- The textile is odorless and feels just like silk. Once washed, it helps regulate both blood circulation and body temperature. Organic Milk Fabric (its manufactured and produced totally in India).
- Cotton yarn can be woven or knitted into fabric. While weaving, users can interlace the yarns to make a solid, sturdy cloth. It can be done by hand or with a machine. Silk, a type of protein fiber, woven from materials created by insects like silkworm, caterpillars, bees and wasps, is made from the cocoons of the.
- Check out the list of 2020 newest Milk Silk manufacturers above and compare similar choices like spandex, textile, fabric. Made-in-China.com is the best place to meet key manufacturers in the homeware industry from major regions in China.
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to fondle a swatch of Milky Whey (by Kollage) made from milk and soy yarns. YUM! It provided instant finger delight (I made a mental note to try it as soon as I get a couple projects off of my needles) but. milk yarn? How does that work? How is yarn made from a liquid? Actually, there are a number of yarns that fall into this category.
Yarn fibers can typically be categorized as either animal, plant or synthetic (man made). Synthetic yarns can be further broken down into petroleum based (e.g. nylon, acrylics) or bio-synthetics. Milk yarn falls into the latter category along with soy, and bamboo.
Bio-synthetic yarns include;
Silk crepe is a lightweight textured silk fabric with a good sheen. Canton Crepe silk is a soft fabric with a fine crinkly surface; it is heavier than Crepe de chine. Crepon is a heavier crepe in silk. This is medium to heavyweight silk fabric with a crepe finish and beautiful luster. In fact, this is a heavier version of silk crepe.
- Bamboo (from bamboo plants)
- Banana (from banana trees)
- Chitin (made from crab and shrimp shells)
- Corn (made from corn plant sugars)
- Cupro (made from cotton plant lintels)
- Milk (milk proteins)
- Rayon, tencel and viscose (derived from wood cellulose)
- SeaCell® (seaweed)
- Soy (made from soybeans, perhaps leftover from making Tofu)
Bio-synthetic yarns are created by cooking cellulose (or polymers) into a slurry and then pumping that slurry through the tiny holes of a spinnarette and voila, fiber filaments are produced that are then spun into yarn. In the case of milk yarn, milk proteins are the solids in the slurry.
In general, synthetic yarns boast of several key benefits including that they can be moth proof (unlike natural fibers), may be hypoallergenic, machine washable and can imitate other fibers’ properties (e.g. silky, drapey, woolly).
On the flip side, some synthetics can be itchy, most are not as elastic as animal fibers (have less “memory”), they generally don’t “breathe” as well as natural fibers and they don’t have the insulating properties of natural fibers.
If you are looking to experiment with some of the bio-synthetics but don’t know what to expect from them, the following may help you decide where to start.
Bio-Synthetic Yarn Properties
Bamboo Bamboo produces a soft hand (can actually be softer than silk) with a nice drape (can be a bit clingy) and a bit of luster. (I knitted a bamboo top that had the feel of the softest worn-in t-shirt straight off the needles.) It produces a strong fabric that wears well. Bamboo can be harvested off of the plant without killing the plant, is hypoallergenic, a natural antibacterial and has UV protective qualities. It is also biodegradable. Bamboo is cool and does breathe making it a great choice for summer knits (tops, dresses, skirts).
The downside of bamboo is that it loses strength and swells quite a bit in water (not recommended for swim suits) and has a tendency to split (and therefore snag).
Brands/Where to buy? Many yarn suppliers now offer bamboo yarn making it much easier to find. If your LYS doesn’t carry any, you can try any of the major yarn manufacturers online such as Crystal Palace, Rowan, or Paton to find a source. Likewise, most online yarn vendors have offerings available (e.g. KnitPicks, Yarn Barn, WEBS).
Banana Banana silk is made from the aged bark (outer layers) of banana palm trees. As with other bio-synthetics, the bark is soaked, broken down to a pulp and the cellulose is extruded to produce the fibers. Women in Nepal then hand dye and spin the worsted weight yarn. Banana silk is aptly named, being silky, and lustrous with a very nice hand. Great for scarves, shawls, hats and more.
