This weekend I was able to get all scientific & experimental for crafty purposes. What fun! A customer purchased some fabric in my shop & asked me if it was 100% cotton. I wasn't 100% sure. I quite frequently purchase fabric at thrift stores, antique malls & garage sales. You see, my customer is a quilter. She let me know that "the deal with poly and cotton is that cotton shrinks whereas blends don't so you can't mix the two fabrics in quilts."
What was I to do? I grabbed a match, tweezers, a 2" x 2" piece of my fabric in question & an ashtray (or other fire-safe container).
I lit my fabric with the match & let my senses do the rest. It smelled like burning paper, I saw the fabric produce an afterglow & when I touched the ashes, they were soft & turned to dust.
I also held a clump of threads from the fabric in my tweezers & held a lit match near them. The fabric ignited as the flame drew near. Synthetic fibers curl away from the heat & tend to "melt".
My experiment led me to believe that it was, indeed, 100% cotton. But please visit THIS link--(where I got all my info from)--for more detailed steps about performing a burn test. You'll also learn what to look for if your fabric is something OTHER than cotton.
Thank you for passing on this useful info and link !!!!! I never knew of a way to really determine content. You are a clever little cupcake.
ReplyDeleteGood info - thanks for that!
ReplyDeleteP.S. I've given you an award:
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Have a great week!
I heard about this burn test a couple of years ago but I never did it for myself. So much fun to see it in action. Must be the small firebug that lives within me. LOL!
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