Plain weave (also calledtabby weave,linen weave ortaffeta weave) is the most basic of three fundamental types oftextileweaves (along withsatin weave andtwill).^[1] 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 often used for a variety of applications, including clothing, home textiles, and industrial fabrics.

In plain weave cloth, thewarp andweft 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.^[2]

• Balanced plain weaves are fabrics in which the warp and weft are made of threads of the same weight (size) and the same number ofends per inch aspicks per inch.^[3]
• 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 itscheckerboard-like appearance. It is also known as one-up-one-down weave or over and under pattern.^[1]

Examples of fabric with plain weave arechiffon,organza,percale andtaffeta.

According to the 12th-century geographeral-Idrīsī, inAndalusī-eraAlmería, imitations of Iraqī and Persian silks called «عَتَّابِيِّ» —‘attābī— were manufactured, which David Jacoby identifies^[4] as "ataffeta fabric made ofsilk andcotton (natural fibers) originally produced in Attabiya, a district ofBaghdad." The word was adopted into Medieval Latin asattabi, then French astabis and English astabby, as in "tabby weave".^[5][6]

Its uses range from heavy and coarsecanvas andblankets made of thick yarns to the lightest and finest cambries andmuslins made in extremely fine yarns.^[7] Chiffon, organza, percale and taffeta are also plain weave fabrics.

• Kadolph, Sara J., ed. (2007).Textiles (10th ed.). Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.ISBN 978-0-13-118769-6.

• Media related toPlain weave at Wikimedia Commons

• Weaves
• Woven fabrics

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