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To help you know where you stand when choosing bedding items, here are some commonly used definitions from the world of fabrics.
Bamboo:
A naturally smooth fabric, exceedingly soft and exceptionally
comfortable. Besides providing superior ventilation, bamboo fibres are
antibacterial and eco-friendly.
Combed Cotton: Cotton
which has been combed to eliminate short or uneven fibres and residual
debris, in order to obtain longer, more durable fibres. The combing
process gives the fabric a more uniform, lustrous look.
Egyptian Cotton: A
cotton with very long fibres, known for its luxurious softness, its
durability and its excellent absorbent properties. This cotton usually
grows in the hot, dry climate of northern Africa.
Jersey: Hand-knit rather than woven, this close-knit fabric provides elasticity and comfort.
Linen: A
fabric made from cellulosic fibres obtained from the stem of the flax
plant. Linen fibres are much stronger and glossier than those of
cotton.
Percale: A single-thread,
plain-woven, tight-knit fabric, with at least 31 x 31 threads per inch.
Light, soft and cool, percale can be made from 100% cotton or from a
mixture of cotton and polyester.
Polyester: A
synthetic fibre composed of a polymer in which the structure repeated
in the chain is of the ester type. Polyester is the most commonly used
fibre in most synthetic fabrics.
Polycotton: A
fabric made from a mixture of polyester and cotton in varying
proportions, which are indicated on the product label. Combining the
two types of fibre allows cotton to benefit from various properties of
polyester, such as resistance to wear, mould and wrinkling.
Ratine: A
coarse, loosely woven material with an uneven texture obtained by using
nubby yarns. It can be made from combed wool, cotton or other types of
fibre.
Thread count: The number of threads per
square inch in the warp (length) and weft (width) of a fabric. The
finer the threads, the more there are in a square inch. And the higher
the number of threads per square inch, the softer the fabric.
High-quality sheets have 180 threads per square inch or more.
Silk: An
animal fibre derived from the caterpillar of the Bombyx mori moth, or
silkworm. Raw silk is stiff and rigid. It becomes soft, glossy and
white when it is soaked and boiled in a basin of soapy water. Silk is
renowned for its strength, lustre and elasticity.
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