Changing Direction - Fashion and Lifestyle Blog: Linen

Boy has linen changed over the years!

Forty years ago only about 5% of linen was used for fashion fabrics. By 1990 that number had risen to over 70% and is still growing.

Linen Facts

The Good

Linen is a natural fiber

Linen is made from the flax (linseed) plant - made into clothing , it has a well-earned reputation for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather

Linen is “organic" and when it decomposes it leaves only the plant materials and molecules it was made of. Man-made fibers are frequently inert and will remain forever.

Linen rejects dirt and washes easily

You can wash linen as hard as you like, but it doesn't really grab hold of dirt or stains so you'll find it washes easily even in cold water and dries quickly.

Linen is among the strongest of the vegetable fibers

Linen is 2 to 3 times stronger than cotton

Linen is almost lint free, non-allergenic, non-static, naturally insect-repellent and provides UV protection

Linen Facts

The Bad

New linen shrinks. Don't take the word of some teenage shop assistant who says it won't!

Linen has poor elasticity and does not spring back readily, explaining why it wrinkles so easily.

Linen is in general more expensive than cotton.

As it is produced in lower quantities than many fabrics and can be more difficult to spin (manufacture that is – not wash), it tends to be relatively expensive

Currently the Canadian crop (the worlds largest) has been contaminated with GM plants

which could impact on the world supply, but China is now the second largest producer in the world and will in all likelihood take up any slack in the market.

I have a TON of linen

I really LOVE it. But...I HATE the wrinkles!

Red linen pants from Bryn Walker

These pants are straight from the cleaners and not worn yet
They look great!

also this is a thicker linen fabric

Wrinkling – the “wrinkliness” of linen has long been admired and exploited in fashion. The word textile is derived from the latin word meaning “Touch” and linen is considered one of the most tactile textiles. The tendency to wrinkle is often considered part of the fabric's particular "charm", and a lot of modern linen garments are designed to be air dried on a good hanger and worn without the necessity of ironing. Fabric in fashion is all about texture and many designers use linen specifically for it's "crumpled" effect and rough texture similar to that achieved with silk.