Articles about local companies that are producing threads, cloth, and clothing.
Hemp is a versatile crop. Hemp can be made into fiber, food, fuel and even an edifice. With the growing of hemping become legalized, local companies are now in a position to make hemp on an industrial scale.
Hemp is a plant. The hemp discussed here is also referred to as industrial hemp.
Hemp is a versatile crop. An online search on the topic of hemp will lead to many articles on the history and use of hemp. There are a number of books written on the subject also. Here is a link to the Wikipedia article on hemp.
In general, it is illegal to grow hemp in the United States. The Federal government has slowly begun legalizing the farming of hemp. States like Kentucky have a burgeoning hemp industry. Here in Maryland there is a UMD hemp project. Local hemp companies are acquiring hemp from outside Maryland in order to start making products.
In particular, hemp fiber can be used to make hemp clothing. Local companies are involved in making hemp products. Local nonprofits, universities, and government agencies such as the Montgomery Countryside Alliance, UMD Extension Service, and the MoCo government, also contribute to the effort to create a local hemp industry. Note: this effort is not related to the marijuana industry in any way, shape or form.
Here we find articles about MoCo companies that make threads, cloth, clothing and/or design clothing.
Lady Farmer
This logo is the property of Lady Farmer.
Here is the link to Lady-Farmer.com
Some background material on the debate of wool vs. alpaca.
Link
A discussion about Tencel on the organicclothing blog.
Link
Another article from the same blog. At the end is an extensive and amazing glossary of terms related to clothing. Link.
The article also has an in-depth discussion on the topic of wrinkling.
Quote from article: “Hemp – Hemp is a bast fiber that was probably used first in Asia. The fiber is dark tan or brown and is difficult to bleach, but it can be dyed bright and dark colors. The hemp fibers vary widely in length, depending upon their ultimate use. Industrial fibers may be several inches long, while fibers used for domestic textiles are about 3/4 inch to 1 inch (1.9 to 2.54 cm) long. The elongation (1 to 6 percent) is low and its elasticity poor. The thermal reactions of hemp and the effect of sunlight are the same as for cotton. Hemp is moth resistant, but it is not impervious to mildew. Coarse hemp fibers and yarns are woven into cordage, rope, sacking and heavy-duty tarpaulins. In Italy, fine hemp fibers are used for interior design and apparel fabrics. Hemp is a very durable fiber that holds its shape. It grows without the use of pesticides, herbicides or chemical fertilizers and can withstand harsh growing seasons. Hemp cultivation does not exhaust, but rather continuously fertilizes the soil by shedding its leaves throughout its growing period. In this way, it actually returns nutrients to the soil, helping to reduce the energy demand on the Earth. It is also naturally UV resistant and dries quickly.”
Softwine 