telas

Telas is the plural form of tela in Spanish and Portuguese, meaning fabrics or textiles. The singular tela can also refer to a canvas, screen, or netting in some contexts. The term derives from Latin tela, meaning a woven web or loom. In everyday use, telas encompass a wide range of woven, knitted, or nonwoven materials used for clothing, upholstery, and industrial applications.

Fabric production involves several processes. Weaving uses interlacing yarns on looms to create fabrics with different weaves such as plain, twill, and satin. Knitting produces stretchable fabrics through interlocking loops, including jersey and rib structures. Felting and nonwoven processes create fabrics without traditional weaving. Fibers employed can be natural—cotton, wool, linen, silk—or synthetic—polyester, nylon, acrylic—often blended to achieve specific properties. Finishing steps like dyeing, printing, coating, or chemical treatments modify appearance, moisture management, flame resistance, water repellency, and durability.

Telas serve diverse purposes. Fashion and apparel fabrics provide body, drape, and comfort, while home textiles include upholstery, curtains, and bedding. Technical and industrial fabrics are engineered for automotive, medical, filtration, geotextile, and protective applications. The choice of fiber, weave or stitch pattern, and finish determines strength, elasticity, texture, care requirements, and performance under different conditions.

Historically, weaving and textile production date to ancient civilizations and expanded rapidly with industrialization, enabling mass production of fabrics. Today, global supply chains are highly interconnected, with major production centers in Asia and widespread trade of fibers, yarns, and finished telas.

Care and standards vary by fabric type. Care labels provide guidelines on washing, drying, ironing, and dry cleaning to maintain color, fit, and longevity.