Category: Insights

Tricot – the history

The world Tricot comes from the French Language. It means knit, in fact it is used  to cover everything related to the knitting process in order to create a fabric. Its origins of tricot seems to go back to the IV century a.c. where in  ancient Greece a fabric very similar to modern tricot was used to make ceremonial dresses.

The Modern Era

With coming of the industrial revolution in the middle of the 800’s, machines were built, doing work that before it was possible to do only by hand. The knitted fabric once hand made with the classic iron needles, now was produced by flat knitting machines which were hand operated. (see picture)

Subsequently with the second industrial revolution, the driving force changed from hand power to  steam and then finally electricity. Conceptually, the tricot machines remained the same, with the same working concept, but the productive capacity increased considerably. In fact, in order keep up with the new requests from an evergrowing market the production volume was significanty increased. Nowdays, most of the mechanical parts of the flat knitting machine, have been substituted with electronics, following modern tendencies and  using new Technologies. This allows for a larger variety of designs also more precision.

 

Above all one of the best charteristics of the flat knitting machine is the possibility to change pattern mid production; consequently, the wristbands and waistband are ribbed and exactly as in the jumpers there are no seams, this makes our tricot garments more comfortable and luxurious.

Charateristics of tricot

Furthermore, this type of knitting has a very good elasticity also body, when Merino wool is used, the fabric become soft and heavy, giving a great protection against the cold.

Some of our tricot products

Crew neck short sleeves

Crew neck long sleeves

Longjohns

More Info

Wikipedia

 

 

Care of wool

The care of wool, especially Merino is very important, due to it’s well known charateristics it is considered a very luxurious product; this chart will show you how to avoid damage due to washing.

Above all, it’s very important to use warm water and liquid detergents, for the reason that powdered ones can cause holes where the powder gets in contact with the wool. Fill a bowl with warm water (30° celsius) and add a bit of neutral soap or the one specificly for the wool, then soak the garment for aprox. 10/15 mins. After that, take the garment out of the water without wringing and rinse it very carefully in warm water. Finally, the last rinse must be done with cold water so that the wool doesn’t felt. Furthermore for the correct care of wool it is very important to always wash the garments insideout. The garment must be dried flat to avoid deforming and left to dry away from direct sunlight, most importantly we strongly advise that you don’t dry the wool over heaters or with a direct heat source.

In case of mistakes during washing, for instance wrong temperature or wrong machine cycle, the result will be a felted garment. To try to fix this problem, here are some tips on how to prepare a home made antifelting solution made with natural ingredients. Adding this preparation to the water will help the recovery of damaged wool.

Ingredients:

Sodium bicarbonate

Milk

Citric acid

Sodium bicarbonate fot the care of wool

The first method consists of adding a spoon of sodium bicarbonate to the washing water which must be warm. Sodium bicarbonate will protect our woollen garments and make them soft; in case of felted garments it’s possible to use sodium bicarbonate to try to unfelt the wool, just put two spoonfuls in a bowl with warm water and soak the garment for two hours. Finally it is very important that you always rinse the wool with the same water temperature.

Milk for the care of wool

Method two; it sounds strange, but milk is an excellent natural anti felter, furthermore it is very cheap and easy to find. Just add half a glass of milk directly to the washing water and leave the wool to soak for 10/15 mins. In the case of felted garments, we recommend  adding more milk aprox 30% of the washing water and extending the soaking time to a few hours.

 Citric Acid for the care of wool

Finally ,method three,  the last of our anti felting ingredients  citric acid,which you can find in all shops selling natural or herbal produts and also most chemists; similarly add this product to warm water when hand washing and then follow the same procedures as explained above in methods one and two.

 Advice

Furthermore it is possible to mix the three products and keep ready for use; a particularly good result can be obtained when you mix sodium bicarbonate and citric acid; just mix two parts of sodium bicarbonate to one part of citric acid. Store in a glass jar in a dry place. If you prefer a liquid, dissolve one spoonful of citric acid in a glass containing equal amounts of milk and water; likewise this solution can be stored in a bottle, but in this case there are no problems with humidity.

Some of our products made in wool

Narrow strap vest

Crew neck short sleeves

Longjohns

More info

Article

Size guide – choose your size

Discover your size following this simple size guide

Men’s  size guide

How to measure correctly.

