Feel Fab with Cotton!

Choose fabric wisely!

While being in the laundry business and being surrounded by all sorts of fabrics and experts it is easy to learn and get to know your fabrics what this looks like, what that looks like, the feel, the quality how many washes you will get out of the fabric, what is cheap and what is good quality. All of which being important when you enjoy shopping, being a female I am just as in love with shopping as the next!

So what do we look for when shopping in store and online! I like to see how much cotton the garment has 100 % being the best and best deal! Cotton not only being light weight therefore promoting comfort but also regulates body temperature, is easy to dye, wash in all sorts of hot cold and warm water without ever shrinking! Mending cotton is also well welcomed in the seamstress portion of elaundry as it is said, " the dream fabric to mend!"

It is easy to see when shopping in store what the garment is made out of when the care label will say in black and white what is made out of. However if we are on ebay and other bidding sites as most of us enjoy a good bargain! We can never be too sure of the type of fabric and the claims made on the garment while still in the sellers hands. This is why I have gathered a great fabric burn method to test if the fabric is what it is said to be on such websites.

The fabric burn test, and it's an easy way to help you determine if a fabric is 100-percent cotton--or something else. Be sure to perform the burn test outside on a day that's not windy, or in a well ventilated area inside.

Burn Test Supplies

• The fabric(s) you want to test
• A flameproof container with walls--try a large ashtray
• Long matches or another source of a small flame
• Long tweezers or a hemostat

Perform the Burn Test

1. Cut small swatches of each fabric you want to test. Two-inch squares are fine.
2. Place a swatch in your fireproof container and ignite a corner of the fabric.
3. Pay attention to the odor of the smoke. -Cotton smells like burning paper.
   -An odor similar to burning hair or feathers indicates wool or silk fibers, but silk doesn't always burn as easily as wool.
   -A darkish plume of smoke that smells like chemicals or burning plastic probably means the fabric is a cotton/polyester blend.
   
4. Let the ashes cool and examine them. -Cotton ashes are soft and fine. They turn to dust when touched.
   -Black, brittle remants that crush between your fingers indicate wool.
   -Hard lumps are the remains of melted synthetic fibers.
   
5. Take one more step. Unravel a clump of threads from another small swatch of the fabric. Hold the clump with tweezers and slowly move a small flame towards the clump. -Cotton fibers ignite as the flame draws near.
   -Synthetic fibers curl away from the heat and tend to "melt."

To see exactly how each type of fabric reacts, do experimental burn tests on fabrics you know are made from cotton, cotton/polyester blends, wool and other fibers.

Fabrics Sometimes Mistaken for Cotton

• Linen is similar to cotton but burns more slowly.
• Rayon will burn after the flame is pulled away, and although it has an odor similar to cotton/paper, it does not have an afterglow after removing it from the flame. Cotton does produce an afterglow.

If You Don't Think the Fabric is Cotton

Most of us make the majority of our quilts with one-hundred percent cotton fabrics, but there's no rule that you must sew with one type of fabric or another. Go ahead and use a fabric if you like it, but do try to determine what type of fabric it is so that you'll know how to care for the quilt when it's finished.
One bit of advice, most quilt block and fabric swaps do require that you use all-cotton fabrics. Reserve fabrics made from other materials for your own use or for swaps that allow them.

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