Summer Fabrics
There is absolutely nothing wrong with a cotton tee, but sometimes it’s nice to dress it up a bit. With the advent of warmer weather, we thought we’d put together some of our favourite summer pieces HERE for you to browse as well as some info on the fabric types below for you.
WASHI
Washi is a Japanese paper, made from the inner bark of Japanese plants like Kozo (mulberry tree), Mitsumata (flowering shrub) or Gampi (another shrub). For its use in textiles, fibers are processed into long, thin sheets of washi paper, which are then cut into ribbon-like strips. These strips are spun and tightly twisted into durable yarn, which is often wrapped around a core or blended with other textiles for added strength. Washi is an entirely natural textile, using fibers grown without the use of pesticides or chemicals. In this way, it’s biodegradable and recyclable.
Washi has a crisp hand feel, and is smoother to the touch than linen. The thread is incredibly light, it has a porous structure which naturally maximizes air circulation. This structure absorbs sweat, pulling it away from the body and allowing it to dry on the surface of the fabric. Finally, it’s antibacterial and microbe resistant (as most plant-based fibers are inherently).
To hit the high points: Washi is light, crisp, breathable, absorbent, and quick to dry. A dream summer fabric.
SUMMER WOOLS / TROPICAL WOOL
You may not think of wool as a traditionally warm-weather fabric, but sheep have evolved over millennia to keep themselves both warm and cool. Wool is an active, thermo-regulating fabric that reacts to changes in body temperature. Wool fibers have a crimped structure, which create tiny pockets of air that trap heat and act as insulation in cold weather. In warm weather, those same air pockets trap cool air as the wool absorbs and releases moisture. This insulates the wearer from hotter external temperatures.
Wool is hydrophilic (water-loving), so it attracts and absorbs moisture from the body. As moisture is absorbed, it’s pulled towards the surface of the fabric, where it evaporates. Wool can absorb up to 30% of its weight in water, and still feel dry to the touch. This absorption and transport makes it breathable, unlike pure cotton, which absorbs moisture and sticks to the skin. With that, the keratin in wool fibers breaks up odor-forming bacteria. So you’re kept drier, and you have that added odor-blocking benefit.
You’ll notice we do a lot of pieces in tropical wool. Look to Auralee, Beams, and Marka / Markaware for some bangers. Tropical wool is a high-twist, worsted wool fabric with a more open weave. Worsted wool is made from longer staple fibers, with less short, scratchy fibers to irritate the skin. Tropical wool is not only made with smoother fibers, but the high twist adds durability and wrinkle resistance. Yarns are spun under greater tension, so they have a natural spring as they want to return to their original shape. The yarn tensile strength makes it abrasion resistant, and the natural spring makes it wrinkle-resistant. Paired with an open weave for breathability, tropical wool is pretty much the best you can do for summer.
The high points: summer wools won’t wrinkle much, they’ll wick away moisture, and they’ll breathe so cooler air stays close to the body.
Also they’ll look real good.
LINEN
Linen is derived from the stem of the flax plant. Flax does not require any fertilizers or irrigation to grow, and the linen it produces is fully biodegradable / recyclable. Coming from such a hardy plant, linen is naturally hypoallergenic and bacteria resistant. As a textile, linen is super absorbent and breathable. It has hollow-shaped fibers which transport moisture away from the body. Linen can absorb up to 20% of its weight in moisture before any wetness appears on its surface. It’s also made in an open, breezy weave, allowing for maximum airflow. It may start a little stiff, but linen will become softer and smoother with wear, settling in to be unbeatable in summer months.
The high points: SO BREEZY, absorbent, breathable, bacteria resistant.
Hemp is also a big summer fabric for us, often used in a weave alongside cotton. Hemp yields the same benefits that linen does, but it’s a little hardier. Hemp fabrics will be slightly more tougher and durable than linen, softening up with uses and washing. Linen will be finer and softer.
SILK
Silk fibers are incredibly fine, but due to their crystalline molecular structure they have great tensile strength. Textiles containing silk will have a smooth, soft hand, and a cool feel. Silk fabric has excellent breathability and absorbency, helping air circulate and moisture to be pulled from the body. It’s naturally hypoallergenic, and resistant to dust mites / mold.
The high points: cool to the touch, breathable, soft as silk (it’s silk)
CARE
For all of the fabrics mentioned above, we recommend either gently hand-washing in cold / lukewarm water, or dry cleaning. Anything washed should be air-dryed. A high-temperature machine wash or a tumble dry will shrink and warp the textiles. The nice thing about all of the fabrics mentioned above is that they are more resistant to bacteria and odor, so they don’t need to be washed as frequently as a cotton tee.
