Low pilling? With made of coex fuzzballs do not form

Unpleasant “balls” and fuzz on fabrics? In textile language, it is called ‘pilling’ and, although it is not always a sign of low quality, it is an imperfection that is not much tolerated for garments, or for furnishing fabrics. But, low pilling is another COEX quality!

Technically, it is known as “pilling”; it is a phenomenon caused by washing, wear, pressure and rubbing, so the fabrics produce the so-called pills, or groups of fibres that come out from the yarn and are transferred from the inside of the jersey to the surface of the fabric, where they tend to get tangled up and grow in size, in the case of tough fibres, or to fall, in the case of brittle fibres.

The tendency of a fabric, particularly jerseys, to “suffer” from pilling is not necessarily a “symptom” of low quality. In fact, to eliminate the problem there are possible “non-natural” practices that provide, for example, for the use of percentages of synthetic components such as elastomers that  tighten the fibre on itself and prevent the short fibre from coming off the yarn, or washes with silicone emulsions.

In fact, the attitude to pilling depends more specifically on the characteristics of the fibres used, their fineness and average length and on the type of yarn and on the finishing procedures. Normally, it is also present in vegetable fibres, in discontinuous yarns or yarns with weak and not very compact twists, or in knitwear made with fine natural fibres or in microfibre and tough chemical fibres. The finer the fibres are, the more pilling tends to occur: for example, a jersey made of Shetland wool (ordinary wool) has fewer problems than if it were made of Merino's extrafine or cashmere!

Now, COEX is the only technology able to make 100% vegetable fibres 100% fireproof, and it does so thanks to a process that strengthens the properties of the cellulose molecule making it immune to fire, without any genetic modification or release of chemicals. 
It is also tested that this fireproof property of made of COEX fabric, like many other COEX qualities, remain unchanged over time: 

• it maintains the same softness of the starting fabric
• the transpiration remains unchanged;
• as it does not contain chemical additives, it is biodegradable and under certain compostable conditions!

But, wanting to highlight its more “aesthetic” qualities, made of COEX fabric is also the only natural and fireproof fabric available in total white and with a greater pilling value by one point compared to the same none made of COEX fabric!!

In fact, today consumers are increasingly sensitive and attentive to aesthetic quality and so to the resistance of a fabric against pilling, not only for clothes, but also, for example, for all furnishing fabrics, from curtains to coverings of the sofas up to those of the mattresses! 
For all the fabrics, the resistance to pilling can be measured according to an assessment scale defined by the UNI EN ISO 12945-1 standard. In the Pilling test (ISO 12945-2), generally conducted in the laboratory using electro-mechanical devices, two samples of material are used which reproduce stresses to which the fabric is normally subjected when used. The indicators are: Pilling 1 = very heavy, 2 = heavy, 3 = medium, 4 = low, 5 = none and, to determine the pilling value, we consider the number and size of the pills, superficial wooliness and general change of appearance of the fabric. The control of the surfaces subjected to testing is performed by specialist operators. 

Moreover, it must be stressed that care and maintenance are very important to avoid pilling imperfections: for example, by washing items of clothing in reverse; avoiding washing machine for clothes made of fine natural fibres such as merino’s, alpaca and cashmere; using delicate detergents and favouring those that are liquid, biodegradable and phosphate-free; not by frequent use of the dryer, instead favouring natural drying. 

But, certainly the best form of prevention is, at the source, to select the fabrics knowing the characteristics and particularly the specific qualities: thanks to an innovative technology that is deeply respectful of the environment and nature, COEX brings in our daily life, as well as 100% fireproof safety and 100% natural wellbeing, a protection of the fabric and of its most “candid” and “natural” beauty.

To the point of ensuring 100% vegetable fibres a better pilling value than any other fibre that is not made of COEX.
Because with COEX, it is nature that protects fabrics and keeps them natural, beautiful and safe over time.