Naughtly Knots -- What to do when the yarn breaks..

We recently ran into a situation with one of our clients. They needed knots instead of 'splices' on the yarn we were to supply to them. I had seen the splicers at work many times, but never thought about their mechanics, so I had to dig up some information.
Basically, when the yarn breaks during the process of winding, it has to be connected again somehow, to maintain continuity in the cone. It can either be tied with knots, or spliced. Splicing is a process where you intermingle both ends in such a way that the joint formed in not very different from the actual yarn in appearance and strength. You can do it mechanically, electrostatically or pneumatically. Splicing is now the accepted method of joining yarn because of its close resemblance to the actual yarn, and acceptable strength.
Knots are different. There is a whole variety of them. They are thicker than the parent yarn, some more, some less. Their advantage is their strength. Our client needed this particular knot called the Weaver's Knot. It has the advantage of being less thick than other common knots. This results in it being less obvious, when weaved into a fabric. It is difficult to tie manually though. I was able to find a few automatic knotters (shown here on the right) which would make things easier for the spinners, and ensure quality in the end product.

Knots should have the following characteristics to be usable:
a. They should be easy to tie
b. They should have good resistance to slippage
c. They should be of a size and shape that gives little chance of catching or jamming in narrow openings i.e. every knot must support the full weaving stress as it makes the journey from warp beam to cloth fell.

You can find some other useful information regarding knots in this PDF file (you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader installed to view it which is available for free here).

All this knot talk has my brain in knots.. :-) so I'll sign off with the promise of bringing you something less knotted up :-) next time.

Bt Cotton -- Cotton going Hightech!

I talked about Organic cotton last time and how it eliminates pesticide use. I read about this different type of cotton today known as Bt Cotton. Bt is mistaken for Biotech. It actually stands for a certain soil bacterium known as Bacillus thuringiensis. This bacterium is special because its toxins cause harmful affects on certain common and problematic pests like the cotton bollworm (see photo).
However, it is harmless for humans, and most beneficial insects because it degrades quickly. I have studied genetic engineering in medicine and we came across a very similar situation where harmful effects of a virus or bacteria are genetically modified to be incorporated in a different environment to produce beneficial effects. This is exactly why this has interested me more than others. The genes from this bacterium is incorporated in cotton seeds. This results in the cotton plant producing the same toxin as the bacteria and results in excellent pest control without the need of pesticides. The Bt toxin contained by the Bt crops is no different from other chemical pesticides, but causes much less damage to the environment.
Use of Bt cotton has led to a 3%–27 increase in cotton yield in countries where it is grown. This is also because the Bt toxin works better than the pesticides because of lower resistance.
Click here to find how yields improved for the farmers using Bt cotton. This link shows how the use of Bt cotton in the US has been economically viable.
The effect on yield is of most importance in a country like Pakistan. The current year's crop fell short by around 2 million bales to stand at 12.5 million bales. The yield gain with Bt cotton could have partially covered for this loss.
Another surprising fact: Spray applications of Bt are one of the most important insect management tools in certified organic production of many fruit and vegetable crops. So does this means Bt is partly behind Organic cotton's success? :-)

The Organic Cotton Buzz.

The Organic Cotton buzz has been going on for quite some time now. A lot of people are interested and most of the people who ask for it barely know what it is. So I decided to do a little research and see whats behind 'Organic'.
The cotton industry is one of the biggest users of fertilizers and pesticides (more than 25% of the world, using only 3% of farmland!). One pound of pesticides and fertilizers are used to produce cotton that would make just 3 T-Shirts! So you can see how this would impact the environment.
Organic farming focuses on use of alternate methods for pest and weed control, soil enrichment, and other processing. Certification bodies like Control Union (SKAL) certify that the products are produced without the use of chemicals and fertilizers, by organic methods. They extend that certification further to the end products produced as well (eg. products dyed with organic dyes, because synthetic dyes are harmful chemicals too). This ensures that the consumer gets the benefits of using these products. Organic cotton is produced in various countries including Pakistan but the largest producer is Turkey. Please check this wonderful guide for more information including benefits, comparison with conventional cotton and other useful stuff.
Organic cotton is also blended with other fibers including Bamboo and conventional cotton.
And its not just about benefiting the environment, Organic products have a lot of direct benefits for us as well.
This detailed guide provides extensive information. Do go through it when you have free time :-)
And then there is Transitional Cotton and Green Cotton too! It is all about reducing the impact of harmful chemicals to the environment. We has a really big footprint on this planet and we need to re-evaluate our impact. "Organic" is not just a label or a certification, it is an idea and a vision, and a fast growing one too. Big Brands like Nike have already caught on and started converting to Organic products. Smaller ones are likely to follow. In the near future, expect a good proportion of your wardrobe to be Organic :-)