Machine woven vs. hand woven... Which is better?

As I’ve promised, I am sharing my experience and reflections about how and why
is hand woven fabric different from factory made.
First of all I would like to express my gratitude for sharing Your comments
below my post on VUUVEN Facebook page. It helped me gather the thoughts to
finally delve deeper into this topic that requires more than just few lines.Even before the first VUUVEN collection came to life, and before the first VUUVEN
loom I knew I wanted to create something permanent and long lasting.
Something, that’s value can not be measured by price or by it’s conformity to the
latest fashion trends.
World is full of objects that are being replaced every season. It’s not a secret that
in the fashion industry we currently have 52 seasons. I on the other hand, want
to be engaged with my product on a level, where it can be called a creation rather
than production.
Hand weaving is my way of carrying out my personal and VUUVEN brand values
to the customer.

But now, more about the functionality and what one can visually observe.

DENSITY
Usually hand woven textile is more bulky, thicker and denser, mostly but not
always. Machine woven can be very thick and dense. And hand woven fabric can
be thin and subtle. It all depends on density of the reed and woven thread. I can
play with this and experiment to my likening. A very uniform fabric or diverse
textures can be made, where densely textured yarn of wool is interchanged by a
very fine or rare and thin thread.
Of coarse, on the hand loom one can change the reek even after only five or ten
centimeters or meters. In machine weaving production the length is always
measured in meters. By using hand - looms I can create two, three or even just
one unique product, like for example a scarf. While producing by using weaving
machine such endeavors would be rather unprofitable.

STYLE
Machine woven bale will come out very uniform like. Hand woven on the other
hand will always carry that sense of a distinct character. One meter can be very
different from another and there are no two hand woven scarfs that could be
identical. The tap of the loom is controlled by a human, not machine,
therefore you can be the best professional out there and still it will differ. Tap of
the loom creates fall of the fabric and character, each weaver feels it differently.

CAREFULLY CHOSEN MATERIALS
Quite often when we are purchasing already made products, we have no
information about the materials that have been used in production.
When I am weaving on the hand – loom, I pay attention to every detail, the
quality of materials I choose are of great importance.
During my research about certain materials I am concerned not only about how
will it look after longer use and having been washed multiple times. I look if it’s acquired in a sustainable way, the impact on our environment and human as part
of it, is very important.
At times, when fast fashion is overflowing the world market, I on the other hand
try to tell an individual story with each and every product I make.

STORY
When You purchase a hand woven product or bale of fabric, You will have so
much more information about where and how is it made, where are the
materials coming from. Who weaved it and what was the finishing touch. It’s
what makes hand woven product unique – the person that’s weaving a story in it.

Conclusion.
Actually this is not a story of comparison, where we look to weigh if hand woven
or machine woven is better. It’s a story about people that create and sell, and
those that notice the details I’ve described, appreciate them and support by
making their purchase. Don’t get me wrong – I do appreciate the necessity for
machine woven fabrics, we couldn’t do without them in our everyday lives. In
this blog post I’ve simply wanted to share my rumination – that sometimes the
difference between the hand and machine woven is not seen but felt.

In my next blog post I will continue this thread of thought and tell You more
about the materials I am using while creating Vuuven products and why I’ve
chosen exactly them. Stay tuned.