To find your correct size, take the mesurements wearing only underwear or better still naked, wearing garments can affect the accuracy of the measurements.

Attention

The measurements must be taken in centimeters and the tape measure has to be kept tight, above all, if you don’t follow these simple rules you can get imprecise measurements; this chart refers to only regular sizes for all others, please contact us direct.

Mesaurments for vests and t-shirts

Chest circumference (1)

To take a correct chest measurement it is very important to stand with the back in a straight position and the tape  measure should pass across the nipples. (see n. 1)

Waist (2)

measure the waist circumference directly under the ribs (see n.2)

International   Size   Chest in cm    Waist in cm

XS                                                              44                            86/89                        76

S                                                                  46                            90/93                        80

M                                                                48                            94/97                         84

L                                                                  50                           98/101                       88

XL                                                               52                           102/106                     92

XXL                                                            54                           107/109                      98

3XL                                                            56                           110/113                      104

4XL                                                            58                           114/117                      110

5XL                                                            60                           118/121                      116

 

Measurements for briefs and boxers

The size and fitting can vary depending on the product, the brand and the design; the waist measurement should be taken just above your belly button, at the widest point. Stand in a relaxed position and breathe out.

 Size guide

International  Size       Waist in cm

XS                                                              1°                             80/84

S                                                                 2°                             85/89

M                                                                3°                            90/94

L                                                                 4°                            95/99

XL                                                              5°                           100/104

XXL                                                           6°                           105/109

3XL                                                            7°                           110/114

4XL                                                            8°                          115/119

5XL                                                            9°                           120/124

 

Some of our products

Crew neck short sleeves

Boxers

Briefs

Attention!

If you have any doubts about choosing the correct size do not hesitate to contact us directly . Here you will find people happy to advise you. With a few simple questions our staff can identify the size most suitable for you.

Made to measure service.

Our company produces all the garments in house, due to this we can produce made to measure products on demand; for information and price quotation please contact us at :

Mail : info@viscontidiangera.com.com

Phone + 39 0331 960200

More info

Wikipedia

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maintenance and care of silk

Care of silk is a very important because it is a very resistent fiber but is also quite delicate. Dry clean or hand wash is strongly recommended, but it’s also possible to machine wash, using a delicate cycle (max 30° Celsius). It’s a good idea to use neutral soap and never powder detergergent, bleach, any ammonia or whitener

The process

For hand washing we suggest to soak the silk for 5 mins in warm water; if the silk garment is coloured, it must be rinsed quickly adding a bit of vinegar to the water will give more brightness to the colour. For White silk garments, add some hydrogen peroxide when rinsing; move the silk garment carefully, without twisting and rinse using cold water, most importantly, dry the garment flat without exposing the silk to direct sunlight, so you can avoid staining and fading. Above all we suggest to iron the silk garments when they are still damp, placing a cloth inbetween the garment and the iron, will ensure no steam stains.

Special tips for the care of silk

If machine washing, the drums must be perfect without burrs to avoid pulling threads and ruining the silk, likewise washing bins must be very smooth. (see picture)

Another aspect to consider is that wet silk has the tendency to surface abrasion; rubbing  causes pilling with the formation of fluff   that reults in a loss of brightness, for this reason, it is strongly disadvised to tumble dry when the silk is damp. These problems do not occur when dry cleaning, for the reason that during this process the silk doesn’t become wet.

Silk electrostatic charges

Finally, some silk products can have electrostatic charges, a solution doesn’t exist, but certainly the use of a softner can reduce the problem.

 

Some of our products made in silk

Wide strap vest

Crew neck short sleeves

V – neck long sleeves

Briefs

Longjohns

More info

Silk care article

Care of cotton

Here are the best suggestions for the care of Lisle cotton yarn in order to avoid shrinkage or damaging the garments; there are different way to wash the garments without the risk of ruining them.

How to proceed

First of all, it is possible to machine wash on the delicate cycle, (with a low temperature max.30°); the program must have the short rinse cycle also reduced spinning time; it is strongly advised to turn the garments inside out and put them in a proper washing bag before placing into the machine.

Above all we strongly recommend the use of a liquid detergent for delicate garments with the softner.

