We've probably all been there: A wedding in summer, a company get-together, a hot summer day outside an airconed office or inside a non-airconed office.
Usually we dress in a cotton suit, or a little more casual in jeansor chinos and a cotton shirt - if we're lucky we can wear a cotton t-shirt or a cotton polo. We all know thestains by ourarmpitsor collars and the shirt sticking to our body from the sweat.
Nowadays about a third of all clothing is made of cotton andthe majority of the remainder frompolyester. Mostly, because it's cheap. Fast-fashion hasboostedthe use of cheap materials at the expense of mother nature.
So our choice based on the two most popular fabrics is mainly betweencottonandpolyester - and sweating in polyester...well.
So the question is:
Is cotton thebest fabric to wear in summer?
To make it brief: No!
But what is abetter alternative to cotton insummer?
As real linen fanboys-and girls we need some sciencetodecide objectively whatmakes the best summer fabric
Cotton vs. Linen
Today "the best" is certainly over-used.We define thebest summerfabric as a combination of comfort, look and sustainability.
It would greatly help to add ethical aspects to the equation but it is impossible to generalize ethical conduct based on the geography fabrics mostly come from.
Comfort in summer
For comfort summer fabrics should be breathable (permeability to air), light, thermalresistanceand absorbing moisture (or simply put our sweat). To measure the comfort of cotton, linen, polyester and viscose we rely on a study from CELC (please find all data here).
1. Breathability
The breathability is measuredas RET (water-vapour resistance) - m²Pa/W ina so calledskin model test (ISO 11092 standard). The lower the RET score the more the fabric lets perspiration pass through. Linen scores the lowest which in this case shows that linen allows your body's sweat to pass through the fabrics easily.
100% Linen (long fibre): 3.84
100% Cotton:3.86
50% Linen/ 50% Cotton:4.37
100& PES (Polyester):4.7
100% Viscose:4.73
2. Permeability of fabrics to air
The permeability to air is expressed in mm/s and expresses how ventilating a fabric is.Linen along with viscose scores the highest underscoring the natural cooling effect that linen is known for.
100% Cotton: 499
50% Linen/ 50% Cotton: 786
100& PES (Polyester): 958
100% Viscose: 2293
100% Linen (long fibre): 2294
3. Absorption of water (or sweat)
The higher the absorption of water the less your apparel feels soaked or damp. The absorption capacity (instant or slow) and drop diffusion (direction and distribution) from linen is the highest followed by viscose. Linen also dries really quickly which is nice after a wash or when you get a drink spilled over you in a beach club (unintentially).
100% Linen (long fibre): 0.388
100% Cotton: 0.386
100% Viscose:0.340
50% Linen/ 50% Cotton:0.316
100& PES (Polyester):0.314
4. Insulation
Insulation measures the ability of a fabric to retain (body) heat.It would appear thata good insulation scoredoes notnecessarily add points to the best summer fabrics. Linen ranks second for retaining heat (PES 1; cotton last).
It means that linen offers great comfort in summer but also in winter. From our experience the looser it is from the body the cooler it keeps you in summer while tighter apparels are warming in winter.
5. IMT Comfort Index
According to the IMT Comfort Index the ratio between insulation and breathability indicates what fabrics are most comfortable to wear. 100% Linen scores the highest comfort with an index of 0.388 followed by cotton with a score of 0.386 and PES being last.
Result: Linenis the most comfortable wear in summer
With regards to comfortlinen scores best - on ventilation, breathability, comfort, liquid absorption and moisture management while still being able to retain heat.
Look - cotton vs. linen
Looks are subjective so there will not be a winner in this category.Wewill however visualize thedifferencesbetween the look our top dog cotton andthe most comfortable (summer) fabrics - 100% linen.
1. Elegance
"Elegance is the only beauty that never fades." -AudreyHepburn
When we see men or women in formal wearthe pieces worn are most of the time made from cotton. With very high thread counts and regularity, cotton certainly is a great choice for formal wear.
