Island Cotton
Fabrics Used to Make Material in Today’s Textile Industry - Cotton
Choosing the fabric your clothing is made with is important. This choice can make the difference in the look, comfort, durability, or practicality of the purpose of the particular article of clothing. The choice of fabrics is never more important that the clothes you wear every day at work. Your work uniform must be comfortable yet durable. It must be stylish yet practical. The average person will spend more time wearing their uniform than any other article of clothing with maybe the exception of sleep clothing. The fabric your uniform is made from is important and with today’s fabrics you have a wider choice than ever.
Every fabric used to manufacture clothing today has its own characteristics and uses. When choosing clothing as important as your uniform, it is important that you understand the characteristics of the different fabrics. This is the first in a series of articles where we will explore the different fabrics and manufacturing process of common fabrics.
We will discuss fabrics such as cotton, wool, nylon, polyester and many other natural and synthetic fabric materials. Information will be presented about the history, manufacturing methods, characteristics, and uses of the different fabrics. Information concerning the cares of fabrics will also be presented. If you don’t want to miss a single article in this serious go to www.medicalscrubsrus.com and register for the free newsletter. A copy of each article will be e-mailed to you.
Cotton
It only seems reasonable to start at the beginning. Cotton is considered the oldest and first known fabric used to make material. Over the last 1000s of years cotton has been the staple of all fabrics. Today it is still produced and used basically as it was in the beginning.
History:
The exact date of the beginning of cotton is unknown, however pieces of cotton fabric cloth found in Mexican caves dates back at least 7,000 years old. The cotton was found to be much like the cotton we grow today. Cotton was being grown and spun into fabric in Pakistan as far back as 3,000 BC. It is known that about the same time cotton fabric was being used by Egyptians in the Nile Valley. By 800 AD cotton had spread across Europe by Arab merchants. Christopher Columbus found cotton growing in the Bahama Islands when he discovered America in 1492. By the early 1500s, cotton was used throughout the world for making fabric. In the United States the first cotton seed were believed to be planted in Florida in 1556. Shortly thereafter in 1607 farms in Virginia along the James River were producing cotton.
Cotton fibers were first spun into fabric by machines in 1730 in England at the beginning of their industrial revolution. However, a new machine invented by Eli Whitney revolutionized mass production of cotton for use in the textile industry. In 1793 the Cotton Gin was patented. This new invention could harvest the cotton 10 times faster than by hand. The cotton gin made it possible to supply the needed cotton and the value of the U S Cotton crop rose from $150,000 to more than 8 million dollars.
Manufacturing process:
Cotton is still today harvested by a modern day version of the cotton gin where the cotton seeds are removed and the cotton fibers, called lint, are bailed and sent to the factories. At the textile mill machines open the bails and clean and mix the cotton lint. This is done by blowing and beating the lint. The cotton fibers are separated into long and short fibers. The short fibers, usually shorted than one inch, are sent out for use in other industries. The long fibers, measuring from 1” to 1 ¾ “ long are fluffed up and deposited into the carding machine. The carding machine further cleans the cotton fibers and lines them up side by side in the same direction. By combing and cleaning the fibers, the carding machine makes the fibers into a soft untwisted rope called a sliver.
The cotton sliver then is fed into the spinning frame where it is spun into cotton yarn. Modern day spinning devices can rotate up to 2,500 revolutions per second. The spinning process spins the cotton sliver into the yarn that will be woven or knitted into fabric.
Characteristics:
Fabric made from cotton is still today the mainstay of material used to make clothing especially uniform garments. This is mostly due to its generous characteristics. Material and apparel made from 100% cotton will have the following characteristics:
· Soft and comfortable to wear
· Durable and lasting
· Weather resistant
· Strong
· Absorbent
· Easily washed and dried
· Flame retardant
· Hypoallergenic
· Wrinkles easily (some garments today are blended with polyester to prevent wrinkling)
Uses:
Cotton fabric is still widely used in the garment industry today. Sometimes called the mainstay of the garment industry cotton fabric is used either alone (100% cotton) or is blended with other natural or synthetic fibers. Some common uses of cotton fabric are:
· Industrial clothing
· Uniforms
· Formal clothing
· Casual clothing
· Home furnishings
· Rugs and durries
· Draperies and curtains
· Bed clothing and products
· Handbags and luggage
· Canvas
· Shoes
· Medical products
· Bookbinding
Care:
Cotton material is very easy to care for and can be cleaned and dried under just about any conditions. Cotton fabric can be machine washed in the hottest of water. It can be bleached without fraying. Cotton fabric can be ironed at high temperatures without damage. As always you should refer to the care label found on any garment before cleaning or ironing.
Cotton is one of the major factors in world prosperity and economic stability. Actively traded daily in the futures market, cotton is a mainstay of the financial industry as well as the textile industry. Cotton is grown worldwide with the leader in production being China followed by the United States. Other major cotton producing countries include India, Pakistan, Brazil, Turkey, and Greece.
I sincerely hoped you enjoyed this article. Please look forward to my next article where we will discuss another natural fiber – silk.
Jeffrey Ware
www.thelaserveincenter.com
About the Author
I am a retired surgical assistant after 32 years in the operation room. Recently began a business, JBW Enterprise, where I build and optimize web sites. I currently have two websites up, www.MedicalScrubsRus.com and www.TheLaserVeinCenter.com Writing has always been a passion of mine. I have contributed to several surgical textbooks in the past. With my websites I can combine my knowledge of healthcare, my passion for writing, and my desire to help my fellow people. I am loving it.
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