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Linen () is a textile made from the fibers of the
flax Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. Textiles made from flax are known in ...
plant. Linen is very strong, absorbent, and dries faster than cotton. Because of these properties, linen is comfortable to wear in hot weather and is valued for use in garments. It also has other distinctive characteristics, notably its tendency to wrinkle. Linen textiles appear to be some of the oldest in the world; their history goes back many thousands of years. Dyed flax fibers found in a cave in Southeastern Europe (present-day Georgia) suggest the use of woven linen fabrics from wild flax may date back over 30,000 years. Linen was used in ancient civilizations including Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt, and linen is mentioned in the Bible. In the 18th century and beyond, the linen industry was important in the economies of several countries in Europe as well as the American colonies. Textiles in a
linen weave Plain weave (also called tabby weave, linen weave or taffeta weave) is the most basic of three fundamental types of textile weaves (along with satin weave and twill). It is strong and hard-wearing, and is used for fashion and furnishing fabrics ...
texture, even when made of cotton,
hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial or medicinal use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants o ...
, or other non-flax fibers, are also loosely referred to as "linen".


Etymology

The word ''linen'' is of West Germanic origin and
cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...
to the Latin name for the
flax Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. Textiles made from flax are known in ...
plant, ''linum'', and the earlier Greek λινόν (''linón''). This word history has given rise to a number of other terms in English, most notably ''
line Line most often refers to: * Line (geometry), object with zero thickness and curvature that stretches to infinity * Telephone line, a single-user circuit on a telephone communication system Line, lines, The Line, or LINE may also refer to: Arts ...
,'' from the use of a linen (flax)
thread Thread may refer to: Objects * Thread (yarn), a kind of thin yarn used for sewing ** Thread (unit of measurement), a cotton yarn measure * Screw thread, a helical ridge on a cylindrical fastener Arts and entertainment * ''Thread'' (film), 2016 ...
to determine a straight line. It is also etymologically related to a number of other terms, including
lining Lining may refer to: * Lining (sewing), the process of inserting an inner layer of fabric, fur, or other material * Lining of paintings, the process of restoration paintings by attaching a new canvas to the back of the existing one * Brake linin ...
, because linen was often used to create an inner layer for clothing, and lingerie, from French, which originally denoted underwear made of linen.


History

People in various parts of the world began weaving linen at least several thousand years ago. It was also recovered from Qumran Cave 1 near the Dead Sea.


Early history

The discovery of dyed flax fibers in a cave in Southern Caucasus, West Asia (modern day Georgia) dated to 36,000 years ago suggests that ancient people used wild flax fibers to create linen-like fabrics from an early date. Fragments of straw, seeds, fibers, yarns, and various types of fabrics, including linen samples, dating to about 8,000 BC have been found in Swiss lake dwellings. Woven flax textile fragments have been "found between infant and child" in a burial at Çatalhöyük, a large settlement dating to around 7,000 BC. To the southwest, in ancient Mesopotamia, flax was domesticated and linen was produced. It was used mainly by the wealthier class of the society, including priests. The
Sumerian Sumerian or Sumerians may refer to: *Sumer, an ancient civilization **Sumerian language **Sumerian art **Sumerian architecture **Sumerian literature **Cuneiform script, used in Sumerian writing *Sumerian Records, an American record label based in ...
poem of the courtship of
Inanna Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, Divine law, divine justice, and political p ...
mentions flax and linen. In ancient Egypt, linen was used for mummification and for burial shrouds. It was also worn as clothing on a daily basis; white linen was worn because of the extreme heat. For example, the
Tarkhan dress The Tarkhan Dress, named for the Tarkhan cemetery south of Cairo in Egypt where it was excavated in 1913, is an over 5000 year old linen garment that was confirmed as the world's oldest piece of women's clothing. The dress coded UC28614B is curr ...
, considered to be among the oldest woven garments in the world and dated to between 3482 and 3102 BC, is made of linen. Plutarch wrote that the priests of Isis also wore linen because of its purity. Linen was sometimes used as a form of currency in ancient Egypt. Egyptian mummies were wrapped in linen as a symbol of light and purity, and as a display of wealth. Some of these fabrics, woven from hand-spun yarns, were very fine for their day, but are coarse compared with modern linen. When the tomb of the Pharaoh Ramses II, who died in 1213 BC, was discovered in 1881, the linen wrappings were in a state of perfect preservation after more than 3000 years. In the Ulster Museum, Belfast there is the mummy of ' Takabuti' the daughter of a priest of
Amun Amun (; also ''Amon'', ''Ammon'', ''Amen''; egy, jmn, reconstructed as (Old Egyptian and early Middle Egyptian) → (later Middle Egyptian) → (Late Egyptian), cop, Ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ, Amoun) romanized: ʾmn) was a major ancient Egyptian ...
, who died 2,500 years ago. The linen on this mummy is also in a perfect state of preservation. The earliest written documentation of a linen industry comes from the
Linear B Linear B was a syllabic script used for writing in Mycenaean Greek, the earliest attested form of Greek. The script predates the Greek alphabet by several centuries. The oldest Mycenaean writing dates to about 1400 BC. It is descended from ...
tablets of
Pylos Pylos (, ; el, Πύλος), historically also known as Navarino, is a town and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part of the municipality Pylos-Nestoras, of which it is th ...
, Greece, where linen is depicted as an ideogram and also written as "li-no" ( Greek: λίνον, ''linon''), and the female linen workers are cataloged as "li-ne-ya" (λίνεια, ''lineia'').Flax and Linen Textiles in the Mycenaean palatial economy


