Editing Textile arts (section)

== History of plant use in textile arts ==
Natural fibers have been an important aspect of human society since 7000 B.C.,<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last1=kozłowski|first1=R.M.|last2=Mackiewicz-Talarczyk|first2=M.|pages=1–8|doi=10.1533/9780857095503.1|title = Handbook of Natural Fibres|year = 2012|isbn = 9781845696979|s2cid=111000384 }}</ref> and it is suspected that they were first used in ornamental cloths since 400 B.C. in India where [[cotton]] was first grown.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title=The textile arts, a handbook of fabric structure and design processes:ancient and modern weaving, braiding, printing, and other textile techniques.|last=Birrell|first=Verla Leone|series=Harper's home economics series |date=1959|publisher=Harper & Brothers, Publishers|location=New York|hdl = 2027/mdp.39015006754272}}</ref> Natural fibers have been used for the past 4000 to 5000 years to make cloth, and plant and animal fibers were the only way that clothing and fabrics could be created up until 1885 when the first [[synthetic fiber]] was made.<ref name=":0" /> Cotton and [[flax]] are two of the most common natural fibers that are used today, but historically natural fibers were made of most parts of the plant, including bark, stem, leaf, fruit, seed hairs, and sap.<ref name=":1" />

=== Flax ===
[[File:Mummy Cloth Fragment MET 43868.jpg|thumb|Linen (flax) cloth that was used in mummification.]]
Flax is believed to be the oldest fiber that was used to create textiles, as it was found in the tombs of mummies from as early as 6500 B.C.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last1=Maier|first1=Ursula|last2=Schlichtherle|first2=Helmut|date=November 1, 2011|title=Flax cultivation and textile production in Neolithic wetland settlements on Lake Constance and in Upper Swabia (south-west Germany)|journal=Vegetation History and Archaeobotany|language=en|volume=20|issue=6|pages=567–578|doi=10.1007/s00334-011-0300-8|s2cid=129757770 |issn=0939-6314}}</ref> The fibers from the flax are taken from the filaments in the stem of the plant, spun together to create long strands, and then woven into long pieces of linen that were used from anything from bandages to clothing and tapestries.<ref name=":2" /> Each fiber's length depends on the height of the leaf that it is serving, with 10 filaments in a bundle serving each leaf on the plant. Each filament is the same thickness, giving it a consistency that is ideal for spinning yarn.<ref name=":0" /> The yarn was best used on warping boards or warping reels to create large pieces of cloth that could be dyed and woven into different patterns to create elaborate tapestries and embroideries.<ref name=":1" />  One example of how linen was used is in the picture of a bandage that a mummy was wrapped in, dated between 305 and 30 B.C. Some of the bandages were painted with hieroglyphs if the person being buried was of importance to the community.

=== Cotton ===
[[File:Fustat Indian.jpg|thumb|Cotton tapestry that was woven into an intricate pattern in India]]
Cotton was first used in 5000 B.C. in India and the Middle East, and spread to Europe after they invaded India in 327 B.C. The manufacture and production of cotton spread rapidly in the 18th century, and it quickly became one of the most important textile fibers because of its comfort, durability, and absorbency.<ref name=":0" /> Cotton fibers are seed hairs formed in a capsule that grows after the plant flowers. The fibers complete their growth cycle and burst to release about 30 seeds that each have between 200 and 7000 seed hairs that are between 22 and 50 millimeters long. About 90% of the seed hairs are cellulose, with the other 10% being wax, pectate, protein, and other minerals.<ref name=":0" /> Once it is processed, cotton can be spun into yarn of various thicknesses to be woven or knitted into various different products such as velvet, chambray, corduroy, jersey, flannel, and velour that can be used in clothing tapestries, rugs, and drapes, as shown in the image of the cotton tapestry that was woven in India.<ref name=":1" />