Elastane (Spandex / Lycra)
A highly elastic synthetic fibre used to add stretch, recovery and comfort to fabrics, especially in sportswear, swimwear, shapewear and stretch denim.
What is Elastane (Spandex / Lycra)?
Elastane is a synthetic fibre with exceptional stretch: the fabric can stretch up to 500–600% and then fully return to its original shape. It is almost never used on its own, but added to other fabrics, usually between 1–20%, to provide stretch and recovery. The names Spandex, commonly used in the US, and Lycra, a brand name by Invista, refer to the same fibre type. With more than 113,000 monthly searches, this is one of the most searched-for fabrics in our data.