Furthermore, we woud advise that the garments are hand washed for the first two washes using warm water of about 30°; above all, we recommend that you follow the washing instructions which you will find on the label sewn inside the garment; finally we suggest that the garments are divided before washing into light and dark colours.

Special tips for the care of cotton

In the case of very dirty garments it is a good idea to rub them with a bar of Marseille soap (see picture ) before you put them into the washing machine; this is a very good remedy for most stains and above all for the stubbon marks.

Above all Liquid detergent is advised as it has the advantage of  dissolving very quickly in the water, as a result avoiding staining.

Attention!!!

Bleach should only be used on white garments; regarding coloured garments it is necessary to check the colour resistence; our garments do not have this problem because they are made in house using coloured thread. Should the garments stretch during washing, it is possible to recover the shape by placing them in cold water.

Drying the cotton

Above all, dry far away from direct heat and sunlight, also turn the garments inside out.

Our products made in lisle cotton yarn

Narrow strap vest

Crew neck short sleeves

Boxers

Briefs

More info

Article one

Article two

Lisle cotton yarn – the history

Lisle cotton yarn is made with the best Egyptian Makò cotton, and treated with a double mercerising process.

It was created close to the Scottish Lowlands in a company named Coats. Since the second half of the 1800’s this thread was widely recognised as the best quality thread produced by Coats. Its original name was “Scottish crochet thread”.

 

(Lowlands)

The origins of Lisle cotton yarn

Makò cotton comes from Northern Egypt, it is a long stape cotton, in fact, the length of the stape is between 30 and  34 mm. Due to its charateristics, it is used to produce the highest quality cotton thread. The name Makò comes from the area in Egypt where it is grown (see picture). It was discovered around the 1820  by a Frenchman named Louis Alexis Jumel in the Egyptian governor’s Mello Bey garden, here there were plants which  the governor had imported from Ethiopia and in a short time it was commercialised and used Worldwide.

The boll has a charateristic light pink colour and the stape length is around 31 to 38 mm, furthermore the fineness of the fiber is around 12 to 14 micron. There are different qualities of long stape Makò: Giza 86, Giza 89 and Giza 90. Even more, there are other luxurious varieties which  have a superior fiber length  (extra long stape) where the fibers are longer than 33 mm. Above all, in this type of cotton, there are some that are exceptional, for example Giza 45, Giza 70, Giza87 and Giza 88. Most noteworthy is Giza 45, it has a very soft, silky hand and is  used to produce the best quality thread.

(Giza 45)

Some of our products made in Lisle cotton yarn

Narrow strap vest

Sleeveless crew neck

V neck short sleeve

Briefs

Boxers 

Pyjamas

Insights

 Wikipedia

Singed cotton

 

Mercerise

This process, (mercerise) was invented and copyrighted in 1851 by the English chemist John Mercer who gave his name to this treatment.

(John Mercer)

First of all it is necessary to whiten and improve the quality of the raw cotton by adding sodium hydroxide at a temperature of 10° (Celsius) and with a concentration of 30° (Baumè). Sodium hydroxide (see picture) is melted in water and this solution transforms the molecular structure of  the raw material giving it more softness. This type of treatment is use to give maximum brightness to the thread and consequently the final fabric. While in the case of colouredthread, the final result on the fabric will be a better intensity and stability of the colour. Furthermore mercerising improves the dimentional stability and also increases the tearing resistence.

Results of mercerise

Singed cotton

Singed cotton is the result of an industrial procedure where the cotton thread is passed through a flame to eliminate all the excess fluff.

Process

The cotton thread is passed very fast over a flame that burns off the external fluff; above all, the speed by which the thread passes over the flame is very important,  it must not be burnt and furthermore no residue can be left on the fiber of singed cotton.

The machine that does this process uses natural gas for the flames for the reason that natural gas does not leave any residue on the fibers. Alessandro Volta in 1776 discovered and studied the natural gas or so said methane, exactly here in Angera while he was a guest of the inventor Teresa Ciceri Castiglioni. Walking alongside the shore of the lake,  he saw some bubbles coming up from the bottom of the lake, and collected them in a bottle. He subsequently discovered that you can light this gas with a candle or an electric spark and the flame burns at the temperature of 600°

(A. Volta)

Singed cotton – Results

The resulting thread is more uniform, (see picture) also fresher and more luminous; eliminating the fluff, makes the cotton drier and consequently fresher; this process is done before the mercerising, therefore the final result is even better.

