Critical Characteristics of Fabric Quality

Abstract

This article investigates the importance of fabric quality to home sewers and the salience of attributes (critical characteristics) used in evaluating fabric quality. The sample consisted of 80 home sewers, 20 subjects from each of four fabric stores, who responded to an instrument designed to determine desired purchase information and attributes used to signify fabric quality. Prior to buying fabric for a casual dress, 96% of subjects considered fabric quality important. Physical cues, such as fiber content labels, color/print/design, and fabric hand, were more important than performance cues, such as ease of care and durability. Intrinsic cues were used more often than extrinsic cues as critical characteristics of fabric quality.