Who Knew

**McElmurry** · 13th April 11, 07:10 PM

According to NPR, Hanes is developing new under garments using flax instead of cotton. This is in response to the high cost of cotton but apparently flax also has certain benefits. These advantages, when compared to cotton, include improved wicking and, surprisingly, a reduction in shrinkage.

**Bugbear** · 13th April 11, 08:00 PM

Oh my...

**McElmurry** · 13th April 11, 08:18 PM

In case you don't believe me, I will divulge my source.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...474866630.html

Funny, now it wants me to subscribe. I was able to access the entire article through Google.

**Spartan Tartan** · 14th April 11, 03:47 AM

Interesting ...

**Iain Robb** · 14th April 11, 04:50 AM

According to the article:

"Last month, Naturally Advanced Technologies, a small Portland, Ore., maker of sustainable fabrics, said it signed a 10-year deal with Hanes to "commercialize" flax fiber. The fiber is typically discarded after the plant is harvested for its seeds and oil, which are used in health foods and industrial products."

Um ... isn't that linen, which has been around for centuries? Linen is, by definition, "cloth woven from thread made from fibers of the flax plant."

Linen is an amazing fabric, far better than cotton for almost any use. Unlike cotton, it doesn't shrink, is warm when wet, breathes better when wet, evaporates more quickly, and gets softer with each laundering.

It was very commonly used in previous centuries, but has fallen out of favor because, I understand, the process of making linen is more complex and costly than that for making cotton.

**Whidbey78** · 14th April 11, 06:10 AM

I agree that linen is a good fabric for a lot of applications, and had some unique and likable qualities. Unfortunately, being easy or cheap to manufacture has not been one of those qualities.

I think what this comes down to--granted I am making a bit of a supposition here--is that they have been working on a a way to process flax into a usable fiber for weaving that is more economically feasible than what has been used in the past so that it can be a substitute for cotton while prices are high.

I don't think they set out to use linen, but to find a suitable analog for the cotton they have been using. From what I've been able to find on this topic, which has not been much, the final product is not exactly traditional linen. It has some of linen's qualities, but has been re-engineered with the idea of using equipment and materials (looms, dyes, etc) that are already on hand and were designed from the ground up to work perfectly with cotton and it's unique characteristics, saving money on retooling facilities, retraining workers and reworking processes. It behaves much like cotton, and to the people making your boxers, nothing really changes. Basically, it's linen that thinks it's cotton...kind of like the duck we used to have that thought she was a chicken.

What I can't figure out is if it can be called linen if the manufacturing process and it's physical characteristics have been altered. It certainly isn't cotton, so they can't call it that. That's one for the philosophers I guess.

**Chas** · 14th April 11, 06:31 AM

Ah, shrinkage - the curse of the modern world! How some people must suffer. One can only hope for an effective support network or a good self-help group.

Regards

Chas

**McElmurry** · 14th April 11, 06:42 AM

Originally Posted by Chas

Ah, shrinkage - the curse of the modern world! How some people must suffer. One can only hope for an effective support network or a good self-help group.

Regards

Chas

Every response which comes to my mind is patently unaccepted within the confines of this forum.

**piperdbh** · 14th April 11, 08:16 AM

Maybe they're not using the fibers of the plant in the traditional linen-making way, but instead melting them chemically and turning the melt into fibers, sort of the same way viscose fabrics are made.

**Chas** · 14th April 11, 08:36 AM

Originally Posted by piperdbh

Maybe they're not using the fibers of the plant in the traditional linen-making way, but instead melting them chemically and turning the melt into fibers, sort of the same way viscose fabrics are made.

I might be understanding this all wrong, but doesn't all plant material, treated that way become viscose? I am sure that I have heard that both potato plants and trees have been used in that way.

Regards

Chas