Different parts of the banana tree are actually used to produce a variety of fiber for instance the outer layers of bark are used generally for heavier applications such as tablecloths whereas the 3rd layer produces the finest, silkiest fiber suitable for making kimonos.
Brands/Where to buy? Although not as commonly available as bamboo yarn, I was able to find several sources online; NobleKnits, NearSeaNaturals, and The Wool Peddler (I haven’t used these suppliers myself yet).
Chitin and Chitosan Interestingly, chitin is derived from arthropod (e.g lobster, shrimp, insect, crab) shells, primarily from shrimp and crab. Likewise, chitosan is derived from chitin.
Having antibacterial and humidity absorbing properties make them a natural additive candidate for sock, underwear (knitted undies?), and sports clothes yarns to name a few possibilities. HA – this gives a whole new meaning to ‘walking on shells’… Chitin and chitosan are biodegradable.
Brands/Where to buy? The best example of chitin in yarn that I can give is Southwest Trading Company’s (SWTC) TOFUtsies which is available at many LYSs (wool, cotton, soy and 2.5% chitin). (How ideal for socks…a bit of wool and cotton to wick, soy to cool and chitin to provide the antibacterial properties!). SWTC does have a place on their website to find a LYS near you if you need more information.
Corn Corn yarn is produced by fermenting simple sugars from corn plants, creating polymers in the process which are then processed as above.
It is much like cotton in that it breathes and wicks moisture well however, it is more resilient (and springy) than cotton making it friendlier on the hands when knitting. Lighter than cotton yet heavier than soy, corn yarn resists odors and stains better than cotton and dries quickly. It’s “easy care” properties makes it a good candidate for knitting clothes for children.
Brands/Where to buy? Kollage offers Cornucopia and Corntastic, Southwest Trading Company produces Amaizing, and Crystal Palace has a corn yarn (some are blends) so you may have great luck at your LYS or check with the manufacturers for a source near you.
Cupro Cupro is derived from the lintel (short downy fiber surrounding the seed) of cotton plants much like many of the bio-synthetics by extruding cellulose into filaments.
What Is Milk Silk Material Fabric
Curve-hugging and “drapey”, Cupro breathes like cotton and yet has the feel of silk when next to the skin making it an ideal choice for many purposes including linings, camisoles, dresses and tops. Mavericks 10.9 dmg.
Brands/Where to buy? Cupro is tougher to find. Stacy Charles, and Knitting Fever (2% blend), offer a couple of Cupro yarns. If you know of others, let me know and I’ll add them to the list.
That’s it for now (Part 1). I’ll cover the rest of the list in my next post. I’ll also be covering animal (some really great luxury fibers amongst them) and plant fibers in other posts. In the meantime, have you had any experiences with these fibers? What do you like most (or least) about them?
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Silk is a filament fiber formed from proteins secreted by Bombyx mori, or silkworms. Silkworms are not actually worms, but caterpillars, despite their common name. Humans have practiced silk production, which originated in China, for thousands of years. Highly prized for its softness, insulating properties, and strength, the fiber is a natural animal product and therefore quite expensive. Making it requires monitoring and feeding the silkworms constantly, and a great deal of effort results in a surprisingly small amount of thread.
China managed to keep the secret of silk for thousands of years, exporting the rare textile to Europe over trade routes. Eventually, silkworm eggs were smuggled out, and in the 13th century, production in the West began in Italy. This by no means brought the cost down, as the extensive amount of work required to make the fiber remained the same. The caterpillars from 30,000 eggs can end up eating 1 ton (about 907 kg) of mulberry leaves and producing 12 pounds (5.5 kilograms) of thread.
The manufacturing process begins when female silkmoths lay their eggs. A single moth may produce hundreds of tiny eggs, which are incubated until they hatch into larva. The larva must be kept warm and fed on mulberry leaves frequently throughout their brief lives. In four to six weeks, the larva have reached their maximum size and have mustered enough energy to pupate.
What Is Milk Silk Material Suppliers
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