Middle Ages

By the Middle Ages, there was a thriving trade in German flax and linen. The trade spread throughout Germany by the 9th century and spread to Flanders and
Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...
by the 11th century. The Lower Rhine was a center of linen making in the Middle Ages. Flax was cultivated and linen used for clothing in Ireland by the 11th century. Evidence suggests that flax may have been grown and sold in Southern England in the 12th and 13th centuries. Textiles, primarily linen and wool, were produced in decentralized home weaving mills.


Modern history

Linen continued to be valued for garments in the 16th century and beyond. Specimens of linen garments worn by historical figures have survived. For example, a linen cap worn by
Emperor Charles V Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) ...
was carefully preserved after his death in 1558. There is a long history of the production of linen in Ireland. When the Edict of Nantes was revoked in 1685, many of the Huguenots who fled France settled in the British Isles and elsewhere. They brought improved methods for linen production with them, contributing to the growth of the linen industry in Ireland in particular. Among them was
Louis Crommelin Samuel-Louis Louis Crommelin (1652–1727) was a French Huguenot exile, who became director of an Irish linen business. Life Crommelin was born in May 1652 at Armandcourt, near Saint-Quentin in Picardy, into a family of landowners with a trad ...
, a leader who was appointed overseer of the royal linen manufacture of Ireland. He settled in the town of
Lisburn Lisburn (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with ...
near Belfast, which is itself perhaps the most famous linen producing center throughout history; during the Victorian era the majority of the world's linen was produced in the city, which gained it the name Linenopolis. Although the linen industry was already established in Ulster, Louis Crommelin found scope for improvement in weaving, and his efforts were so successful that he was appointed by the Government to develop the industry over a much wider range than the small confines of Lisburn and its surroundings. The direct result of his good work was the establishment, under statute, of the Board of Trustees of the Linen Manufacturers of Ireland in the year 1711. Several grades were produced including coarse lockram. The
Living Linen __NOTOC__ The Living Linen Project was set up in 1995 as an oral archive of the knowledge of the Irish linen industry still available within a nucleus of people who were formerly working in the industry in Ulster. For over three hundred years line ...
Project was set up in 1995 as an oral archive of the knowledge of the
Irish linen Irish linen ( ga, Línéadach Éireannach) is the name given to linen produced in Ireland (including both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland). Linen is cloth woven from, or yarn spun from, flax fibre, which was grown in Ireland for man ...
industry, which was at that time still available within a nucleus of people who formerly worked in the industry in Ulster. The linen industry was increasingly critical in the economies of Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries. In England and then in Germany, industrialization and machine production replaced manual work and production moved from the home to new factories. Linen was also an important product in the American colonies, where it was brought over with the first settlers and became the most commonly used fabric and a valuable asset for colonial households. The
homespun movement The homespun movement was started in 1767 by Quakers in Boston, Massachusetts, to encourage the purchase of goods, especially apparel, manufactured in the American Colonies. The movement was created in response to the British Townshend Acts of ...
encouraged the use of flax to make home spun textiles. Through the 1830s, most farmers in the northern United States continued to grow flax for linen to be used for the family's clothing. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, linen was very significant to Russia and its economy. At one time it was the country's greatest export item and Russia produced about 80% of the world's fiber flax crop. In December 2006, the General Assembly of the United Nations proclaimed 2009 to be the International Year of Natural Fibres in order to raise people's awareness of linen and other
natural fiber Natural fibers or natural fibres (see spelling differences) are fibers that are produced by geological processes, or from the bodies of plants or animals. They can be used as a component of composite materials, where the orientation of fibers ...
s. One study suggests that the functional properties of linen fabric can be improved by incorporating chitosan-citric acid and phytic acid thiourea. The effects of this process include improved levels of antibacterial activity, increased wrinkle resistance, flame retardancy, UV protection, and antioxidant properties. Additionally, the linen fabric was able to retain durability for about 20 washes.


