Velvet

Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed, with a short dense pile, giving it a distinctive feel. By extension, the word velvety means "smooth like velvet." Velvet can be made from either synthetic or natural fibers.

Construction & composition

Velvet is woven on a special loom that weaves two thicknesses of the material at the same time. The two pieces are then cut apart to create the pile effect, and the two lengths of fabric are wound on separate take-up rolls. This complicated process meant that velvet was expensive to make before industrial power looms became available, and well-made velvet remains a fairly costly fabric. Velvet is difficult to clean because of its pile, but modern dry cleaning methods make cleaning more feasible. Velvet pile is created by warp or vertical yarns and velveteen pile is created by weft or fill yarns.

Velvet can be made from several different kinds of fibers, traditionally, the most expensive of which is silk. Much of the velvet sold today as "silk velvet" is actually a mix of rayon and silk. Velvet made entirely from silk is rare and usually has market prices of several hundred US dollars per yard. Cotton is also used to make velvet, though this often results in a less luxurious fabric. Velvet can also be made from fibers such as linen, mohair, and wool. A cloth made by the Kuba people of the Democratic Republic of Congo from raffia is often referred to as "Kuba velvet". More recently, synthetic velvets have been developed, mostly from polyester, nylon, viscose, acetate, and from either mixtures of different synthetics or from combined synthetics and natural fibers (for example viscose mixed with silk produces a very soft, reflective fabric). A small percentage of spandex is sometimes added to give the final material a certain amount of stretch (hence "stretch velvet").

Velvet (Sirius XM)

Velvet is a music channel that plays contemporary pop from vocalists like Adele, Andrea Bocelli, Sam Smith, Alicia Keys and Idina Menzel, it can be also heard on Sirius XM Radio 13 and Dish Network 6013.

Velvet was pre-empted to Holly on November 2, 2015, Sirius XM Love retained its normal format through December.

Velvet was an online-only channel.

Selected Artists Played

Adele
Alicia Keys
Sam Smith
Idina Menzel
Andrea Bocelli

See also

List of Sirius XM Radio channels

References

Velvet (Chris Jamison song)

"Velvet" is the debut and potential winner's single by American singer and season seven third place finalist of The Voice, Chris Jamison. The song was released digitally by Republic Records on December 15, 2014. The song was written by Elof Loelv, Alex Lacasse and Kellen Pomeranz.

Background and release

For the first time in the show history, the top four finalists from the seventh season of The Voice were given the opportunity to debut their potential winner's singles on the show. Jamison worked with his coach on the show, Adam Levine, and picked the song "Velvet" that was written by Loelv, Lacasse and Pomeranz. Jamison performed and debuted the song on December 15, 2014, during the seventh season finale performance show of The Voice. The song was released on iTunes for digital download after the show.

Critical reception

The song peaked at number three on the US iTunes chart, becoming Jamison's highest charting single in the United States to date. It was also charted on Billboard Hot 100 for number 53.

Mumbai

Mumbai (/mʊmˈbaɪ/; also known as Bombay, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India and the ninth most populous agglomeration in the world, with an estimated city population of 18.4 million. Along with the neighbouring regions of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, it is one of the most populous urban regions in the world and the seсond most populous metropolitan area in India, with a population of 20.7 million as of 2011. Mumbai lies on the west coast of India and has a deep natural harbour. In 2009, Mumbai was named an alpha world city. It is also the wealthiest city in India, and has the highest GDP of any city in South, West, or Central Asia. Mumbai has the highest number of billionaires and millionaires among all cities in India.

The seven islands that came to constitute Mumbai were home to communities of fishing colonies. For centuries, the islands were under the control of successive indigenous empires before being ceded to the Portuguese and subsequently to the British East India Company when in 1661 King Charles II married the Portuguese Catherine of Braganza, and as part of her dowry Charles received the ports of Tangier and seven islands of Bombay. During the mid-18th century, Bombay was reshaped by the Hornby Vellard project, which undertook reclamation of the area between the seven islands from the sea. Along with construction of major roads and railways, the reclamation project, completed in 1845, transformed Bombay into a major seaport on the Arabian Sea. Bombay in the 19th century was characterized by economic and educational development. During the early 20th century it became a strong base for the Indian independence movement. Upon India's independence in 1947 the city was incorporated into Bombay State. In 1960, following the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, a new state of Maharashtra was created with Bombay as the capital.

Bombay State

Bombay State was a large state of India created at the Independence of India with the merger of the British territories of the Bombay Presidency with the princely states of the Baroda, Western India and Gujarat States and Deccan States political agencies.

On 1 November 1956, Bombay State was re-organized under the States Reorganisation Act, absorbing various territories including the Saurashtra and Kutch States, which ceased to exist. Bombay State was split along linguistic lines in 1960, and some princely states which had formerly belonged to this agency became part of Gujarat and others of Maharashtra.

History

During British rule, portions of the western coast of India under direct British rule were part of the Bombay Presidency. In 1937, the Bombay Presidency became a province of British India.

After India gained independence in 1947, Bombay Presidency became part of India, and Sind province became part of Pakistan. The territory retained by India was restructured into Bombay State. It included princely states such as Kolhapur in Deccan, and Baroda and the Dangs in Gujarat, which had been under the political influence of the former Bombay Presidency.

Bombay (film)

Bombay is a 1995 Indian Tamil drama film directed by Mani Ratnam, starring Arvind Swamy and Manisha Koirala in the lead, and featuring music composed by A. R. Rahman. The film is centered on events that occured particularly during the period of December 1992 to January 1993 in India, and the controversy surrounding the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, its subsequent demolition on 6 December 1992 and increased religious tensions in the city of Bombay (now Mumbai) that led to the Bombay Riots. It is the second in Ratnam's trilogy of films that depict human relationships against a background of Indian politics, including Roja (1992) and Dil Se.. (1998).

Eventually becoming one of the highest grossing films of the Chennai film industry, the film was well-received both critically and commercially, and it was screened at many international film festivals including the Philadelphia Film Festival in 1996 where it was an audience favourite. The film's soundtrack sold 15 million units, becoming one of the best-selling film soundtracks of all time, and earning composer A. R. Rahman his fourth consecutive Filmfare Best Music Director Award (Tamil). However, the film caused considerable controversy upon release in India and abroad for its depiction of inter-religious relations and religious riots. The film was banned in Singapore and Malaysia upon release.