What is Rayon? Characteristics of Rayon fabric

What is rayon?

Rayon is a fabric made of semi-synthetic fiber. This makes it a soft and comfortable fabric.
Because the fabric also has a luxurious appearance is it a widely used fabric in the Fashion industry. Because comfort and luxury turns out to be a desirable combination.

Benefits of rayon

The most important benefits of rayon are?

• The fabric is soft and thereby comfortable to wear
• The fabric has a beautiful, luxurious appearance
• The fabric absorbs moisture and water well and stays cool and airy in warm weather
• The fabric is wrinkle free
• The fabric retains its shape and color well.

‘Human’ by Linea Matei.

Disadvantages of rayon

There are a few disadvantages what you should keep in mind when you use rayon:

• The fabric shrinks quickly, so you have to be careful while you are washing
• The fabric gets less strong when it gets wet
• The fabric isn’t stretchable in itself
• The fabric is not sustainable

Tip: an environment friendly alternative of rayon is EcoVero.

How can you wash, dry and iron rayon?

Rayon shrinks quickly, so it is important to be careful with this fabric.

A few points of attention:

• Don’t wash the fabric too hot. Choose for a wool or silk wash program at a maximum of 30 degrees. But be aware, always check the label for the washing instructions!  Sometimes it is better to wash rayon by hand.
• Rayon can be tumble-dried, but not too hot. Otherwise, the fabric may shrink.
• You can iron rayon with a low temperature.

Using rayon for clothing

Because the fabric feels soft, has a luxurious appearance and is very absorbent, it is a much and lovely seen fabric in the Fashion industry.

The fabric is mainly used for tunics, skirts and dresses, but also for shirts, lingerie and children's clothing. The fabric also functions well as a lining material.

So you can go in all directions with rayon!

Printing Rayon fabric

Rayon is an very suitable fabric for printing. The fabric is known for retaining its color well.

Do you want your own design printed on rayon fabric? This is very easy at House of U: just by using your computer. You can upload your design in our design tool and have this printed on rayon fabric.

Look at our rayon fabrics on our website.

We have two kinds of rayon fabrics:

The fabric above is our Rayon Paris.

The fabric above is our Rayon Voile.

Do you want a personal advice about which fabric suits your design and / or application best? We are here for you. Contact us directly. This can be done via chat, e-mail or telephone.

Is rayon sustainable?

Rayon is semi- synthetic and therefore has both durable and less durable sides. The fabric is biodegradable and is made from renewable raw materials, namely cellulose from wood. Therefore the production of the rayon fabric does not contribute to the plastic soup. The production of viscose also costs less water than the production of cotton, for example. Rayon is also a strong fabric that lasts a long time.

However, there are also a few downsides to the rayon fabric in terms of durability. For example, many chemicals are used in the production of the fabric. Also, much of the wood used for rayon comes from endangered jungles.

Rayon fares better with these characteristics than, for example, silk, but there are certainly more sustainable alternatives, such as Tencel.

House of U: it’s up to you!

Do you want to know more about rayon of are you looking for the right alternative?

At House of U we like to take the sustainable lead. Discover the possibilities and experience how comfortable sustainable can be.

Read our other blogs or feel free to contact us for more information.