A Conversation Between a Textile Design Student And His Tutor IELTS Listening Answers

Dec 7, 2022

A Conversation Between a Textile Design Student And His Tutor IELTS Listening Answers is an IELTS speaking topic with 10 questions. These Questions are to be answered within 30 minutes. A Conversation Between a Textile Design Student And His Tutor IELTS Listening Answers has question types as mentioned below:

Choose the correct answer
Matching information

In order to solve Matching information, candidates are requried to listen to the audio carefully and identify the major keywords. Moreover, they are required to stick to the given word limit for solving IELTS listening answers questions. In addition to that, solving choose the correct option requires candidates to identfy the cases produced and remember the events explained in the audio. The IELTS Listening section tests a candidate’s listening ability. The candidates are required to listen to an audio and then answer the given IELTS listening questions.

Transcript for IELTS Listening Practice Test

Section 3

In section three you will hear a textile design student called Jim discussing his project on using natural dyes for coloring fabrics with his tutor

Okay Jim you wanted to see me about your textile design project.

That's right I've been looking at how a range of natural dyes can be used to color fabrics like cotton and wool.

Why did you choose that topic?

Well, I got a lot of useful ideas from the museum, you know at that exhibition of textiles but I've always been interested in anything to do with color years ago. I went to a carpet shop with my parents when we were on holiday in Turkey and I remember all the amazing colors they might not all have been natural dyes maybe not but for the project, I decided to follow it up and I found a great book about a botanic garden in California that specializes in plants used for dyes.

Okay so in your project you had to include a practical investigation.

Yeah at first I couldn't decide on the variables I was going to just look at one type of fiber for example like cotton and see how different types of dyes affected it.

Yes

Then I decided to include others as well so I looked at cotton and wool and nylon with just one type of dye various types including some that weren't natural for comparison.

Okay.

So I did the experiments last week I used some ready-made natural dyes I found a website that supplied them they came in just a few days but I also made some of my own that must have taken quite a bit of time.

Yes

I thought it would just be a matter of a teaspoon or so of dye and actually that wasn't the case at all like I was using one vegetable a beetroot for a red dye and I had to chop up a whole pile of it so it all took longer than I'd expected. One possibility is to use food colorings. I did use one that was a yellow dye an artificial one Tatra zine.

Yeah

I used it on cotton first it came out a great color but when I rinsed the material the color just washed away I've been going to try it out on nylon but I abandoned that idea.

Were you worried about health issues?

I thought if it's a legal food coloring it must be safe well it can occasionally cause allergic reactions I believe.

so what natural dyes did you look at?

Well, one was turmeric the color is great. It's a really strong yellow it's generally used in dishes like curry it's meant to be quite good for your health when eaten but you might find it's not permanent when it's used as a dye a few washes and it's gone.

Right.

I used beetroot as a dye for wool when I chop up beetroot to eat I always end up with bright red hands but the wall ended up just a sort of watery cream shade disappointing

There's a natural dye called Tyrian purple. Have you heard of that?

Yes it comes from a shellfish and it was worn in ancient times but only by important people as it was so rare I didn't use it fell out of you centuries ago though one researcher managed to get hold of some. Recently but that shade of purple can be produced by chemical dyes nowadays.

Did you use any black dyes of logwood?

That was quite complicated I had to prepare the fabric so the dye would take.

I hope you were careful to wear gloves.

Yes I know the danger with that dye good it can be extremely dangerous if it's ingested now presumably.

You had a look at insect-based cochineal, for example.

Yes, I didn't actually make that. I didn't have time to start crushing up insects to get the red color and anyway they're not available here but I managed to get the dye quite easily from a website but it cost a fortune I can see why it's generally just used in cooking and in small quantities.

Yes, it's very effective but that's precisely why it's not used as a dye.

I also read about using metal oxide apparently you can allow the iron to rust while it's in contact with the fabric and that colors it.

Yes, that works well for dyeing cotton but you have to be careful as the metal can actually affect the fabric and so you can't expect to get a lot of wear out of fabrics treated in this way and the colors are quite subtle not everyone likes them anyway it looks as if you've done a lot of work.

Questions 21 – 24

Choose the correct letter, A, B, or C.

Question 21. What first inspired Jim to choose this project?

textiles displayed in an exhibition
a book about a botanic garden
carpets he saw on holiday

Answer: carpets he saw on holiday

Explanation: Jim visited a carpet shop where he was captivated by the many vibrant rugs.

Question 22. Jim eventually decided to do a practical investigation which involved

using a range of dyes with different fibres.
applying different dyes to one type of fibre.
testing one dye and a range of fibres.

Answer: using a range of dyes with different fibers.

Explanation: Jim initially chose just one fibre for his experiment, but later he experimented with various dyes on various fibres like cotton wool and nylon.

Question 23. When doing his experiments, Jim was surprised by

how much natural material was needed to make the dye.
the fact that dyes were widely available on the internet.
the time that he had to leave the fabric in the dye.

Answer: how much natural material was needed to make the dye.

Explanation: When Jim created his own dyes, he became aware of how much time and materials are required to create a natural dye, and the instructor provided him with some alternatives.

Question 24. What problem did Jim have with using tartrazine as a fabric dye?

It caused a slight allergic reaction.
It was not a permanent dye on cotton.
It was ineffective when used on nylon.

Answer: It was not a permanent dye on cotton.

Explanation: Jim discovered that when cotton is cleaned, the colour is removed after using Tartrazine on it.

Questions 25 – 30

What problem is identified with each of the following natural dyes?

Choose SIX answers from the box and write the correct letter, A-H, next to Questions 25-30

Problems

It is expensive.
The colour is too strong.
The colour is not long-lasting.
It is very poisonous.
It can damage the fabric.
The colour may be unexpected.
It is unsuitable for some fabrics.
It is not generally available

Natural dyes

turmeric ……………
beetroot ……………
Tyrian purple ……………
logwood ……………
cochineal ……………
metal oxide ……………

Question 25.

Answer: The colour is not long-lasting.

Explanation: Jim claims that while turmeric has a fantastic and powerful color, it is not a permanent one.

Question 26.

Answer: The colour may be unexpected.

Explanation: Jim sliced beetroot, which emitted a vivid red hue, but when he put it to wool, it turned the material a milky cream tint.

Question 27.

Answer: It is not generally available

Explanation: Tyrian purple is a rare and infrequently found substance.

Question 28.

Answer: It is very poisonous.

Explanation: It is challenging to make logwood dye, so it's important to exercise caution when using it.

Question 29.

Answer: It is expensive.

Explanation: Since Jim lacked the time to manually crush insects to obtain cochineal, he was forced to purchase it, which was extremely expensive.

Question 30.

Answer: It can damage the fabric.

Explanation: Fabric may rust from metal oxide and be impacted by it.

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