Linen vs Flax
Linen is a natural fabric more ancient than cotton or wool. Originating in ancient Egypt, it has now reached all parts of the world and is considered to be organic and thus safe to be worn in all weather conditions, especially hot conditions, to provide comforts to body. Flax is a plant from which linen fabric is obtained though a lot of processing goes into making the fibers and later fabric. There are many who use the names flax and linen almost interchangeably whereas, they are two separate things though linen is a product obtained from the stem of the flax plant. This article intends to highlight the differences between flax and linen in a simple and easy manner.
Flax
Flax is an ancient, annual plant also referred as linseed. It dates back to 30000 BC and has been grown for thousands of years in many civilizations, for its seeds and stem from which fibers are extracted and used to make fabric. Sometimes the un-spun fibers of the plant are also called flax. Flax plant has many by-products ranging from fibers to medicines, gels, soap, fishnet, paper, dyes etc. The seeds of the flax plant called flaxseed are used to make edible oil called linseed oil. Flaxseed is known to be very rich in omega fatty acids that are considered to be very beneficial to health of human beings.
Linen
Linen is a natural fabric obtained from the fibers of the flax stem. These fibers undergo many processes to be converted finally into linen, which is used to make apparels, tablecloth, and bed sheets. Linen is soft, flexible and full of luster. It is considered to be more superior than cotton and a status symbol as it is very expensive. However, it is only the best quality flax fabric that goes into making apparels while the lower quality of linen is used to make ropes. Before the arrival of wool and cotton, linen fabric was the most important fabric. Even today, it is considered to be a royal fabric used only by rich people. Ancient Egyptians made heavy use of linen fabric, and it is only as late as 19th and 20th centuries that the western world has come to realize the superiority of linen over cotton.
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What is the difference between Linen and Flax? • Flax is a plant while linen is the fabric made from the fibers of the flax plant obtained from its stem. • Linen is just one of many by-products of the flax plant as other products are paper, dye, and fishnet, medicines, soap, and hair gels. • Flax fibers give linen that is considered to be a royal fabric much older than wool and cotton. • Line is tan in color, and it is bleached white before it can be easily dyed into other colors.
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