Hook and loop fasteners are constructed from of two different pieces of nylon, one side acts as the "loop" (softer to the touch) the other side is the "hook" together these create a strong closure, whilst pulling the strips apart directly is easy, trying to separate them any other way is very difficult. Hook & Loop fasteners can be so strong that a two inch square piece is enough to support a 79 kg person. The strength of the bond however depends on how well the hooks are embedded in the loops & how much surface area is in contact with the hooks, along with the force pulling the two pieces apart.
If Hook & Loop is used to connect two rigid items together for example and picture frame to a wall the bond is very strong as any downward force is spread across the entire surface of the Hook and Loop sections, this only enforces it's strength by engaging more hooks into the loop, but by peeling the frame away from the wall, removal is relatively easy.
On garments and footwear, where hook and loop is used as a strap or pocket closure, opening is easy as a peeling action is used, this pulls each hook from the loop in smaller sections.

The Actual Definition of Textile & Its Surprising Difference from Fabric

If you work in the fashion industry, chances are you work with textiles almost constantly. Whether you're shopping for, printing on, or working with textiles, they never seem to differ much from any fabric you've worked with. Ever wonder why this is? And if they're truly the same thing, what's the definition of a textile and how is it different from fabric?

As it turns out, textiles have many uses outside of the fashion world. Aside from the obvious— clothing, bags, home decor, and so on— textiles are an important part of the medical field, toy manufacturing, weaponry, agriculture, and other unexpected fields. If you're wondering what's the difference between textiles and fabric, the answer is a lot more specific than you'd think.

What are cable ties used for?

They're fasteners that bundle your cables and wires together to keep them organized and prevent damage. They come in different sizes, lengths, materials and even colors. The different uses of cable ties vary across industries, but what they all have in common is that they're the most effective way to manage your cables.

First, let's get a picture of the type of cable ties available. The table below is by no means exhaustive, as there are subsets of cable ties within this table. For example, standard cable ties can be weather resistant, which gives them different applications than their cousins'.

The inspiration behind hook-and-loop fastening

Hook-and-loop fastening (also known as ‘touch-and-close’) has been used by footwear designers for many years. The system is commonly used where ease and speed of fastening is desirable – for instance on young children’s shoes (where the wearer has not yet mastered the skill to properly tie laces), and some items of sportswear. It has even been utilised in certain styles of fashion footwear.

What is hook-and-loop? Two components are involved, typically consisting of a pair of lineal fabric strips (or shaped items) which are attached – normally by stitching or adhesive – to the opposing surfaces to be fastened. The first face features tiny hooks, and the second has even smaller loops. When the two components come into contact, the hooks catch in the loops and the two pieces bind together. When separated, by pulling or peeling the two surfaces apart, hook-and-loop strips make a distinctive ‘ripping’ sound.

Birth of an idea

If you're going to be inspired by natural mechanisms, it pays to be out in nature. During a hike in the Alps with his dog in 1941, George de Mestral, a Swiss electrical engineer, found his inspiration. He and the animal had picked up a multitude of burrs during their walk, and as George picked them out of the fur and off his clothes, he wondered how they managed to attach themselves so tenaciously.

For anyone unfamiliar with these unwelcome travelers, burrs are the spiky ripe fruit of any of a number of plants, most commonly the Burdock. The burrs are a dispersal strategy used by the plant to send its seeds far and wide by hitching a ride on the coat of a passing animal.

George put a burr under a microscope and was fascinated by what he saw. Each spike on the burr ended in a sharp point that looped back into a hook shape. Mixed in with the spikes were strands of the dog's hair, knotted and tangled around the multitude of hooks. What's more, the wool of his trousers and socks, standing out from the surface of his clothing as tiny loops, were the perfect medium to catch the burr's hook.

In that moment, George found inspiration for a new kind of fastener, and he would labor for the better part of a decade perfecting his invention. Early prototypes using natural fibers worked, but not for long as the shape of the mechanism quickly wore out. George found that the new miracle fiber Nylon was perfect for hooks and the loops that would stand up to repeated use, and was soon able to create small amounts of working fasteners. But perfecting a mechanized process for creating the stuff proved difficult. He finally hit upon weaving stiff Nylon threads into loops while heating the thread, causing it to stick out from the backer. A clip with shears then formed the hooks, and loops came from thinner threads similarly woven but left unsnipped.