How to identify cotton fabric. Cotton vs synthetics: which sports leggings to choose

Usually, it is not difficult to distinguish synthetic fabric from natural in a store. It is enough to read the composition of the material on the price tag, or ask the seller. In addition, natural fabrics are often much more expensive than synthetics. Nevertheless, there are many situations when the composition of the tissue is unknown. How do you find out what the fabric is made of? Read under the cut.

Serious doubts about the composition of the fabric can arise if you buy a cut from your hands, or if you find at home large deposits of fabric of an already unknown origin. :) Sometimes I doubt the composition of the fabric, even in the store. For example, if the cotton seems too silky or stretchy. Or if he doesn't wrinkle at all.

But why so scrupulously find out the true composition of the material? First, to understand the fabric of your choice. And secondly, . I am among them. I'm hot in synthetics, but the worst thing is allergic reactions. Of course, there should be an integrated approach, and nutrition, as well as cosmetics, should also be as natural as possible. But clothing can be a big factor in combating unpleasant skin reactions.

In my opinion, with experience, you can learn to identify many fabrics by touch. For example, natural wool has a very recognizable smell, but it is easy to recognize by touch. But, of course, you can always run into a very well-made synthetic fabric. How to determine the composition of the fabric? For this we need ... Matches or a lighter. Yes, yes, we will check the composition of the fabric in this old-fashioned way.

For my experiment, I selected:

Viscose lining.

An unnamed fabric, which I feel is synthetic.

Nameless chiffon, similar to synthetics.

Let's start the experiment. The general rule for all natural fabrics is that the ash should be ground into powder. Ashes from mixed fabrics cannot be ground into powder; lumps will still remain between the fingers.

How should wool behave?

The wool curls up into a ball and gives off the smell of burnt pile.

Result: I confess that it was the hardest thing for me with wool. Since almost all the wool was added, this slightly changed the reaction of the fabric to fire. And, as you can see, the ash was not ground into powder.

Cotton should burn like paper.

Result: the piece of cloth caught fire like paper, the ash was perfectly ground into powder. It was very easy to confirm the composition of the cotton.

The burning silk should "bounce" over the match and not emit any smell.

Usually, it is not difficult to distinguish synthetic fabric from natural in a store. It is enough to read the composition of the material on the price tag, or ask the seller. In addition, natural fabrics are often much more expensive than synthetics. Nevertheless, there are many situations when the composition of the tissue is unknown. How do you find out what the fabric is made of? Read under the cut.

Serious doubts about the composition of the fabric can arise if you buy a cut from your hands, or if you find at home large deposits of fabric of an already unknown origin. :) Sometimes I doubt the composition of the fabric, even in the store. For example, if the cotton seems too silky or stretchy. Or if he doesn't wrinkle at all.

But why so scrupulously find out the true composition of the material? First, to understand if the price for your chosen fabric is adequate. And secondly, many people prefer to wear only natural fabrics. I am among them. I'm hot in synthetics, but the worst thing is allergic reactions. Of course, there should be an integrated approach, and nutrition, as well as cosmetics, should also be as natural as possible. But clothing can be a big factor in combating unpleasant skin reactions.

In my opinion, with experience, you can learn to identify many fabrics by touch. For example, natural wool has a very recognizable smell, and silk is easy to recognize by touch. But, of course, you can always run into a very well-made synthetic fabric. How to determine the composition of the fabric? For this we need ... Matches or a lighter. Yes, yes, we will check the composition of the fabric in this old-fashioned way.

For my experiment, I selected:

Viscose lining.

An unnamed fabric, which I feel is synthetic.

Nameless chiffon, similar to synthetics.

Let's start the experiment. The general rule for all natural fabrics is that the ash should be ground into powder. Ashes from mixed fabrics cannot be ground into powder; lumps will still remain between the fingers.

How should wool behave?

The wool curls up into a ball and gives off the smell of burnt pile.

Result: I confess that it was the hardest thing for me with wool. Since almost all the wool was added, this slightly changed the reaction of the fabric to fire. And, as you can see, the ash was not ground into powder.

Cotton should burn like paper.

Result: the piece of cloth caught fire like paper, the ash was perfectly ground into powder. It was very easy to confirm the composition of the cotton.

The burning silk should "bounce" over the match and not emit any smell.

