KNIT MAGAZINE

Don't waste your time! I will explain the cause of pilling and how to care for it.

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Yes, hello everyone ~

This is glasses (Tazawa) of Maruyasu yarn.

It’s the season when Yudofu is delicious.

It’s been Yudofu three times in October.

Of course, it’s delicious, but after all, it’s easy because it’s just cut, and you just escape to Yudofu.

Isn’t it delicious to add yuzu? I’m tired of the sloppy taste, so I’ll change the taste a little and make it into yudofu again.

Well, let’s get into the main subject

This time, I would like to explain about the pilling (hairball) that everyone may have wondered several times.

table of contents

What is pilling?

Do you know what pilling is all about?

I can’t listen to that now! !!

I will give you a brief explanation for you.

Pilling means that the fibers are entangled with each other due to friction, and the fluffs are bundled into pills.

As mentioned above, pills are formed by friction, so it may occur frequently on the sides, sleeves, etc., which are easily affected by friction. In addition to friction when wearing, pills are also generated when the laundry rubs against each other during washing, so care must be taken when washing.

Causes of pilling

As I mentioned a little above, the main cause is the entanglement of fibers due to friction.

But why are the fibers intertwined? I will explain it a little.

The fibers that can be easily pilled are as follows.

·acrylic

·hair

Let’s start with acrylic.

・acrylic

↑ This is a photograph taken with an acrylic microscope

Acrylic is a fiber that resembles hair fiber, so its properties are similar to hair, and it is light and warm.

However, the strength of the fiber itself is strong and it gets entangled, so it is very easy to become a pill.

The content changes a little, but do you know the word “pill dropout”?

I will explain further with the next hair, but in simple terms, it means that the pills come off and fall off.

I will write the contents first, but depending on the type of hair, the pill may fall off and it may not be noticeable, but as mentioned above, the fibers themselves are strongly entwined with acrylic, so unfortunately the pill falls off. There are few cases to do.

There are often materials such as hair mixture (hair ○% acrylic ◯%), but acrylic containing ◯% may suppress the hair and make it difficult for the pill to fall off, so it is not often that the pill falls off. There is none.

・hair

↑ This is a photo of hair (alpaca and wool) viewed under a microscope (image borrowed from here).

The hair is bulging, highly elastic, and has excellent heat retention.

However, this is a characteristic of having a scale-like epidermis called a very fine crimp (scale = scale) that other fibers do not have.

These scales have the effect of increasing the distance from adjacent fibers and creating space inside the adjacent fibers, giving them swelling, elasticity, and heat retention.

I explained somehow the good points of scales, but of course not all good things.

At first glance, these scales are all good, but they are only an obstacle to the pills.

In fact, the main cause of hair pilling is the scales, which cause the fibers to get entangled with each other.

Hair fibers can also be pilled……………

However, as I explained a little when using acrylic, there are some types of hair that can cause pill shedding.

That is animal hair.

Unlike wool, animal hair has few scales, so even if pills are formed, the pills may come off and be inconspicuous.

That’s why sweaters such as alpaca don’t have noticeable pills.

How to deal with pilling

It’s a troublesome pilling, but you can keep wearing your favorite clothes beautifully with a little effort.

Here are some of the relatively simple ones.

・ Do not wear it continuously

No matter how much you like it, if you wear it over and over again, you will end up with a knit full of pills.

As I mentioned above, friction is the cause of pills, so please do not wear it continuously and be patient.

・ When washing in a washing machine, put it in a small net and turn it over to wash it.

I say it many times. Friction is NG. that’s not allowed. very.

So, to reduce friction, use a small net and turn it over, and add fabric softener in the hand-washing mode.

・ Don’t pluck it with your hands

It’s easy to pluck with your hands, but since the plucked area becomes fluffy, you can make pills again from there.

Please use Kosami to cut it carefully, or brush it to straighten the coat.

The above three points may be a little troublesome, but it is a technique to make your favorite clothes last longer, so

Please, try it.

summary

It’s finally cold, so I think there will be more opportunities to wear hair fiber sweaters.

In such a case, please try the contents introduced this time and make your favorite knit last longer.

Well then