Religion

There are many references to linen throughout the Bible, reflecting the textile's entrenched presence in human cultures. In Judaism, the only law concerning which fabrics may be interwoven together in clothing concerns the mixture of linen and wool, called ''
shaatnez ''Shatnez'' (or ''shaatnez'', ; he, ) is cloth containing both wool and linen (linsey-woolsey), which Jewish law, derived from the Torah, prohibits wearing. The relevant biblical verses ( and ) prohibit wearing wool and linen fabrics in one ...
''; it is restricted in "Thou shalt not wear a mingled stuff, wool and linen together" and , "...neither shall there come upon thee a garment of two kinds of stuff mingled together." There is no explanation for this in the Torah itself and it is categorized as a type of law known as ''chukim'', a statute beyond man's ability to comprehend.The Jewish Primer, by Shmuel Himelstein. New York, NY: Facts On File, 1990. First-century Romano-Jewish historian Josephus suggested that the reason for the prohibition was to keep the laity from wearing the official garb of the priests, while medieval Sephardic Jewish philosopher Maimonides thought that the reason was that heathen priests wore such mixed garments. Others explain that it is because God often forbids mixtures of disparate kinds, not designed by God to be compatible in a certain way, with mixing animal and vegetable fibers being similar to having two different types of plowing animals yoked together; also, such commands serve both a practical as well as allegorical purpose, perhaps here preventing a priestly garment that would cause discomfort (or excessive sweat) in a hot climate. Linen is also mentioned in the Bible in Proverbs 31, a passage describing a noble wife. says, "She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple." Fine white linen is also worn by angels in the New Testament ().


