The Many Benefits of Linen
Linen made from the European flax Plant is one of the world’s oldest fabrics. Humans have been growing and turning Flax into natural woven fabrics for thousands of year. In many regions of the world, people have been passing pieces of fabric down the generations because of its renowned softening-with-time quality.
Beyond its luxurious look and feel, linen is temperature-regulating, anti-static, anti-bacterial and acts as a natural insulator. This means it has temperature-regulating qualities, and keeps you cool in summer and warm in winter, without causing you to overheat.
Linen comes from one of the purest, pathogen-resistant cellulose based fibers in the world. This is primarily because of its distinctive moisture-retention properties of the Flax plant. Linen fabric can absorb up to 20% dampness without getting wet. This prevents bacterial growth and makes linen bedding healthier and more long-lasting than other options.
The Flax plant is naturally hypoallergenic, making linen anti-allergen as well. Historically, linen is the only natural skin-friendly fiber which is why it is commonly used in hospitals as bandages. You can trace this all the way back to the Egyptians.
The cultivation of flax and its conversion into linen is incredibly environmentally friendly. Although it is laborious and time-consuming, and requires a very specific type of micro climate to grow long fiber flax, farmers minimize the use of pesticides, fertilizers and the amount of water as compared to the irrigation processes of other plants like for instance cotton.