Convenience is the defining characteristic when choosing workout clothing. A training suit that does not hinder movement and allows the skin to breathe can be considered comfortable. Previously, these qualities were endowed exclusively with clothes made from natural fabrics. However, now the shelves of sports stores are mostly occupied by all kinds of shorts, trousers and tops made of synthetic materials. Let's see if this is so terrible, and what material is better to give preference to.

In the minds of most of us, synthetics are associated with something cheap, low-quality and even harmful. However, modern technologies do not stand still. And today's synthetic materials can dispel this myth. To find out if they can compete with natural fabrics, it is worth considering in detail the pros and cons of clothing made from natural and chemical materials.

Cotton

There is no doubt about the positive qualities of natural cotton. It is very light, perfectly breathable, allowing the skin to breathe, is pleasant to the touch and does not cause allergic reactions. It would seem, what else is needed for a sports outfit?

However, pure cotton is not used for the production of sportswear. The fact is that this material is quite capricious: it does not like washing, it wears out quickly and loses its shape. Therefore, a T-shirt made from natural material, as a rule, is a cotton product, that is, made from natural material with the addition of artificial fibers.

However, do not confuse man-made fibers with synthetic ones! Artificial fabrics, unlike synthetics, are made from natural substances such as cellulose. Usually in cotton fabrics, cotton is adjacent to viscose, making it more wear-resistant and elastic. Clothes made from this material are really great for an active lifestyle. But it is still not very strong, does not keep its shape very well and dries for quite a long time.

Synthetics

Synthetic fiber is entirely a product of the chemical industry. It is based on synthetically derived polymers. But you should not be afraid of this. Modern synthetic fabrics are not only harmless and hypoallergenic, they also have a number of advantages over natural materials.

So, polyester gives the material significant strength, which means that clothes made from it will serve you for more than one year. D the addition of nylon allows the garment to stretch perfectly and conform to your body's shape while maintaining its shape. The use of Lycra makes it possible to support the muscles without hindering a person's movements at all.

And the use of all kinds of technologies in the production of synthetic fabrics gives them fantastic properties. One of the biggest misconceptions is that synthetics, supposedly, do not allow the skin to breathe.

In fact, all modern sportswear is made from breathable microfiber fabric. For example, technology Dry-fit not only allows air to pass through, but also absorbs moisture. And the fabric Gore-Tex contain micro-holes that release sweat droplets outside, but do not let water inside. Clothes made from them are perfect for jogging on a rainy spring morning - you will never get wet.

Technology Space frame designed for good air circulation and reliable heat transfer. It allows air to flow to the surface of the body and at the same time removes moisture to the outside. Thus, your body is dry and warm, but it continues to breathe.
And here is the technology Heat pipe acts the other way around. The special structure of the fabric forms micro-channels through which sweat is transported to the surface of the fabric and begins to evaporate from it. Some of the moisture is then absorbed back, turning into a coolant. You can hardly get heatstroke in a suit made of this kind of fabric.
As you can see the opinion that synthetics do not allow air to pass through, and the skin in it sweats and overheats, is somewhat outdated.

Moreover, some synthetic materials can enhance the effect of training and combat the possible negative effects of training. More and more often in the sportswear market there are products made of synthetic fabrics with special antibacterial impregnation. This treatment destroys disease-causing microbes that appear on our skin while we exercise hard. There are also fabrics whose fibers contain capsules with various moisturizing, tightening and fat burning agents.

And professional athletes have long been using clothes with built-in sensors that are capable of transmitting complete information about a person's biometric parameters to special monitors. Of course, the sensors are not sewn into the suit, but woven directly into the fibers.

So, it turns out that synthetic fabrics are significantly superior to natural ones. At least when it comes to sportswear. They are stronger and more durable, keep their shape better, are not afraid of regular washings, do not lose color and do not wrinkle. Synthetics dries 10 times faster than natural materials.

In addition, synthetic fabrics breathe perfectly, warming and cooling when needed. At the same time, synthetics protect against negative environmental influences and make training much more effective and beneficial.

If natural fabric allows us to use the beneficial properties of natural materials, then synthetic fiber allows us to improve and improve these properties.

Unfortunately, many ladies do not know how to determine the composition of the fabric at all and often wear synthetics, quite confident that it is silk. And how is it possible to do this when everything is bought on the run, and not a single seller will allow you to pull out a couple of threads from the product.

In this article, you will learn simple methods for determining tissue composition. This knowledge can be useful to you in everyday life, as well as be useful when choosing materials for those who are fond of needlework.

