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When you think of quality, tailor-made shirts, you think of good, top-notch cotton. Not Nylon or Polyester, not even a mixture – but pure, 100% cotton, thank you very much.

Nowadays we know where cotton comes from, and most of us will know how it’s produced. But take a look at the history of cotton and you’ll realize that people haven’t always been quite so savvy about its origins.

Cast your minds back to the late medieval period, when cotton became known as an imported fibre in northern Europe. Most people had no knowledge of how it was derived, only that it was a plant that came from far away and somehow ended up as a piece of cloth, or indeed a lovely, tailor-made shirt.

People did, however, notice cotton’s likeness to wool, and very amusingly deduced that, of course, it must come from plant-borne sheep. Now, I don’t know about you, but the image of a lamb stuck helplessly on the end of a branch is really quite amusing. It’s hard to believe that anyone could ever think such a phenomenon was possible.

Nevertheless, the belief was so strong that many European names for cotton are derived from the misunderstanding. For example, the German word for cotton Baumwolle, translates as “tree wool”.

We now know that cotton isn’t sheep related at all, but is in fact the produce of the cotton plant. Its flowers turn from a milky white, to a dark red, and once they have died and fallen off, they reveal a luxuriously soft and fluffy ‘boll’. Interestingly, because the boll has seeds within it, it is considered to be a fruit, but I doubt it’s going to take the place of oranges in anyone’s five-a-day.

Despite its bizarre place in the imagination of the public, cotton became one of the most sought after materials in Europe. Its soft, light quality made it perfect for the discerning man’s clothing, and soon developed into the most popular fabric for top-quality men’s shirts.

Thus, the fashion trade boomed, and places like Jermyn Street in London became world-renowned for its high quality cotton shirts, all tailor-made to perfection for the elite, fashionable gentleman.

Over time certain cotton mills became the leading companies in the international textile industry. The Tessitura Monti mill, established one hundred years ago, is one of them, and continues to supply cotton fabrics to the leading UK shirtmakers, Curtis & Dyer included. A hand-made shirt deserves nothing less than simple, elegant, natural and innovative fabrics, and these mills have hundreds of years experience in producing just that.

Nowadays cotton is used for much more than shirts. You’ll find it in the sofa you’re sitting on, and even the light shade above your head. Your blinds, curtains, and book bindings will most likely contain the stuff, as will fishnets, coffee filters, tents, and, strangely, gunpowder.

So, as you can see, it’s just as hard to imagine a world without cotton, as it is to imagine a sheep-plant. It’s developed a reputation as a highly sought after, high-quality fabric, and will continue to be used to dress the high and mighty in gorgeous, cotton-rich, tailor-made shirts.

Article written by www.curtisanddyer.co.uk bespoke shirtmakers.

Alex Smith providing Bespoke shirts,Jermyn Street,Cotton Shirts,Tailor Made Shirts,Long Sleeve Shirts