Meet Our Certified Organic Cotton Fabrics
I’m sure you have been exposed to many different iterations of certified organic cotton products though various channels, from apparel to luxury home collections.
But what do you actually know about the type of organic cotton fabrics themselves that make up those products? Having a background in design and development and being a bit of a textile geek, I would love to share with you some information about the organic cotton fabrics used in the Terra Thread Home product line.
Terra Thread Home uses 4 main fabric construction types:
Sateen
We all recognize satin fabric as that fancy, sleek and shiny material that lingerie and slips are made of. Sateen fabric is similar and made using a satin weave structure but with yarns that are spun instead of filament (the difference between spun yarn and filament yarn is that spun yarn is made from short-length fibers and filament yarn is made from long, continuous ones).
Sateen has a sheen and a soft feel. Warp yarns (yarns that run the fabric length) are floated over weft yarns (yarns that run horizontally) 4 over and 1 under versus standard weave which is a 1 over, 1 under structure.
The long floats produce a surface with a smooth and shiny quality. Sateens often use mercerized cotton to give them a higher sheen. Fabrics made with a sateen weave using mercerized organic cotton have a smooth feel and glossy sheen.
Source: Photo by Engin Akyurt from Pexels
Mercerized cotton is definitely the best choice to use in this weave. Mercerization usually works best on cotton with long staple fiber. Terra Thread Home premium organic cotton sateen sheets are made with long staple organic cotton fiber yarns.
Mercerizing is a process of treating cotton, usually with sodium hydroxide, under tension. The chemical process gives the organic cotton yarn fibers more of a lustrous sheen and also strengthens them. Mercerization’s chemical treatment is carried out by holding the cotton yarn a fabric under tension and bathing it in a caustic solution at room temperature or neutralizing it with a warm bath. This whole process results in the cell wall of the cotton fibers swelling, causing the surface area to increase and look somewhat reflective, which gives the cotton a lustrous appearance
In addition to adding luster, the mercerization treatment smoothes out any bumps in the cotton thread which makes cotton fiber stronger and easier to dye, all of which are ideal qualities for the sateen weave. All these elements combined lead to a smooth and kind of silky glossy finish on one side and a matte finish on the other side.
Source: Photo courtesy of Terra Thread Home
Terra Thread Home premium organic cotton sateen sheets have a high (300) thread-count and are very durable. The high luster of the sateen fabric gives them a luxury quality. They are incredibly soft to the touch and long-lasting.
Overall a sateen weave is a more durable choice in the home products space and is less prone to shrinkage by virtue of the weave and the fabric construction itself.
Terry
Terra Thread Home uses 2 type of terry fabric.
Our luxurious organic cotton robes are in 450 gsm terry velour. Terry velour is a pile weave of cotton. In layman's terms, that means with uncut pile (or loops) on one side extends above the “ground” of the fabric and cut pile is on the other side.
Terry velour is known for its soft luxurious hand. Typical uses of this fabric range from apparel to bath towels and bathrobes.
Source: Photo courtesy of Terra Thread Home
Terry velour is a kind of fabric derived from terry cloth. Terry cloth fabric is woven with many protruding loops on both sides. This loopy, textured surface can absorb large amounts of water.
Terry cloth can be made either by knitting or weaving methods. Some terry cloth is woven on special looms that have two beams of warp. The weft yarns are pulled through laterally.
The first production of terry cloth towels was done by an English manufacturer named Christy in 1850. The word “terry” may come from the French tire’, which means drawn, the past of participle of which is to “draw out”.
Terry cloth fabric is created by using two sets of warp yarns (yarns that run the fabric length). One set of warp yarns is kept loose.
When the filling yarns are put into place, the loose yarns are pushed backward along filling yarns and the little loops are formed. The cloth has uncut loops on both sides of the fabric.
Source: Photo courtesy of Terra Thread Home
Typical uses of this fabric include bath towels, robes, and apparel. The fibers used in terry fabric production play an important role in the fabric's functionality.
High quality terry fabrics have these characteristic properties; high absorption, quick-drying, excellent comfort and surface texture. These properties are delegated by the fiber characteristics.
Because of the expectations of these characteristics, cotton is always the number one choice of fiber for good terry fabric.
Double-sided terry fabric is a premium choice fabric. The performance of this fabric is better for high absorption and make excellent bath towels. Our luxurious organic cotton bath towels are a thick, thirsty 700 gsm weight 2 ply low twist cotton yarn double-sided terry. The organic cotton yarn used for these are long staple, all of which combined gives a spa-like, luxurious experience.
Herringbone
The herringbone weave got its name from its’ resemblance to the backbone of a fish.
Herringbone is a broken twill weave with sides made of vertical sections that are alternate right-hand and left-hand which creates a fishbone-like pattern.
The pattern has its roots outside of fabric and dates back to ancient times. The herringbone pattern was used in buildings and roadways. In roadways, the use of this interlocking pattern combined with being built on top of a cushion of stones absorbed the compression of foot and animal traffic, making roads extremely stable and durable.
