Overview
EN ISO 2313-1:2021 - Textiles: Determination of the recovery from creasing of a folded specimen of fabric by measuring the crease recovery angle (Part 1: horizontally folded specimen) - specifies a laboratory method to quantify a fabric’s ability to recover from a crease. Published by CEN/ISO in 2021, this standard defines the test principle, apparatus, specimen preparation, conditioning and measurement procedure for the horizontally folded specimen method. Results indicate wrinkle/crease recovery performance but are not directly comparable across very different fabric types or across different crease-recovery methods.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Test principle: A rectangular specimen is folded horizontally, loaded for a specified time, load removed, and the crease recovery angle is measured after set recovery times.
- Two recovery measures:
- Rapid crease recovery angle - measured at 15 seconds after removal of the load.
- Delay crease recovery angle - measured at 5 minutes after removal of the load.
- Loading apparatus: Apply a total load of 10.0 N ± 0.5 N on a 15 mm × 15 mm area; load removal must be completed within 1 second. Lower pressure plate marking: 15 mm × 20 mm.
- Angle measurement instrument: Circular scale divided in degrees (accuracy ±0.5°); specimen grip positioned with the fold through the centre, edge 2 mm from centre; angle readable to the nearest degree without parallax.
- Accessories: stopwatch, broad-spade tweezers, paper/metal foil not thicker than 0.02 mm.
- Specimen preparation: Samples representative of the delivery; take specimens not less than 150 mm from the selvedge. Special conditioning notes for newly finished or treated fabrics and for cellulosic/protein-fibre materials (soak, centrifuge, steam-press before conditioning).
- Atmosphere: Conditioning and testing climate to comply with ISO 139 (standard atmospheres).
- Results reporting: Mean values rounded to one decimal place; report method details, recovery angles and any deviations.
Practical applications and users
- Used by textile laboratories, quality control teams, R&D and manufacturers to assess wrinkle resistance, evaluate fabric finishes, compare fabric treatments, and support product performance claims.
- Relevant for apparel, home textiles, upholstery and technical textiles where crease appearance and recovery affect performance and consumer acceptance.
- Not recommended as a sole comparator across widely different fabric constructions (e.g., very limp, thick or curling fabrics such as some wool blends may yield ill-defined results).
Related standards
- ISO 139 - Textiles: Standard atmospheres for conditioning and testing (normative reference).
- EN ISO 2313-1:2021 supersedes earlier EN/ISO editions (replaces EN 22313:1992 / ISO 2313:1972 as the updated horizontally folded specimen method).
Keywords: EN ISO 2313-1:2021, crease recovery angle, textile testing, fabric creasing, wrinkle recovery, ISO 139, textiles.