Singeing is done on high quality cotton only, with long fibers, as a preparation for all the subsequent processes that will transform it from its original form ( egyptian Makò cotton) into the finished product Lisle Cotton Yarn; at the end of this operation, about 6/7 % of the initial weight will have been lost, this is necessary to guarantee the excellence of the product.

Some of our singed cotton products

Narrow strap vest

V – neck short sleeves

Briefs

Boxers

Pyjamas

 

More info

Wikipedia

Ribbed fabric

The Ribbed fabric was created to give volume and elasticity, hence we can realise very comfortable garments. This fabric can be made using different fibers, Visconti di Angera uses only the best quality; such as: Lisle Cotton Yarn, cashmere and silk,  merino wool, wool and silk and pure silk

Charateristics of ribbed fabric

The main strenghts of this fabric are elasticity and also complete stability. Due to this particular production process, where the horizontal and the vertical needles work together, the fabric is absolutely stable. Consequently, these charateristics, make this fabric ideal for underwear with a perfect fit and no constrictions. Furthermore, in order to make our garments even more comfortable, we produce them without any side seams; for this reason, we need circular machines with different diameters, hence, we have one machine for each size.

Knitting

Ribbed fabric is made by circular machines in which  the Needles both  vertical and horizontal work alternatively. The thread makes a kind of  continuos ” 8 ” shape that generates the ribs. As a result this particular fabric has a natural elasticity.

Once completed, the ribbed fabric has to be ironed with a particular machine. This machine has a vibrating belt, the fabric is passed over this whilst simultaneosly being steamed. Consequently it shrinks and stabilizes; finally, the fabric is folded and left to rest for several weeks, as a result the shrinking problems are reduced to a minimum.

Results

This fabric is very elastic, voluminous and above all breathable, consequently, this fabric is ideal for all wool based products where softness and fit are certainly improved. Due to its constructive charateristics, a lot of air is trapped inbetween the fibers, hence it is absorbent and above all has maximum insulation.

Our Ribbed fabric products

Narrow strap vest

Wide strap vest

Crew neck short sleeve

Longjohns

More info

Wikipedia

 

 

 

Jersey – the history

At the end of 1800, “jersey” was a knitted fabric, very heavy, used by the fishermen from the british Island of Jersey, from which comes its name.

Later, it trasformed into plain knitted fabric, simple, unribbed, light, soft and with natural elasticity. Due to these qualities Jersey became widely used in many different fields of clothing. Because of its simplicity and lightness is ideal to tailor garments. It was thanks to Coco Chanel , who used the fabric for her designs, consequently Jersey became fashionable

 

(Coco Chanel)

Jersey – the Knitting

This fabric is produced with circular machines for a single knit, these machines work with cyclindrical vertical needles. Each feed point creates a bit of fabric, to give an idea of its structure, we can consider Jersey as a spiral fabric. Therefore, Jersey is a very compact fabric, smooth on the outside whilst the inside is slightly rough.

The charateristics of jersey

Jersey, is stable in length and elastic in width and can be produced with every knitting thread: the most used are: cotton, wool and viscose; due to its spiral structure,it has a natural tendency to twist especially if you use low quality cotton thread, this is because the thread twist combines with the twist of the production.

Solutions

Understanding this problem, Visconti di Angera, uses only double twisted cotton threads; our thread is made by two single threads with opposite twists, one twists left in contrast the other twists right. The outcome is that the thread has almost no twist and the mercerising process, adds more stability; even more to reduce the twist in the fabric, we use a circular machine with 30 feeding points, it is a slower production but the result is a very stable fabric compared to the modern 90 feeding points machines. Furthermore with the aim to produce a stable fabric, we ri-mercerise the fabric itself; finally the fabric is left to rest for several weeks before it is used.

Production

As a result we produce very fresh and light  garments with maximum dimentional stability.

Our products in this fabric

Wide strap vest

Sleeveless V neck

Crew neck short sleeves

Briefs

Boxer 

Pyjamas

More info

Wikipedia