134 CLOTHES AND HOW THEY PROTECT US 



from a cocoon, but it is from 1000 to 4000 feet long. The silk 

 fibers are thin and fine, and usually those of six or more cocoons 

 are twisted together to make the silk threads used in weaving. 



Silk is a good conductor 

 of heat and is not practical 

 as clothing in cold weather ; 

 but it makes comfortable 

 dresses in mild tempera- 

 tures. Among the best 

 known silk fabrics are taf- 

 feta, foulard, moire, satin, 

 surah, and crepe de Chine. 

 The heavy silk fabrics can- 

 not be successfully washed, 

 but there are now many 

 "wash silks" which launder 

 beautifully. 



Mixed goods. Fabrics 

 are frequently made of two 

 or more different kinds of 

 fibers ; poplin, for example, 

 is a combination of wool 

 and silk ; farmer's satin, of 

 cotton and wool. Cotton 

 C, arti- is the cheapest and most 

 abundant fiber, and it is fre- 



which 'silk has been removed by hydro- quently used as the foun- 

 chloricacid. (Courtesy of Alma T.Waldie.) dationof mixed fabrics. The 



innumerable new and beautiful materials for clothing and house- 

 furnishing are made by new weaves of one kind of fiber or of two 

 or more kinds of fibers used in new proportions and groupings. 

 Fabrics of mixed fibers frequently serve our needs better than 

 those made of but a single kind of fiber; poplin, for example, 



FIG. 57. A, raw silk. B, tussah. 



ficial silk manufactured from wood fiber. 

 D, sample of mixed silk and cotton, from 



