A singe is a slight scorching, burn or treatment with flame. This may be due to an accident, such as scorching one's hair when lighting a

gas fire A gas heater is a space heater used to heat a room or outdoor area by burning natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, propane or butane. Indoor household gas heaters can be broadly categorized in one of two ways: ''flued'' or ''non-flued,'' or ' ...

, or a deliberate method of treatment or removal of hair or other fibres.

Hairdressing

A singe is a treatment available at a

barber A barber is a person whose occupation is mainly to cut, dress, groom, style and shave men's and boys' hair or beards. A barber's place of work is known as a "barbershop" or a "barber's". Barbershops are also places of social interaction and publi ...

's. A lit

taper Taper may refer to: * Part of an object in the shape of a cone (conical) * Taper (transmission line), a transmission line gradually increasing or decreasing in size * Fishing rod taper, a measure of the flexibility of a fishing rod * Conically ta ...

(candle) or other device is used to lightly burn and shrivel the hair. The practice of singeing was popular approximately a century ago; it was believed that hair had "fluid" in it and singeing would trap the fluid in. Singeing is supposed to have beneficial effects – sealing cut ends, closing up the follicles, preventing the hair from bleeding (a belief that has since been debunked) and encouraging it to grow. Singeing is still sometimes used to bond natural hair to

hair extensions Artificial hair integrations, more commonly known as hair extensions, hair weaves, and fake hair add length and fullness to human hair. Hair extensions are usually clipped, glued, or sewn on natural hair by incorporating additional human or syn ...

. Pre-industrialised cultures have also used singeing as a means to trim scalp or body hair, as a part of normal grooming or during ritual activity.

Sir Francis Drake Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 ( ...

was famously said to have figuratively "

singed the King of Spain's beard Singeing the King of Spain's Beard is the derisive name given The Life, Voyages, and Exploits of Sir Francis Drake: With Numerous Original Letters From Him And The Lord High Admiral To The Queen And Great Officers Of State' John Barrow, Esq, F.S ...

" when he raided Cadiz and burnt the Spanish fleet.

Agriculture

In the

agricultural industry Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

, both

poultry Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, quails, a ...

and

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...

are singed (after slaughter) to remove stub

feather Feathers are epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates and a premier ...

s and

bristle A bristle is a stiff hair or feather (natural or artificial), either on an animal, such as a pig, a plant, or on a tool such as a brush or broom. Synthetic types Synthetic materials such as nylon are also used to make bristles in items such as br ...

s during processing for packaging for sale and consumption. Kiwifruit vine leaders and canes are sometimes singed as a treatment for ''

Pseudomonas syringae ''Pseudomonas syringae'' is a rod-shaped, Gram-negative bacterium with polar flagella. As a plant pathogen, it can infect a wide range of species, and exists as over 50 different pathovars, all of which are available to researchers from internat ...

'' bacterial infection.

Textiles

In the

textile industry The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production and distribution of yarn, cloth and clothing. The raw material may be natural, or synthetic using products of the chemical industry. Industry process Cotton manufacturi ...

, loose fibres protruding on the surface of

textile Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

goods are singed to remove them. When done to

fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

s containing

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

, this results in increased

wetting Wetting is the ability of a liquid to maintain contact with a solid surface, resulting from intermolecular interactions when the two are brought together. This happens in presence of a gaseous phase or another liquid phase not miscible with th ...

, better

dyeing Dyeing is the application of dyes or pigments on textile materials such as fibers, yarns, and fabrics with the goal of achieving color with desired color fastness. Dyeing is normally done in a special solution containing dyes and particular ...

characteristics, improved reflection, no "frosty" appearance, a smoother surface, better clarity in printing, improved visibility of the fabric structure, less

pilling Pilling is a village and civil parish within the Borough of Wyre, Wyre borough of Lancashire, England. It is north-northeast of Poulton-le-Fylde, south-southwest of Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster and northwest of Preston, Lancashire, Pr ...

and decreased contamination through removal of fluff and lint. The process is usually to pass one or both sides of a fabric over a gas flame to burn off the protruding fibres. Other methods include

infra-red Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...

or heat for

thermoplastic A thermoplastic, or thermosoft plastic, is any plastic polymer material that becomes pliable or moldable at a certain elevated temperature and solidifies upon cooling. Most thermoplastics have a high molecular weight. The polymer chains associate ...

fibers. Singeing of

yarn Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, used in sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery, ropemaking, and the production of textiles. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manufact ...

s is called "''gassing''". It is usually the first step after

weaving Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal th ...

knitting Knitting is a method by which yarn is manipulated to create a textile, or fabric. It is used to create many types of garments. Knitting may be done by hand or by machine. Knitting creates stitches: loops of yarn in a row, either flat or i ...

, though the fabric may be brushed first to raise the surface fibres. Cellulose fibres such as cotton are easily singed because the protruding fibers burn to a light ash which is easily removed. Thermoplastic fibres are harder to singe because they melt and form hard residues on the fabric surface.

References

{{reflist Hairdressing Textile arts Textiles

Hairdressing

Agriculture

Textiles

See also

References