But first, a little terminology ..

The fabrics themselves are composed of an interlacing of threads, and the threads, in turn, are made of fibers. It is the composition of the fiber that is so important to us.

The fabric consists of the interweaving of two systems of threads - the main (or lobar) and weft. The weft is always perpendicular to the edge of the fabric and the warp is always parallel.

If both threads consist of one fiber, then such a fabric is pure in composition (homogeneous) - it can be a pure product or pure cotton, etc. (if the wool contains no more than 10% synthetics to improve properties, then such fabric is also considered pure wool.

Enough wisdom - let's get down to business!

If you go to a fabric store, take matches with you. Of course, there is no need to arrange laboratory tests on site. But, taking a couple of strings from the sample (this is not difficult to do in a large hall), go outside, and if you buy an expensive fabric, then sellers should not interfere with checking the composition. It's great if you can get a separate weft and a separate warp, but a simple bun will work too.

We moisten our fingers in water or saliva, twist the threads in the form of a wick and set them on fire. The most important thing is to determine the nature of fiber combustion.

If you trust the store consultants, then this approach will be overkill. But when buying from hand - it's better to check! This method is usually always valid in India and other eastern countries. If you want to define the finished product, try to find a couple of stitches in the seam that are very easy to get. This experience will also be useful for those who have doubts about the already purchased fabric. For the purity of the experiment at home, remove the threads from the weft, make a mini-wick and set it on fire. Repeat this procedure for the warp threads. As a result, you will receive complete and reliable information about the material.

So, the nature of combustion is different for all fibers:

- cotton gives the smell of burnt paper, smolders forming white smoke and gray ash, burns with an intense yellow flame, even sparks are visible. If you crush the end of the wick between your fingers, then apart from ash you will not feel anything else, since this is a natural fiber;

- linen burns almost the same as cotton, only smolders worse;

- wool burns slower than cotton, crackling and sintering into a dark porous ball, which crumbles when touched, does not smolder. The smell of fiber is the smell of burnt hair, burnt horn;

If soot is released during the burning of wool, then this is an admixture of lavsan or nitron, if you smell beans - an admixture of nylon, if the smell of burnt paper is mixed with the smell of wool, an influx is formed and a flickering ember is visible, then this is an admixture of viscose or acetate.

- silk burns almost like wool with the same specific smell. As with all natural fibers, when you crush the end of the wick between your fingers, you should not feel anything except ash.

Cotton, linen, wool and silk are natural fibers.

- viscose burns like cotton;

- acetate and triacetategives an influx of dark color, sour vinegar smell and yellow flame. The fiber smolders and emits smoke. The sag is easily crushed by fingers.

Viscose, acetate and triacetate are obtained chemically but from natural substances (cellulose), which is why they are called artificial fibers.

- nylon (nylon 6or perlon) when burning, it melts, shrinks (shrinks), solidifies in the form of a hard and dark ball, white smoke and the smell of sealing wax are released;

- lavsan (polyester) burns slowly, emitting soot and forming a solid ball;

- nitron (acrylic) burns intensely, releasing black soot and a black influx of irregular shape, which is crushed between the fingers. Combustion occurs in bursts;

- chlorin and polyvinyl chloride charred but not burned. Shrinks (shrinks) and gives off a chlorine odor;

- vinol when burning, it shrinks (shrinks) and a solid bead of light brown color.

Nylon, lavsan, nitrone, chlorine, vinol, spandex (elastane, lycra), nylon (anide) and polyvinyl chloride are obtained from synthetic compounds and are therefore called synthetic fibers.

Always rub an extinguished wick between your fingers! If there is an admixture of synthetics, then you will definitely feel hard balls.

But what if the situation does not allow you to determine the nature of the combustion? In this case, there are other ways to determine the composition of the fabric, but they will require you to be careful and at least a little experience with the materials.

Clean cotton always soft and warm to the touch. If you squeeze in your hand, then the fabric is very doubtful;

- linen also wrinkles easily. If you look closely at the fabric, linen threads are often not uniform in thickness. The material itself looks shinier and smoother than cotton, but drapes are much worse. The fabric is firm and cool to the touch. Linen does not stretch well on the weft and warp;

- wool does not wrinkle;

- silk very pleasant, flexible, warm and soft to the touch, does not wrinkle much. Has a pleasant shine.

