Two natural fibers that possibly make up your uniform apparel, casual duty clothing, as well as every day clothing are cotton and wool.
Cotton
It is the seed hair fiber of various plants of the genus Gossypium, which is in the mallow family and is native to most subtropical countries. The shrubby plants produce cream-colored flowers which are followed by small green seedpods, or cotton bolls. Fibers growing from the outer skin of the seeds become tightly packed within the boll, which opens at maturity, revealing soft puffs of white/yellowish white fibers. Cotton is harvested when the bolls open.
It is one of the world’s leading agricultural crops. Cotton is plentiful and economically produced, which makes cotton products fairly inexpensive to produce. Cotton is used in a variety of ways: towels, polishing cloths, tea bags, tablecloths, bandages, etc.
For apparel, cotton is an excellent choice. It is comfortable, soft and absorbent. It has a fairly good color retention and prints well. Cotton is machine washable, but may be dry cleaned as well. It is fairly strong and durable. This fabric has a nice drape and will wear well on you.
Wool
It is an animal fiber that is the protective covering or fleece of sheep, goats or camels. Wool is prepared by washing, carding, combing, then spinning. Wool is coarser than fibers like cotton, linen, silk and rayon. Wool fabric and garments tend to retain their shape, drape well and resist wrinkling. It is warm and lightweight. Woolen yarns take dyes very well, so they do not tend to lose their color quickly.
Wool comes in a number of weights for year-round wear. From thick woolen coats to lightweight – tropical weight – wool pants. Wool is often blended with another fiber to “lighten” up the weight. We will be discussing wool blends in the synthetic fiber section.
Wool’s strongpoint is in its warmth. It blocks wind. So, in chilly, breezy areas (think Chicago, Minneapolis, and Maine), wool may be your weapon of choice.
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