The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word SWATCH
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
S
W
A
T
C
H
More clues leading to the result SWATCH
- Observation in support of singular quantity of material
- Swipe church sample
- Chart hit going to the top position is a sample
- Small survey sample
- Armed police chief samples book
- Piece of cloth beginning to scour hands and face?
- Material examples of second team on board
- At last censors see cutting of material
- Model‘s the third to insure hands and face?
- Second look at cloth sample
Buddy explains!

The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does SWATCH mean?
SWATCH noun- A piece, pattern, or sample, generally of cloth or a similar material.
- A selection of such samples bound together.
- A clump or portion of something.
- A demonstration, an example, a proof.
- A tag or other small object attached to another item as a means of identifying its owner; a tally; specifically the counterfoil of a tally.
- To create a swatch, especially a sample of knitted fabric.
- A channel or passage of water between sandbanks, or between a sandbank and a seashore.