Source: Photo by Jannet Serhan on Unsplash
It's a very popular pattern. People call it a classic-besides organic cotton you'll see this pattern in many other fibers as well.
Herringbone is a type of weave of fabric rather than a fabric itself. It's also known as a type of broken twill weave. It has a very distinctive V shape; with all the lines in the pattern are arranged in one way in a column. You will notice the lines of one column lean one way and in the next column, they lean the other way, in the opposite direction. It does look like the spine of a fish (hence the name herringbone, after the spine herring fish).
Source: Photo courtesy of Terra Thread Home
Terra Thread Home chose to use this pattern in their organic cotton blankets because it's a very versatile pattern that goes with everything and offers texture and depth without being overwhelming and thus compliments any décor.
Muslin is a loose plain weave cotton material that originated in India. The muslin weave itself is highly versatile and has multiple uses from surgical to cooking uses and photography backdrops.
Muslin gets its name from Mosul, Iraq. Most think it originated in what is now Dhaka, Bangladesh; the first references of muslin date back to prehistoric times.
Muslin comes in a range of weights, from sheer and delicate to canvas-like sheeting that's course. Early muslin fabric was handwoven from very delicate, hand-spun organic cotton yarn.
Muslin is an extremely versatile fabric that's been used for everything from clothing to theater to science. A common use for muslin is quilting, as the muslin fabric is used usually for the back of a quilt, and in dressmaking/fashion design. Designers commonly use it to drape the first prototype of a garment on a mannequin or body even if a different type of fabric will be used to make the final piece. To this day, the first garment prototype is often referred to as a muslin.
Source: Photo by Ethan Bodnar on Unsplash
Muslin is usually the weave of the gauze that's wrapped around aneurysms; this helps to strengthen the artery and simultaneously keep it from rupturing. Using organic cotton muslin for this purpose assures the gauze is naturally hypoallergenic.
Another popular use for muslin is in cleaning; cleaning everything from your face to the kitchen countertops. This is a no-brainer choice since the fabric can be easily used, washed and reused.
Muslin is used in home decor and in theater backdrops because it holds color well. It can also be woven very light and as a result, it's a great option for stage scrim backdrops and sets.
It's also used in cheese making. Cheesemakers poor curdled milk through a muslin bag to separate the curd from the liquid.
Muslin was even used by the Wright brothers to satisfy the need for a light and strong covering for their gliders. A large piece of the fabric was used in the original Wright flyer in 1903.
Source: Photo courtesy of Terra Thread Home
Terra Thread Home organic cotton muslin swaddle blankets are made using GOTS-certified organic cotton muslin using 2 ply yarn double cloth.
A yarn is formed by twisting two or more single yarns or strands of fiber together. 2-ply yarn means 2 yarns twisted together.
Double cloth is a construction of the fabric. Two fabrics are woven on the loom at the same time so there is one on top of the other. During the weaving process, the two layers of fabric that are being woven are bound together using a binder yarn.
All this combined gives our organic cotton muslin a nice, soft hand. The double weave construction helps with temperature regulation. The two layers can help to keep the baby warm while simultaneously allowing air movement/ excess heat to escape due to the nature of the organic cotton fibers themselves.
We are proud to be the creators of our ethically made and sustainably sourced luxury home collection. We believe in crafting sustainably made, exquisite, organic cotton products we are putting good back into the world and championing the “Organic Cotton Effect”.
Source: Photo courtesy of Gallant International
When we talk about the “Organic Cotton Effect”, we envision the ripple effect of positivity every time a farmer switches to organic cotton; farmers earn more, their families and communities flourish, and their land and soils are fertile for future generations, protecting our planet. It indeed goes beyond just economical benefits and also encompasses the positive environmental and social impact of organic cultivation.
And the ripple effect does not stop at the boundaries of organic fields and communities. Organic agriculture has inspired and continues to inspire the adoption of organic principles in mainstream agriculture which helps improving global sustainability at large.
We are proud to actively participate in giving back. For every product sold, we contribute free meals in the U.S. to those that are suffering from food insecurity through the Feeding America program. This contribution is matched by the Tony Robbins One Billion Meals Challenge, doubling the impact.
Supporting Terra Thread Home is supporting the transformation of an industry to which the well-being of people and the planet are just as important as business.
So if you are looking to purchase quality GOTS-certified luxurious 100% organic cotton products we are pleased to introduce our luxury home collection-we would be honored to add you as a customer.
Welcome home to Terra Thread Home!
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muslin
https://www.textilesphere.com/2020/02/double-cloth.html
https://thefabricofourlives.com/cotton-fabrics/herringbone
https://www.contrado.co.uk/blog/what-is-herringbone/
https://www.contrado.co.uk/blog/what-is-herringbone/
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/terry-fabric
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrycloth
https://www.textileadvisor.com/2019/06/satin-and-sateen-fabric-irregular-and.html
https://thefabricofourlives.com/cotton-fabrics/mercerized
https://www.fabriclink.com/dictionaries/textile.cfm#P
https://www.cottoninc.com/quality-products/textile-resources/textile-glossary/