People often ask us about the material choices in SoxsolS and the significance of the choices. We arrived at our current selection through trial and error. We considered number of significant factors. Most significant to the wearer are typically durability and comfort. This led us to the use of French Terry.
Cotton
Cotton is a ubiquitous fiber used in a myriad of fabrics. People enjoy its soft and cool nature, and it is often used in light knits and weaves for warm and hot weather clothing and heavier fabrics for cooler weather.
Durability
One challenge with cotton is that compared to other materials (wool and synthetics) it’s fibers are typically somewhat shorter. The short fibers challenges making cotton fabrics durable. Textile manufacturers of cotton achieve durability with the fiber with several methods but one is twisting the fibers into a yarn and knitting those yarns together in a manner that leaves large tight loops. There are several fabrics that are knit in this manner and one of the most available fabrics is French Terry. It often used in sweatshirts, workout clothes and towels.
French terry is both
- Durable
- Absorbant
Durability
We mentioned, French terry is a knit and somewhat different than the familiar woven terrycloth used ubiquitously for towels. French Terry and a number similar knits are characterized by a type of knitting called “jersey fabric”. The large loops in French Terry are created in a “weft knit” pattern or creating interlocking loops across the fabrics width (or weft axis). The interlocked loops have a great deal of durability and create a strong structure that stands up to pressure and wear.
Absorbant
The loops created in this knit have a huge capacity for absorbance of moisture. In fact, the long loops of the terry enable to wick away moisture from the skin. Ultimately, French Terry can hold many, many times it weight in water.
Breathability
The architecture of this fabric also allows creation of fabrics of substantial thickness which is important for comfort. Even when it is squeezed tight by bearing pressure of a human standing on it, the thickness allows air in the layer of the fabric. This feature is valuable for comfort of the bottom of the foot.
This absorbency and durability makes the French Terry fabric very well suited for a under the foot pad like SoxsolS. The fabric takes the pressure of the balls of the feet with minimal wear and meanwhile absorbs the perspiration from the hundreds of thousands of sweat glands on the foots sole. The fabric absorbs the perspiration of the day, but maintains a most environment that the foot sole needs to maintain is sensitivity and tactility.