Uses

Many products can be made with linen: aprons, bags, towels (swimming, bath, beach, body and wash towels), napkins, bed linens, runners, chair covers, and men's and women's wear. It is used especially in sailcloth and lent cloth, sewing threads, handkerchiefs, table cloth, sheets, collars, cuffs etc.. Today, linen is usually an expensive textile produced in relatively small quantities. It has a long
staple Staple may refer to: *Staple food, a foodstuff that forms the basic constituent of a diet *Staple (fastener), a small formed metal fastener **Surgical staple Arts, entertainment, and media * Staple (band), a Christian post-hardcore band ** ''Stap ...
(individual fiber length) relative to cotton and other
natural fiber Natural fibers or natural fibres (see spelling differences) are fibers that are produced by geological processes, or from the bodies of plants or animals. They can be used as a component of composite materials, where the orientation of fibers ...
s.''Textiles'', Ninth Edition by Sara J. Kadolph and Anna L. Langford. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Linen fabric has been used for table coverings, bed coverings and clothing for centuries. The significant cost of linen derives not only from the difficulty of working with the thread but also because the flax plant itself requires a great deal of attention. In addition, flax thread is not elastic, and therefore it is difficult to weave without breaking threads. Thus linen is considerably more expensive to manufacture than cotton. The collective term " linens" is still often used generically to describe a class of woven or knitted bed, bath, table and kitchen textiles traditionally made of flax-based linen but today made from a variety of fibers. The term "linens" refers to lightweight undergarments such as shirts,
chemise A chemise or shift is a classic smock, or a modern type of women's undergarment or dress. Historically, a chemise was a simple garment worn next to the skin to protect clothing from sweat and body oils, the precursor to the modern shirts commonl ...
s, waist-shirts, lingerie (a cognate with ''linen''), and detachable shirt collars and cuffs, all of which were historically made almost exclusively out of linen. The inner layer of fine composite cloth garments (as for example dress jackets) was traditionally made of linen, hence the word ''lining''. Over the past 30 years the end use for linen has changed dramatically. Approximately 70% of linen production in the 1990s was for apparel textiles, whereas in the 1970s only about 5% was used for fashion fabrics. Linen uses range across bed and bath fabrics (
tablecloths A tablecloth is a cloth used to cover a table. Some are mainly ornamental coverings, which may also help protect the table from scratches and stains. Other tablecloths are designed to be spread on a dining table before laying out tableware and ...
, bath towels, dish towels, bed sheets); home and commercial furnishing items (wallpaper/wall coverings, upholstery, window treatments); apparel items (suits, dresses, skirts, shirts); and industrial products (luggage, canvases, sewing thread). It was once the preferred yarn for hand-sewing the uppers of moccasin-style shoes ( loafers), but has been replaced by synthetics. A linen handkerchief, pressed and folded to display the corners, was a standard decoration of a well-dressed man's
suit A suit, lounge suit, or business suit is a set of clothes comprising a suit jacket and trousers of identical textiles worn with a collared dress shirt, necktie, and dress shoes. A skirt suit is similar, but with a matching skirt instead of tr ...
during most of the first part of the 20th century. Nowadays, linen is one of the most preferred materials for bed sheets due to its durability and hypoallergenic properties. Linen can be up to three times stronger than cotton. This is because the cellulose fibers in linen yarn are slightly longer and wrapped tighter than those found in cotton yarn. This gives it great durability and allows linen products to be long-lasting. Currently researchers are working on a cotton/flax blend to create new yarns which will improve the feel of denim during hot and humid weather. Conversely, some brands such as 100% Capri specially treat the linen to look like denim. Linen fabric is one of the preferred traditional supports for oil painting. In the United States cotton is popularly used instead, as linen is many times more expensive there, restricting its use to professional painters. In Europe, however, linen is usually the only fabric support available in art shops; in the UK both are freely available with cotton being cheaper. Linen is preferred to cotton for its strength, durability and archival integrity. Linen is also used extensively by artisan bakers. Known as a couche, the flax cloth is used to hold the dough into shape while in the final rise, just before baking. The couche is heavily dusted with flour which is rubbed into the pores of the fabric. Then the shaped dough is placed on the couche. The floured couche makes a "non stick" surface to hold the dough. Then ridges are formed in the couche to keep the dough from spreading. In the past, linen was also used for books (the only surviving example of which is the
Liber Linteus The (Latin for "Linen Book of Zagreb", also rarely known as , "Book of Agram") is the longest Etruscan text and the only extant linen book, dated to the 3rd century BCE. (The second longest, Tabula Capuana, also seems to be a ritual calendar ...
). Due to its strength, in the Middle Ages linen was used for
shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry or projectiles such as arrows, by means of a ...
s, gambesons, and
bowstring A bowstring joins the two ends of the bow stave and launches the arrow. Desirable properties include light weight, strength, resistance to abrasion, and resistance to water. Mass has most effect at the center of the string; of extra mass in th ...
s; in classical antiquity it was used to make a type of body armour, referred to as a linothorax. Additionally, linen was commonly used to make riggings, sail-cloths, nets, ropes, and canvases because the
tensility In physics, tension is described as the pulling force transmitted axially by the means of a string, a rope, chain, or similar object, or by each end of a rod, truss member, or similar three-dimensional object; tension might also be described as t ...
of the cloth would increase by 20% when wet. Because of its strength when wet,
Irish linen Irish linen ( ga, Línéadach Éireannach) is the name given to linen produced in Ireland (including both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland). Linen is cloth woven from, or yarn spun from, flax fibre, which was grown in Ireland for man ...
is a very popular wrap of pool/billiard cues, due to its absorption of sweat from hands. In 1923, the German city Bielefeld issued banknotes printed on linen. United States currency paper is made from 25% linen and 75% cotton.


