Traditionally cotton and silk are the fabrics most associated with Indian textiles & daily wear by locals. India has been exporting cotton cloth to the world, as well as producing fabulous varieties of cotton fabrics for domestic use.
India’s geographical diversity displays a blend of wet & dry tropical weather. Except from northern mountainous regions, most of the country experiences longer hot weather. The global warming has added to the rising temperatures year over year.
This is the reason that To travel in India, cotton clothes are highly recommended. High temperatures & humidity makes it imperative to choose skin friendly clothing on move.
Below are some facts about cotton which makes it the best fabric to choose while being or travelling in Indian sub continent.
1. Cotton is cheaper than other fibres. What is cotton?
Cotton is an agricultural crop. It’s a fibre produced by nature in from of fruit. The process of converting fibre to fabric has been part of Indian economy. Earlier Khadi, Handloom & now post industrialisation spinning mills, weaving mills. This natural fabric is economically produced hence makes it cheaper than other natural yarns like Linen, Bamboo, Silk, Viscose etc.
2. With cotton yarn, there are a wide variety of fabrics available in market making it suitable for apparels for high to low temperature climate, home furnishings & many industrial use. Its used from bandages to blankets.
3. Cotton fabrics are breathable. It allows the air to flow in & out while wearing. It makes wearer feel cool & dry in high temperature conditions. The risk of skin allergies reduce when skin pores are able to transfer heat & sweat glands function properly. Cotton fabric is highly recommended for people with skin allergies, heavy sweating, rashes & itching. Needless to say that for everyone cotton is a must wardrobe selection specially during Indian Summers. In heavily crowded places like Local trains in Mumbai, cotton clothing is ideal choice.
4. Polyester fabrics are likely to leave you sweaty & embarrassingly smelly because synthetic fibres trap. It may work in cold months but in summers & sunny outdoors, natural fibres absorb sweat better.
5. Any product made with Cotton fibre is bio degradable at the end of its life. Synthetic fibres are made with industrial chemicals so they cost cheaper in production. That’s why polyesters & synthetic fabrics are used mostly by low cost value chain brands & very frequently by big brands for fat margins. However if the product is not decomposable in the end, what’s the point? It’s another addition to polluting dump landfill.
6. Cotton is easily washable, low maintenance, can be ironed on relatively higher temperatures, easy to stitch. Due to high absorbent quality, cotton can also be dyed easily. Bandhani, Dabu, Ajrakh, sanganeri block prints, batik, Shibori, Ikat are examples of dye explorations possible on cotton.
Summary- To avoid skin allergies & to stay active in hot climate, Natural fabrics are recommended to use. Given the easy to maintain qualities & economic cost, cotton is widely used in day today clothing.
Checkout unique cotton collection with artistic hand block prints.
This articles also answers to
-What is best to wear in Mumbai’s humid weather?
- What to choose when travelling to India?
- What is perfect holiday wear in summers?
- Which is the best fabric in tropical weather?
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