Viscose: The Facts - Good and Bad

Sounds like some strange chemical doesn't it? Would you be surprised to learn that Viscose is sourced from nature?

Viscose comes most commonly from wood cellulose. For clothing manufacture, it's then treated to form yarn that is woven or knitted into textiles ready for cutting and sewing.

Most people assume that there are two kinds of fibres - natural ones, like cotton, wool and silk; and artificial ones synthesised out of petrochemicals like nylon and polyester.

Viscose is somewhere in between. The raw material for viscose is cellulose, which is broken down either mechanically or chemically and reformed as fibres. Trees are 50% cellulose, cotton is 90% cellulose, so viscose is more accurately described as a natural, or recovered, fibre.

Viscose takes its name from the intermediate viscous liquid of manufacture, which has the colour and fluidity of honey.

For many years man-made fibres were perceived to be inferior to natural ones because people associated the unpleasant wearing qualities of nylon with the structural problems of early rayons.

Nylon and polyester do not absorb water. Because sweat can then not evaporate they can be unpleasant and hot to wear. This is why nylon feels clammy. Garments made from 100% cotton, linen or even silk are more comfortable than nylon because your sweat is absorbed by the fabric, and then evaporates. It is this absorbency which makes Viscose so comfortable to wear. It breathes!

The drape and fall of a garment made from Viscose is better than cotton, which can lose its shape easily. It is softer than cotton, yet strong.

Viscose can be more difficult to dye than cotton but remains a less expensive, equally comfortable option that does not fully rely on the fluctuating prices of oil - at least  not like petrochemically sourced materials like rayon. Viscose also tends not to lose colour when washing, unlike cotton.

Viscose feels soft on the skin. Combined with lycra it gains more stretch and the ability to reform to its original shape.

Viscose does crease, but a little steam or an iron can fix that easily. Also, hanging on the line when wet or leaving it overnight to absorb the night-dew can reduce the wrinkles. It can bubble too, but usually only if mistreated. The advantages of using Viscose for garment manufacture far outweigh the disadvantages.

You may be surprised at how many Viscose garments you already have. To the untrained eye, it can be mistaken for cotton.