When it gets hot it is often unbearable to wear cotton suits. Thatleads to a very understandable down-dressing (we all have ourpolosand t-shirts) or "soaked" cotton shirts.
Like hardly any other fiber, linen is associated with summer in the Mediterranean -the picture of a French vinemaker overlooking his or her vineyards and drinking a rosé wine with friendsas the sun sets - or an Italian casanova on his boat with a few beautiful ladies ankering in a littlebay on Capri.
Quite the stereotypes but you get the picture.
Linen - even fine linencomes with little irregularities and less thread-count (a little see-through) that might not make it the perfect fabrics for a black-tie event.
However, it comes with a more effortless elegancegood for those who want to dress up without looking too corporate.
Even in hot temperatures linen shirts can be worn without overheating. So linen shirts are an elegant alternative to polos or t-shirts in hot temperatures.
2. Allrounder linen vs. cotton madefor specific occasions
Thefashion industry has used cotton tomarket a huge selection of different apparel pieces - from t-shirtsall the way to smokings, from bikinisall the way to coats.
That way we got used to wear different pieces of clothing for different occasions -leadingus to buy clothes for many occasions, changing amany times during the week or even within a day. We also need to plan ahead in the morning to dress accordingly for the day's different occasions.
Linen on the other side is a less known and still lesser marketed material who has not been put in boxes by the fashion industry. We claim it is the ultimate allrounder that frees you from deciding what to wear in the morning.
Just wear a fine linen shirt and a fine linen pant (coming soon) and your good to go for almost any occasion. For some inspiration have a look at our linen style-guide here.
Depending on what you combine it with it always looks effortless yet elegant - be it on the beach, in the office oron arooftop dinner. We call it the smart natural look.
Since linen also does not take on odors easily, linen shirts are also great for summer vacations as you can pack lightly.Onelinen shirt works for up to one week easily - different occasions included.
Result: Linen is more universal than cotton
Cotton is great for specific looks - either casual or formal wear. Cotton is a very regular fabrics that give its weareralook of perfection.
Linen clothes, like shirtshowever are greatfor those who want to dress up in summer without looking corporate.
With linen you need a lesser range of clothes as it goes well for most occasions - meaning you do not have to think in the morning what to wear depending on what the day brings. Great for holidays - but also for everyday piece of mind.
What is more sustainable - cotton or linen?
1. Thegood, the bad and the environment
There is a lot of talk about sustainabilitybut for customers who care it really ishard to tell whichapparelis truly sustainable.
According to a newer study by Centrocot (find the Italian only versionhere) analysing linen's supply chaincomes to the conclusion that itsaverage environmental impact is low compared to other traditional fabrics like cotton, wool, polyester and viscose.
2. Especially cotton's thirst is immense
According to a peer-reviewed study of Textile Exchange with its organic Cotton Life Style Assessment (LCA) from 2014 compared to the LCA from Cotton Inc.a conventional t-shirt requires 8,200 liters of water (2,168 gallons) while an organic one would require 700 liters of water (186 gallons).A pair of jeans requires 37,500 liters of water (9,910 gallons) while organic ones require 3,500 liters of water (932 gallons).
Unlike cotton,
linen requires minimal to none irrigation (European Flax and Masters of Linen certified linen requires none)
linen requires minimal chemicals (flaxis a robust plant that is cultivated in crop rotationand acts as afertilizer while cotton's monoculture eradicates the soil)
is durable, biodegradable, GMO-free andevery part of the plant is used
looks good even when it is not ironed andneeds a wash after several days only (does not take on odors easily)
In another articlewe willdig deeperinto different textiles' environmental footprint.
Result:Linen is more sustainable than cotton
Studiesprovedthe outstanding comfort of linen - particularly in summers as well as its low environmental impact.
Taking the relatively high initial costs of linen (it lasts for long and will be worn a lot) aside thestyle factor is subjective.
Linen is for those who want to look elegant yet in a more effortless and less corporate way.
So after all this reading:Will you join team linen?
Head over to our shop and have a look at our shirts here.
