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Bamboo (Top)
$3.75 – $28.94
100% Viscose of Bamboo.
Very clean combed top, pearly-white in colour. Staple length is 3.5 to 4 inches.
PRODUCT of CHINA
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Corn Fibre (Top)
100% Corn Fibre. Also known as Ingeo.
Extremely clean combed top. Pristine, true white in colour. Staple length is 4 to 5 inches.
One of the "new" man-made fibres, and apparently it stands up pretty well to any "green" claims about its manufacture. As a spinning or knitting fibre, it is soft and lustrous, breathes and absorbs moisture well, has good drape and warmth and is easy to care for. Corn is machine washable but should be air or tumble dried only. Do not iron!
Considered a plant or cellulose fibre but neither acid nor fibre reactive dyes will work on corn fibre. Natural dyers could try using techniques used on cotton, such as alum-tannin premordanting, or Aluminum acetate. We do not know yet how corn behaves in an indigo bath.
That being said, when blended with protein fibres, acid dyes will leave the corn alone during dyeing, which makes for some wonderful streaky or heathered effects, depending on how well the fibres are blended.
Ramie (Top)
100% Ramie.
Very clean combed top, in pencil-roving width. Staple length is 7 to 8 inches. Ramie comes from the stem (bast) fibre of a tropical plant. Typically it is bleached to an almost pure white. Our supply is very fine and soft. Ramie can be spun by itself or used in blends. It's well-suited for lighter summer wear, from against-the-skin to outerwear. An intriguing fibre for those that can't wear wool. <
Since this is a plant or cellulose fibre dyers must use fibre reactive dyes. Natural dyers can resort to techniques used on cotton, such as alum-tannin premordanting, or Aluminum acetate. We don't know how Ramie responds in an indigo vat.
That being said, when blended with protein fibres, acid dyes will leave the ramie alone during dyeing, which makes for some wonderful streaky or heathered effects, depending on how well the fibres are blended.
Bamboo Bast (Top)
100% Bamboo bast fibre.
Clean and tidy combed top. This type of Bamboo comes from the stem fibres, produced in a way similar to flax or hemp. It's different from the more common viscose or rayon type of Bamboo. To our hands it feels finer than hemp or flax, more akin to Ramie. The natural colour is ivory-cream, with a medium lustre. Staple length is around 4 to 5 inches.
PRODUCT of CHINA
Sparkle-On Natural Snow
100% trilobal Nylon. We also label this as Sparkling White Icicle.
Extremely clean combed top, and very white but with a wonderful reflective sparkle. Staple length is about 3 to 4 inches, the fibre very fine. Absolutely wonderful for adding some glitter to any spin, and also a favourite of felters. Trilobal nylon is triangular in cross-section, rather than round. These flat surfaces are what cause it to reflect light and appear to sparkle. It is sold under various brand names, including Firestar™.
Though it works nicely in "natural" white, this dyes beautifully with acid dyes. In blends this is carded at around 5 to 20% by weight, and just a little bit does the trick.
Our "Sparkle-On™ Natural Snow" and "Nylon - Sparkling White Icicle" are cross-listed here together. The only difference is the size of the bags offered.
PRODUCT of ITALY