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King Cotton
 Cotton
(Ka•tun) 1. A vegetable seed fiber consisting of unicellular hairs of
exceedingly fine diameter attached to the seed of several species of Gossypium.
[Arabic; "qutn" or "qutun"].
One of our favorite natural fiber fabrics, cotton is great for hot weather
in Texas or anywhere else. Travels well, launders everywhere, light and
absorbent, an all-around terrific fiber. Cotton has been cultivated for
use in fabrics for at least 5,000 years, and may even have been grown
in Egypt as long as 12,000 years ago. Christopher Columbus found cotton
growing in the Bahamas on his trip of 1492. It became such a threat to
the English wool industry, that in the 1700s, laws were enacted to prohibit
the wearing of cotton in England. Needless to say, they didn't last.
Cotton is now cultivated in nearly every warm climate and worn in every
climate. The US used to be the biggest producer of cotton, a title that
seesaws back and forth with China. The unopened cotton boll (pictured
right) looks like the inspiration for the star of 'The Little Shop of
Horrors', no?
 The
term 'Staple' describes the length of the cotton fiber. Longer staple
cotton can be spun into finer threads than short staple cotton, and hence
made into finer fabrics. Medium staple cotton has individual fibers just
over an inch (3 cm) in length, and long staple cottons are over 2.5 inches
(6 cm). Egyptian, Peruvian and California Pima cotton are famed for their
very high quality, hand harvested long-staple cotton. Cotton once bred
to be pure white, is now being reversed and grown in naturally occurring
colors: red, green, and brown (shown at the left). Other colors are on
the way.
Cotton usage
Cotton is unmatched in its washability. Wash in hot or cold, and toss it
in the dryer. Strong detergents, chlorine bleach on the whites, the fiber
actually gets stronger when wet. It resists moths and most insects, but
its absorbency does make it a candidate for mildew. Keep it dry. A vegetable
fiber, cotton is composed of 92% cellulose, and can absorb up to 27 times
its own weight in water, making it unmatched in the absorbency category.
Add its natural porosity which allows air circulation through the finished
fabric, and it is tops in tropical climates.
Usual Inventory
Each cotton fabric link page to the left goes to a page on that specific
cotton fabric, where you can find detailed information, pricing, use and
care suggestions. Where a color card is available, the file size is noted
before you download.
We have a lot of 100% cotton fabrics; way too many to list every one.
However, we do generally have a good stock of
- 100% cotton batik
- 100% cotton batiste
- 100% organic cotton fabrics
- 100% cotton pique
- 100% cotton velvet
Under 'Other Cottons', you can find information on
- 100% cotton broadcloth
- 100% cotton corduroy
- cotton voile
- and many unusual weaves of 100% cotton.
Please call or e-mail to inquire about availability of a particular fabric.
The Burn Test
Want to know what that fabric is? The Burn Test is a quick way to determine
the fiber content of a fabric:
In a well-ventilated area, and away from flammable materials, unravel a
few threads of the fabric in question. Lighting a match or lighter, move
the sample slowly first up to the flame and then into it, watching carefully.
Remove it from the flame, still watching it and extinguish it if necessary.
Cotton fibers won't shrink from the flame, will burn with a yellow
flame while in it, continues to burn when the flame is removed, and smells
like burning paper. There is a little grey ash residue after extinguishing.
Linen reacts much the same, but linen has much longer, stiffer fibers.
Practice with a little of each known fiber to get a feel for the difference.
See the other fabric pages for other results.
Copyright ©: 1998-2009, Silk Road, inc.
3910 N. Lamar, Austin, TX, USA 78756
Tel: +1 (512) 302-0844
Fax: +1 (512) 302-0611
Comments? Questions? Write us at: webmistress@srfabrics.com
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