Monk's Cloth is a loosely woven
cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
or linen
fabric
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not th ...
made of coarser
yarn
Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, used in sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery, ropemaking, and the production of textiles. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manu ...
s that drape well.
Basketweave
The Monk's cloth was
woven
Woven fabric is any textile formed by weaving. Woven fabrics are often created on a loom, and made of many threads woven on a warp and a weft. Technically, a woven fabric is any fabric made by interlacing two or more threads at right angles to on ...
with
basketweave
Basketweave is a structure that exists in many textile arts. It consists of multiple horizontal strands and vertical strands, resulting in a square pattern associated with woven baskets.
It is used in the following textile arts:
* Basket weaving ...
, usually with 2x2 or 4x4. Basketweave is a
plain weave
Plain weave (also called tabby weave, linen weave or taffeta weave) is the most basic of three fundamental types of textile weaves (along with satin weave and twill). It is strong and hard-wearing, and is used for fashion and furnishing fabric ...
, with the difference that it allows two or more filling yarn to pass over and under two or more warp yarns and forms a
check pattern.
Characteristics
This cloth has a loose over and under four strand weave. These strands are called floats and are used to weave the threads through. The cloth is 100% cotton and can be purchased in a variety of colors at craft and fabric stores. The cotton will
shrink when washed, so should be pre-washed before so as to achieve the correct sizing before stitching.
Use
In the 1940s monk's cloth was used to decorate borders on towels, throws, baby blankets, pillows, wall hanging, pictures, linens and clothing. Swedish dresses were decorated for traditional outfits with a variety of threads. Today, cotton Floss and yarns are used on the fabric to create beautifully decorated items.
See also
*
Basketweave
Basketweave is a structure that exists in many textile arts. It consists of multiple horizontal strands and vertical strands, resulting in a square pattern associated with woven baskets.
It is used in the following textile arts:
* Basket weaving ...
References
{{Reflist
Weaving
Swedish culture