What is burlap fabric and what can be sewn from it

Rogozhka is a dense fabric made from natural fibers. It can also be mixed with artificial threads.

From history

In peasant households, a piece of rough material made from cattail leaves was called a mat. Mats were widely used in peasant life. Mats were used as brushes for washing floors, as paintbrushes, and they were used to whitewash the walls of houses. They were used as mats, as fishing mats, as a covering for hut roofs, for carts, for huts. At that time, there were no special hardware stores, so woven mats were used everywhere and were universal.

What is a mat?

These two qualities - versatility and a special checkerboard weave - were inherited by the "rogozhka" fabric. This material gained a second wind and began to be produced on an industrial scale, thanks to the famous fashion designer Coco Chanel.

History of the appearance of the matting fabric

In the twenties of the 20th century, Coco Chanel was deeply distressed by the sudden death of her beloved man Arthur Capel in a car accident. Russians helped her to get out of a protracted depressive state. She met S.P. Diaghilev, the organizer of the "Russian Seasons" and Stravinsky I.F., the composer. The Russian diaspora introduced Coco to Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich Romanov, a cousin of Emperor Nicholas II. Their romance developed fruitfully.

The Grand Duke introduced her to perfumer Ernest Beaux, and their collaboration resulted in the creation of the famous perfume Chanel No. 5. Coco herself became fascinated with the Russian theme and especially with textured weave fabrics such as burlap and matting.

This is how the “rogozhka” fabric was created, which is often called “Chanel” fabric.

Description and types of fabric

It has different density, from medium to high. It is used for furniture upholstery, home interiors and sewing clothes. It has a characteristic shine inherent in natural threads.

• These additives significantly increase the consumer properties of the material; it does not wrinkle, does not deform, and holds its shape well.
• It can be recognized by its textured relief structure, very similar to burlap.
• Combinations of natural fibers give the matting a shine, allow air to pass through, and matting products are not hot in the heat.
• Triple interweaving of threads makes the material durable and wear-resistant.
• Rogozhka is an environmentally friendly material, does not cause allergies, has antibacterial properties, and does not absorb odor.
• The products are easy to wash and do not need to be ironed because they do not wrinkle.
• Fashion designers and costume designers appreciated the low price and low-maintenance properties of the material; among fabrics for stage costumes, burlap has no equal.

How to determine that this is a mat

• First of all, it is characterized by a checkerboard weave, like burlap.
• The color is always solid, without patterns.
• The color palette varies, usually in natural shades.
• The matting does not wrinkle if you crumple the material in your hands.
• The material is stretchy, which makes it elastic.
• Chanel is quite loose, you can tell by touch.

What is the matting used for?

What is sewn from the material? Clothes for people and for furniture. Clothes for windows. Home textiles and tablecloths are sewn from burlap. Since this fabric goes well with other materials, it is actively used for decoration.

Fabric for furniture: advantages and disadvantages

The furniture industry widely uses the fabric for upholstery of furniture, burlap. It is original, it is beautiful, it is practical.

• Furniture upholstered with matting fits into any style and interior direction.
• Due to its naturalness, it goes well with wood, leather, metal and other materials.
• Very durable, difficult to tear.
• The material does not deform, wrinkle, stretch or shrink.
• Non-allergenic, even blended fabrics are harmless, since the proportion of synthetic fibers in them is minimal.
• It is easy to care for such furniture with such fabric.

Flaws:

• Loose fiber. For patterns, it is better to make large seam allowances and process the parts, each one separately.

• If you need to reupholster a sofa, armchair, pouf, couch or chair, then in many ways the matting fabric is universal and irreplaceable.

Curtains in the interior

Rogozhka is actively used in window decoration due to its advantages:

• It is capable of retaining heat in the room.
• It has fire-resistant properties.
• Dense fabric that does not allow sunlight or dust to pass through.
• But at the same time, the density of the matting does not affect its heaviness; it is soft and drapes well.
• It has good insulation from street noise.
• The matting material does not cause allergic reactions.
• The use of natural fibers in the production of fabric creates an attractive appearance.