Synthetic fibers are electrified (acetate too), fabrics are hard and cold to the touch. Synthetics often have a rough surface, and if you have dry skin, you can easily feel it. Natural fabrics quickly take on body temperature, while synthetic ones will always be cold.

- viscose crumples strongly. The fiber has a bright "silk" luster (if it is without additives), soft and pleasant to the touch, easily draped, not electrified;

- nylon (nylon 6 or perlon) or lavsan (polyester) makes the fabric slippery, the threads move easily and the material itself crumbles;

- nitron (acrylic) has wool-like fibers.

There are also ways to determine the composition of a fabric in everyday life: when washing, drying or ironing.

For instance:

- cotton in the light it turns yellow over time, shrinks during washing, dries for a long time and evenly, quickly absorbs water. When ironing, the smell of natural fabric is very pleasant and fresh, the fiber is also not afraid of high temperatures. In water, cotton becomes stronger and more difficult to break.

- silkeventually disintegrates in the light. When boiled, it loses its shine and strength;

- viscose unlike cotton, it becomes less durable when moistened and easily decays, but absorbs water better;

- nylon dries very quickly, you need to be very careful when ironing, since the fabric tends to melt quickly. The fiber does not absorb water;

- lavsan in properties it is similar to nylon, but melts only at high temperatures;

- chlorin as well as nylon it is easily deformed even at 65-70 degrees;

- vinol it quickly gets dirty and has a greater shrinkage during washing than cotton, and is also subject to an external defect - pilling (pilling).

Let's experiment with two samples of fabrics: pure silk and synthetic.

In the first case, the fiber burns slowly, reluctantly, forming black porous balls on the threads, does not smolder and the ash is easily crushed between the fingers - all this, as well as the smell of a burnt feather, tells us that this is natural silk.

When viewed up close, you can see the unevenness of some threads - this is not a drawback, on the contrary, it is in chemically produced fabrics that the thread is always even. The material has a pleasant sheen. It is warm and pleasant to the touch.

In the second case, the fiber burns, forming a black solid ball that cannot be crushed between the fingers. When burning, black soot can be observed. The smell is artificial. Such characteristics unambiguously tell us about synthetic fabric - lavsan (polyester).

On examination, the fabric is cold and unpleasant to the touch, the threads move apart easily, the material is slippery, crumbles and becomes electrified.

How to distinguish natural cotton from synthetics?

Today, probably, every inhabitant of our planet knows firsthand what Italian cotton is. Many of us have at least a couple of cotton items in our wardrobe: a towel, bedding, T-shirts, jeans, sundresses, socks, pajamas, dressing gowns, and so on. Products made from this hypoallergenic and soft material have not lost their popularity for several millennia. And despite the fact that fashion is rapidly changing, and many synthetic fabrics appear on the shelves, cotton consumption is increasing every year. This is due, first of all, to the universal qualities of cotton fabric.

But it happens that manufacturers act in bad faith, adding to the composition instead of the declared 5-15% of synthetic impurities, honestly indicated on the label, obviously more. And, unfortunately, it is most often possible to recognize the deception only after the purchase. But there are several ways to help avoid such unpleasant situations.

Try to buy canvases only in trusted stores in which you or your loved ones had to make purchases. Even so, always try to test the matter with the following methods.

sunlight

Before buying cotton fabric or a piece of cotton, hold it near a window so that it can be exposed to the sun's rays. Pure cotton will never shine in the sun, reflecting in all the colors of the rainbow. It should be matte in appearance and pliable to the touch.

Fire

If you are in doubt about the authenticity of the cotton, ask the seller for a small piece of cloth, pull the thread out of it, and set it on fire. A genuine organic product will burn with a bright yellow flame. The synthetic filaments will melt, leaving behind what looks like plastic. If this is not a deception, after the procedure, loose ash should remain, the smell of which is similar to the smell of burnt paper. Burning synthetics usually smell like burnt plastic.

Temperature

Real cotton linen or clothing will never stick to the sole of the iron, even if the temperature is set to maximum. But to check this, you have to buy a product. You can, of course, ask for a small piece, but ironing it will be extremely inconvenient.

By the way, the cost indicated on the price tag is also an important indicator of the quality of cotton. The higher it is, the more likely it is that the material is really natural and of high quality. The price may also depend on the motive and the country in which the textiles are made. For example, designer cotton fabric from Europe, for obvious reasons, costs an order of magnitude more than products supplied from Asia.