The growing and harvesting of cotton has largely been mechanized in modern times, but the processing from plant material to thread is still just as complex as ever. Cotton grows on a large scale only in very hot climates. The bolls (seed pods) pop open when the plant matures and a puff of cloud-like fibers filled with sticky seeds is released.
When the puffs of fibers allow themselves to be separated easily from the open pod, it is time to harvest. The fibrous clouds are picked, leaving the dried, open pod on the plant. The puffs of fiber are trucked to a cotton gin where the seeds are separated and in this era of mechanization, the now seed-free fiber is often directly spun into thread.
Cotton thread is extremely versatile and can be used in different sizes and also finished to give it a sheen that makes it appear polished. This is called "mercerizing." Mercerized cotton thread is a great favorite for use in garment construction and quilt-making. The word "mercerized" comes from its inventor, John Mercer, a cloth merchant (coincidentally, the word "mercer" comes from Middle English and means "cloth merchant"). Mr. Mercer was patentee of the process of making strong shiny cotton thread in 19th century England. The process treats spun cotton with caustic while the thread or fabric is under tension in order to increase its luster, its strength and its ability to absorb dye.
Cotton is the fabric of choice in all the warm climates especially. It is usually produced in densely woven plain weave (one over, one under) and then dyed in wax-resist techniques such as Indonesian batik, in tie-dye techniques as in Senegal, or in mechanized calico printing of the industrialized world. In this way, millions of yards of plain weave fabric can be produced, usually from bleached, mercerized cotton thread. Such lengths of bleached cotton plain weave with a high thread count per square inch is called "percale." Then it is ready to be decorated on the surface with any of the various methods of producing "prints."
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