A distinctive feature of curtains made of matting is their solid color, which adds style to the room and creates a feeling of isolation from the world.

The choice of materials for curtains should be made based on the density of the fabric, and therefore the ability to transmit light, fire resistance, and ease of cleaning the fabric. It is easy to wash and does not wrinkle.

Curtains are used not only indoors. With special protection from moisture, curtains are actively used in outdoor gazebos and houses, on verandas. Does not fade, is not afraid of moisture, serves for a long time and has an attractive appearance, protects from wind and noise.

Cloth

Thanks to fashion designer Coco Chanel, the material entered the world of fashion and clothing production.

Coco Chanel loved this fabric because it holds its shape, drapes easily and doesn't wrinkle. What else do modern women need in urban conditions?

For outerwear - coats, cardigans, jackets, a mat made of linen, wool fibers with acrylic or nylon is suitable. This type reflects moisture well, fits the figure perfectly.

Wool and linen matting is also suitable for suits, but of lower density. Cotton and linen are used for bed linen, towels, tablecloths. Materials for clothing and home textiles are more varied in color, prints are actively used here.

What can be sewn? For modern women, because it does not wrinkle or lose shape, it is a very suitable material for trousers and trouser suits, for dresses and skirts, for jackets and especially for Chanel-style jackets, because thanks to Coco Chanel, both these jackets and this fabric appeared.

For clothing, it is diverse, first of all, in density, in texture, in dressing. Designers and fashion designers around the world continue to experiment with the properties of the fabric and with clothing models made from it.

Home textiles

The material is also actively used in everyday life and in the interior of the house. It is used to make tablecloths, napkins, bedspreads, blankets, towels, pillowcases, furniture covers, and various decorative elements.

For the home direction, fibers from flax and cotton are used, which provides a variety of finishes, density, and appearance of the material.

Due to the fact that it does not wrinkle, holds its shape, is hypoallergenic and does not absorb odors, this material is increasingly used for household products.

Care instructions

Quite a simple fabric to use. Easy to wash, no need to iron, it is a crease-resistant fabric. But if there is an urgent need to iron the product, it is best to use gauze and iron from the inside.

Furniture fabric and curtains can be cleaned with a vacuum cleaner and a soft clothes brush. If the fabric is dirty, it is moistened and wiped with a sponge and soap solution. The matting does not tolerate aggressive bleaches with chlorine, its color changes.

Furniture upholstered with burlap tolerates dry cleaning well. It tolerates steam cleaning well.

Prices for burlap fabric

The price varies depending on where the fabric will be used. Ivanovo prints on matting can be bought from 120 rubles per meter if ordered in an online store. Furniture matting is more expensive, starting from 800 rubles. But the width of such material is greater, and the composition of the fibers is different.

The price directly depends on the composition, density of the material, dressing and appearance. When ordering any type, you need to clearly know for what purposes this fabric will be intended. For clothing, a fabric of lower density is required, but with an interesting decor. For furniture, a denser fabric is required, possibly with impregnation. This means that the material will be more expensive.

Coco Chanel experimented with different fabrics, why not continue the exciting search for new forms and possibilities with burlap?

Reviews

Marina Frolova from Kirov writes that she did not know that there was clothing made of burlap. She thought it was only furniture. "I would like to add that burlap is very practical. We have a sofa with burlap upholstery, it is more than five years old, and it has practically not changed."

Natalya Mikhailova from Tolyatti: “We were looking for Russian-style fabric in stores for theatrical costumes. Corduroy is expensive and wrinkles. The find was the matting fabric. It looks like natural fabrics and is easy to sew. Combined with colored poplin inserts, the costumes turned out stylish. And they don’t wrinkle! Now we only buy matting for Russian-style costumes.”

From all of the above, we can conclude that this type of material is very practical, easy to care for and widely used.