Flax fiber


Description

Linen is a bast fiber. Flax fibers vary in length from about 25 to 150 mm (1 to 6 in) and average 12–16 micrometers in diameter. There are two varieties: shorter tow fibers used for coarser fabrics and longer line fibers used for finer fabrics. Flax fibers can usually be identified by their “nodes” which add to the flexibility and texture of the fabric. The cross-section of the linen fiber is made up of irregular polygonal shapes which contribute to the coarse texture of the fabric.Classifications & Analysis of Textiles: A Handbook by Karen L. LaBat, Ph.D. and Carol J. Salusso, Ph.A. University of Minnesota, 2003


Properties

Linen fabric feels cool to touch, a phenomenon which indicates its higher conductivity (the same principle that makes metals feel "cold"). It is smooth, making the finished fabric lint-free, and gets softer the more it is washed. However, constant creasing in the same place in sharp folds will tend to break the linen threads. This wear can show up in collars, hems, and any area that is iron creased during laundering. Linen's poor elasticity means that it easily wrinkles. Mildew, perspiration, and bleach can damage the fabric, but because it is not made from animal fibers ( keratin) it is impervious to clothes moths and
carpet beetles Carpet beetle may refer to any of several taxa of beetles: *some genera of the Dermestidae, a beetle family, including: **genus ''Attagenus'' ***black carpet beetle, ''Attagenus unicolor'' *** brown carpet beetle, ''Attagenus smirnovi'' ***''Att ...
. Linen is relatively easy to take care of, since it resists dirt and stains, has no lint or pilling tendency, and can be dry-cleaned, machine-washed, or steamed. It can withstand high temperatures, and has only moderate initial shrinkage. Linen should not be dried too much by tumble drying, and it is much easier to iron when damp. Linen wrinkles very easily, and thus some more formal garments require ironing often, in order to maintain perfect smoothness. Nevertheless, the tendency to wrinkle is often considered part of linen's particular "charm", and many modern linen garments are designed to be air-dried on a good clothes hanger and worn without the necessity of ironing. A characteristic often associated with linen yarn is the presence of '' slubs'', or small, soft, irregular lumps, which occur randomly along its length. In the past, slubs were traditionally considered to be defects, and were associated with low-quality linen. However, in the case of many present-day linen fabrics, particularly in the decorative furnishing industry, slubs are considered as part of the aesthetic appeal of an expensive natural product. In addition, slubs do not compromise the integrity of the fabric, and therefore they are not viewed as a defect. However, the very finest linen has very consistent diameter threads, with no slubs at all. Linen can degrade in a few weeks when buried in soil. Linen is more biodegradable than cotton.


Measure

The standard measure of bulk linen yarn is the "lea", which is the number of yards in a pound of linen divided by 300. For example, a yarn having a size of 1 lea will give 300 yards per pound. The fine yarns used in handkerchiefs, etc. might be 40 lea, and give 40x300 = 12,000 yards per pound. This is a specific length therefore an indirect measurement of the fineness of the linen, i.e., the number of length units per unit mass. The symbol is NeL. The metric unit, Nm, is more commonly used in continental Europe. This is the number of 1,000 m lengths per kilogram. In China, the English Cotton system unit, NeC, is common. This is the number of 840 yard lengths in a pound.


Production method

Linen is laborious to manufacture. The quality of the finished linen product is often dependent upon growing conditions and harvesting techniques. To generate the longest possible fibers, flax is either hand-harvested by pulling up the entire plant or stalks are cut very close to the root. After harvesting, the plants are dried, and then the seeds are removed through a mechanized process called “rippling” ( threshing) and winnowing. The fibers must then be loosened from the stalk. This is achieved through retting. This is a process which uses bacteria to decompose the pectin that binds the fibers together. Natural retting methods take place in tanks and pools, or directly in the fields. There are also chemical retting methods; these are faster, but are typically more harmful to the environment and to the fibers themselves. After retting, the stalks are ready for scutching, which takes place between August and December. Scutching removes the woody portion of the stalks by crushing them between two metal rollers, so that the parts of the stalk can be separated. The fibers are removed and the other parts such as linseed,
shives Shives, also known as shoves, boon or hurd, are the wooden refuse removed during processing flax, hemp, or jute, as opposed to the fibres ( tow). Shives consist of "the woody inner portion of the hemp stalk, broken into pieces and separated from ...
, and tow are set aside for other uses. Next the fibers are
heckled A heckler is a person who harasses and tries to disconcert others with questions, challenges, or gibes. Hecklers are often known to shout encouraging comments at a performance or event, or to interrupt set-piece speeches, with the intent of di ...
: the short fibers are separated with
heckling comb Heckling (or "hackling") is the last of three steps in dressing flax, or preparing the fibers to be spun. It splits and straightens the flax fibers, as well as removes the fibrous core and impurities."Heckle." ''The Oxford English Dictionary''. 2n ...
s by 'combing' them away, to leave behind only the long, soft flax fibers. After the fibers have been separated and processed, they are typically spun into yarns and woven or knit into linen textiles. These textiles can then be bleached, dyed, printed on, or finished with a number of treatments or coatings. An alternate production method is known as “cottonizing” which is quicker and requires less equipment. The flax stalks are processed using traditional cotton machinery; however, the finished fibers often lose the characteristic linen look.


