I love buying fabric here! Last month I bought 3 pieces to be made into pajamas for me-about $4 of fabric for one pair of pajamas. The seamstress finally got them back to me ($7 to have one pair made). Happily, I put some on after my evening shower, nice and clean, ready to be nice and cool.
But I wasn’t. Yet again I have accidentally bought a polyester/cotton blend. I can tell the difference as soon as I put them on, but I can’t tell the difference when I’m feeling it in the market. Aargh! I now have a plethora of polyester pajamas. Say that 5 times fast.
In case you hadn’t guessed, it’s hot here. So, polyester is not a fabric you want touching your skin. Last time I accidentally made polyester pjs I had them cut up and made into cloth napkins. I don’t need any more napkins!
Someone told me that you can tell if fabric is pure cotton or not by burning it. If it’s cotton, it will smell like burning paper. Ok, so I’m supposed to go to the market and set people’s merchandise on fire before I buy it? I’m not sure, but that just might be culturally inappropriate. Then I learned that what you do is pull out a thread from the cut end and just burn the thread. If it turns into a little hard plasticky bead, that means it’s not 100% cotton. We’re still talking about burning stuff in the middle of the market, though.
So, I guess I’d better go shopping again and try to get pure cotton this time…rats! More fabric shopping!
I’m with you regarding cotton! I hate polyester pj’s and bedsheets. What I’ve noticed about bedsheets is that when you compare them side-by-side, it’s very easy to tell which is 100% cotton and which is the blend. If you have a cotton pillowcase that you can take with you to the market, you may find it easier to tell the cotton from the poly by comparing. I fully appreciate your predicament and am praying that the Lord will help you sort it out (one way or another) soon. –Andree
Hey Nora!
Just curious – how do you make all your clothes? Do you have a sewing machine or do you stitch by hand? I imagine with limited power that it is done by hand, but can’t figure out how you would have the patience to do this. I’m all thumbs, but my mom is a seamstress…
-Mark