs and hair brushes.

Acrylic fiber can be washed quite easily. However, it can be temperamental – at least as it relates to hot and cold water temperatures. It’s always best to wash acrylic in warm water to ensure that it retains its durability and flexibility.

Acrylic also stains quite easily without the use of stain resistant chemicals. These chemicals allow stains to stay on the surface instead of sinking into the fiber. Once these coatings or finished wear off, thy need to be reapplied

Everything You Need To Know

Before we finish off this blog, let’s recap. Acrylic fabric is an entirely synthetic material, meaning it is a man-made fabric that comes from petroleum or coal-based compounds. In essence, acrylic is fossil-fuel based. It is commonly found in clothing like sweatshirts, sweaters, gloves, boot liners, and athleticwear, and it is well known for its ability to retain heat. It's also known as an outdoor upholstery fabric. 

And with that, you know everything there is to know about acrylic fabric.

Thanks for reading :)