From Fibre to Finished Cloth

Textile manufacture begins with fibre.

In Australia, fibre is grown across wide country. Wool from pastoral regions. Cotton from inland river systems. Flax returning to rotation in select fields.

From that point, cloth is made through defined stages.

Grower
Fibre is cultivated, harvested, and prepared for processing.

Scouring & Preparation
Wool is scoured. Flax is retted and dressed. Cotton is ginned. Raw fibre is cleaned and readied for spinning.

Spinning
Fibre is drawn and twisted into yarn.

Weaving or Knitting
Yarn is formed into cloth on looms or knitting frames.

Finishing
Cloth is washed, milled, pressed, stabilised, or otherwise finished according to its intended use.

Manufacture
Cloth moves into garment, furnishing, or product manufacture.

Each stage may occur in a different location. Each location forms part of the manufacturing record.

Where stages occur within Australia, the pathway remains domestic. Where stages move offshore, the pathway changes.

At present, not all stages are consistently available within Australia. Some processes operate at scale. Others remain limited. The pathway exists. Its continuity depends on participation.

The Commons Exchange records and supports textile manufacture that moves through these stages with declared fibre origin and documented production.

The structure is simple:

Fibre.
Yarn.
Cloth.
Manufacture.

Production depends on alignment between growers, processors, mills, and manufacturers. Where that alignment strengthens, cloth remains connected to place.