Producers

Flax is grown in many parts of the world, but top quality flax is primarily grown in Western European countries and Ukraine. In recent years bulk linen production has moved to Eastern Europe and China, but high-quality fabrics are still confined to niche producers in Ireland, Italy and Belgium, and also in countries including Poland, Austria, France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Britain and Kochi in India. High-quality linen fabrics are now produced in the United States for the upholstery market and in Belgium. In 2018, according to the United Nations' repository of official international trade statistics, China was the top exporter of woven linen fabrics by trade value, with a reported $732.3 million in exports; Italy ($173.0 million), Belgium ($68.9 million) and the United Kingdom ($51.7 million) were also major exporters.


See also

*
Belgian Linen Belgian Linen is a registered trademark of the ''Belgian Flax and Linen Association'', a trade association that represents over 1,500 artisans and companies that grow and transform flax in Belgium. Since 1960, the association oversees and coordin ...
, a linen known for its high quality *
Butcher's linen Butcher's linen (Butcher linen) was a strong heavy linen cloth. It was a strong and durable fabric used primarily for butchers' aprons. Weave It was a plain weave fabric made with coarse linen Linen () is a textile made from the fibers o ...
a strong heavy linen cloth, primarily used for butchers' aprons. *
Crash (fabric) Crash is a coarse fabric with a rough, irregular surface, made from thick, uneven yarns. Crash fabric is coarse linen based rugged material made from both dyed and raw yarns. The yarns used are often grey or white in color. Crash fabrics are indist ...
Crash fabric is coarse linen based rugged material made from both
dyed Dyeing is the application of dyes or pigments on textile materials such as fibers, yarns, and fabrics with the goal of achieving color with desired color fastness. Dyeing is normally done in a special solution containing dyes and particular ch ...
and raw yarns. * Dorrock, a stout linen table cloth made in Scotland. *
Dowlas Dowlas was a strong coarse linen cloth of the 16th and 17th centuries, and initially, it was manufactured in Brittany. In the 18th century the fabric was also produced in England and Scotland. Dowlas was identical to sailcloth. The cloth was also i ...
, a strong linen mentioned by Shakespeare *
Linenize To Linenize or Linenizing is the process transforming paper, cloth, cotton to attain properties of Linen, a textile made from flax plant fibers or Linens fabrics. It may be thought of as the process of making another process imitate linen. A prod ...
* Linothorax, armor of layers of linen *
Madapollam Madapollam is a soft cotton fabric manufactured from fine yarns with a dense pick laid out in linen weave. Madapollam is used as an embroidery and handkerchief fabric and as a base for fabric printing. The equal warp and weft mean that the t ...
, a fabric manufactured from cotton yarn in a linen-style weave * Pleated linen, a form of processing linen resulting in a fabric which is heavily
pleat A pleat (plait in older English) is a type of fold formed by doubling fabric back upon itself and securing it in place. It is commonly used in clothing and upholstery to gather a wide piece of fabric to a narrower circumference. Pleats are cat ...
ed and does not crease like normal linen fabric. * Ramie, another type of bast fiber with similar properties *
Silesia (cloth) Silesia (Sleazy, Slesia) was a thin twilled woven cloth made of linen or cotton. The term denoted a wide range of fabric grades from greige goods to dyed and finished cloth. Silesia was used for various linens, for lining clothes, and in window ...
, a linen fabric, manufactured in Silesia, a province of Prussia.


References


External links

{{Authority control 01 Flax Woven fabrics Linens