Yeah, linen too. Although pre-modern linen, like wool and silk, can't really be got these days for any price. Heck, try and find a regency-era cotton muslin, can't be done.
Linen is so much better than cotton it's not even a contest. We really did pick the absolute worst of all the available fibers and then used it to make everything. I have some linen medieval clothes and they're the most comfortable things I've ever owned.
Oh yeah, and even it's a pale imitation of the stuff they actually had then (unless you got it hand woven, which is eye-wateringly expensive). Look at the drape on ancient statues and try and get that!
That said, high-quality cotton can be very good, and a linen Regency dress doesn't quite drape right, so a good cotton voile is the best you can get. I'd also like someone to make some accurate 1710s Chintz pls, even if it's just the pattern (glares at Ikea, somehow currently the world leader in 18th-century fabric styles)
Linen stains easily and is difficult to wash. I got some linen shirts and they are awesome in summer, but sheesh what a pain in the ass they are. Your white shirt gets a little spot on it and that's it, time to buy a new one. You can soak it in Oxy Clean, chlorine bleach, pre-wash stain remover and it won't go anywhere. It's in there for good.
Yeah, linen too. Although pre-modern linen, like wool and silk, can't really be got these days for any price. Heck, try and find a regency-era cotton muslin, can't be done.
Linen is so much better than cotton it's not even a contest. We really did pick the absolute worst of all the available fibers and then used it to make everything. I have some linen medieval clothes and they're the most comfortable things I've ever owned.
Oh yeah, and even it's a pale imitation of the stuff they actually had then (unless you got it hand woven, which is eye-wateringly expensive). Look at the drape on ancient statues and try and get that!
That said, high-quality cotton can be very good, and a linen Regency dress doesn't quite drape right, so a good cotton voile is the best you can get. I'd also like someone to make some accurate 1710s Chintz pls, even if it's just the pattern (glares at Ikea, somehow currently the world leader in 18th-century fabric styles)
Linen stains easily and is difficult to wash. I got some linen shirts and they are awesome in summer, but sheesh what a pain in the ass they are. Your white shirt gets a little spot on it and that's it, time to buy a new one. You can soak it in Oxy Clean, chlorine bleach, pre-wash stain remover and it won't go anywhere. It's in there for good.