The difference between ramie fabric and linen fabric

What is ramie?
Ramie is mainly produced in China, originated in southwest China, as a perennial herb, is one of the important fiber crops in ancient China, especially before cotton was introduced into China, known as “Chinese grass” and “Chinese treasure”!
It has a long history of use, only slightly later than flax. In the Neolithic age, they were already cultivated in some places along the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Ramie cloth and twine dating back more than 4,700 years have been unearthed from Qianshanyang Neolithic site in Huzhou, Zhejiang Province. Now the main production areas are Hunan, Hubei and other places

Ramie fiber is a primary bast fiber. Compared with cotton fiber, ramie fiber has the characteristics of high Young’s modulus, large polymerization degree and large single fiber strength.
The fiber is long, several times longer than the fiber length of cotton;
The strength of ramie fiber is more than 7 times that of cotton.
High water absorption and dehumidification efficiency;
Small extensibility, light, about 20% lighter than cotton;
Not afraid of worms, not afraid of mold.

The production of ramie fabric consists of 12 manual processes, including planting, soaking, peeling, rinsing (sun and night drying), spinning, threading, twisting, carding, paddling and weaving.
Ramie fabric can be divided into two categories: hand-made and woven. Handmade ramie cloth is commonly known as xia cloth, because of its uneven quality, it is used as mosquito net, linen lining, lining material; The quality and appearance of woven ramie cloth are better than that of hand-made summer cloth, the cloth surface is tight and smooth, uniform and smooth, after bleaching or dyeing can be made into a variety of clothing.
Ramie fabric is characterized by air permeability and cool, which is mainly due to the large void in its structure, so it is very breathable;
Compared with cotton fabric of the same specification, ramie fabric has obvious advantages in air permeability, moisture dispersion and stiffness.
However, the structural characteristics of ramie fiber make it easy to produce itching when it is in contact with the skin during wearing, and the ramie product can be modified to avoid this.

What is linen?
Flax is a phloem fiber crop and oil crop. It is an annual herb. It originated in the Near East and the Mediterranean coast. As early as 5,000 years ago in the Neolithic Age, the Swiss lakeside residents and ancient Egyptians planted flax and spun clothes with its fiber, which is the earliest fiber used by humans. Oil-based flax has been cultivated in China for at least 1,000 years. Fiber flax was introduced into China from Japan in 1906, mainly distributed in Heilongjiang, Jilin and Xinjiang regions!

The strength of flax fiber is 1.5 times that of cotton fiber and 1.6 times that of silk. At the same time, it has the unique advantages of strong moisture absorption, fast heat dissipation, friction resistance, high temperature resistance, non-flammable, high tearing fastness, low electrical conductivity, low dust absorption rate, antibacterial health care and so on. It is suitable for making high-end clothing materials.
 wear-resistant, high temperature resistant, non-flammable, can also make aircraft wing cloth, military cloth, fire, aerospace, medical and health care clothing and canvas, hose, indoor decorative cloth and craft embroidery, etc.
Tough and wear-resistant, not easy to rot in water, mostly used for making ropes, fishing nets and so on. Can also be used for textile, woven fabric straight and cool; Can also make cold mat
Flax scraps and flax scraps also have high utilization value. The processed short fiber can be blended with wool, silk, cotton, chemical fiber, etc., and can also be spun pure hemp yarn. Flax is an excellent raw material for making artificial sheets or high-grade paper
Similarities and differences between ramie and flax
The difference between flax and ramie:
The appearance of ramie fabric has obvious angular folds, and the folds of linen fabric are more natural and will gradually unfold;
The structure of ramie fabric is very loose, and there is a large gap between the warp and the weft of the fabric. The fabric structure of linen is very full and has good drape.
When exposed to water, ramie products harden, while flax products are very soft
Similarities between flax and ramie:
Both ramie and flax belong to bast fiber crops. They have some common characteristics and are very similar in morphology.
The fiber of ramie is thicker than that of flax, so the cloth of ramie is stronger and more breathable than linen, while flax is more delicate, soft and drape than ramie.
Ramie and flax are traditional textile materials, which have the characteristics of strong air permeability, moisture absorption, corrosion resistance and natural antibacterial, and are excellent fabrics for summer clothing.
Flax, known as the “fiber queen”, has the characteristics of strong wear resistance; Flax can absorb ultraviolet rays, but it will change color after long exposure to the sun. Can be machine washed, but do not dehydrate, otherwise wrinkles difficult to iron;
Ramie is the longest and thinnest kind of hemp fiber, which has the characteristics of air permeability, moisture absorption, anti-bacteria and anti-static. It is the “king of natural fibers”.
As for ramie and flax, in addition to pure spinning, it can also be blended with a variety of natural or chemical fibers to make fabrics with more properties and suitable for a variety of different clothing requirements!