How Do Aurifil Threads Meet Quilter's Expectations? ... Very Carefully.

There are 4 very important criteria: 

The Origin of the Raw Materials:

The term “Egyptian cotton” is usually applied to the extra long staple cotton produced in Egypt and favored for the luxury and upmarket brands worldwide. Cotton was introduced to Egypt in the 19th century, where the weather conditions and the rich soil enabled the production of better long stapled cotton. Nowadays, the Egyptian Mako cotton is recognized as the best in the world. Cotton is currently cultivated in 20 countries around the world, but for our type of product, we use the classified Egyptian thread and particularly the extra long staple quality. For Aurifil customers, the Cotton Mako philosophy is a guarantee of the pursue of the best cotton harvest grown annually in the world, taking into consideration: - staple length - fiber thickness - good maturity. Aurifil is constantly in touch with producers, which enable them to select and purchase the most excellent crop grown in the world. It is very important to choose the cotton seeds: they are usually chosen between the long staple cotton (seed with different characteristics originate different type of cotton) along with the production area, as climate and soil all together with humidity and heat, influence the development of the harvest. The limited production of Extra Long Staple cottons, particularly the ones suitable for cotton Mako enhances its exclusivity.

The Twist:

In spinning, separate fibers are twisted together to bind hem into a stronger, long yarn. Characteristics of the yarn vary, based on the material used, fiber length and alignment, quantity of fiber used and degree of twist. What does “twist” mean: The direction in which the yarn is spun is called “twist” and the yarns are characterized as Z-twist or S-twist according to the direction of spinning. Tightness of twist is measured in TPI (twists per inch or turns per inch). 2 or more spun yarns may be twisted or plied to form a thicker yarn. Generally, hand spun single plies are spun with a Z-twist and plying is done with a S-twist. Twist is the force that consolidates the fibers and plies of thread. If the twist is too low the yarns may fray and break – if it is too high, the resulting liveliness in the thread may cause snarling, looping, knots or spillage. After much research and experimentation, Aurifil has found the best processing to avoid these kinds of mishaps, to the great satisfaction of quilters.

The Weight:

The yarn count expresses the thickness of the yarn. The yarn count number indicates the length of yarn in relation to the weight: “the finer the yarn, the higher the number”. The yarn number for cotton yarns is based on the number of 840-yard hanks in a pound. The convention for indicating plies: two-ply 50 will be 50/2 and will be twice the weight, length for length of single ply 50 yarn.

Dye:

Before dying any cotton, we need to proceed to its mercerization. What is mercerization: it is a treatment for thread mostly used to give cotton a lustrous appearance. . Mercerized cotton is a cotton thread that has been treated with sodium hydroxide (NaOH). The thread is given a caustic soda bath that is then neutralized with an acid bath. This treatment, after removing all impurities and fuzz, increases luster, strength, affinity to dye, gives resistance to mildew and also reduces lint. Cotton with long staple fiber lengths respond best to mercerization.

Why Aurifil threads do not tangle or break: Aurifil is very careful with the twisting and finishing process, which eliminates thread fraying and tangling and we all know how important this is to quilters!

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