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  • Kurabo’s New Kantanmen Super Soft Wrinkle And Shrink Resistant Denim

    kurabo denim The famous denim mill from Japan – Kurabo – has come out with a great product  once again . Known for bringing out  innovating denim products from time to time – some of which have defined the denim developments the world over- Kurabo has brought out a Wrinkle Free and Shrink Resistant Denim which is Super Soft and remains so after a large number of washes. I met Mr Kenshi Kawano from Kurabo at Kingins Honkong( I am writing this post from the Kingpins show in Hongkong!)  explained the product to me :

    Kurabo Kantenmen Denim  – A Description

    Kanatanmen is a new functional 100% cotton material made by Kurabo’s innovative production method and it actually makes it difficult to shrink the or wrinkle even after washing. The wrinkle resistant effect of this product is much cleaner than the conventional cotton fabrics and enables the clothe to remain neat after washing.

    • Kantanmen does not become hard and keeps the softness after repeated washing.
    • Less scuffing; and maintains a neat  quality and appearance.
    • Products made of 100% conventional cotton become hard in texture after repeated washing but Kantanmen remains soft.
    • Ensures a long lasting beautiful shape and neat fit.

    What is meant by Kantanmen ?

    “Kantan” in Japanese means “ Easy Care” and “Men” in Japanese means “Cotton ”. So Kurabo has appropriately named their new product Kantanmen.

    The Technicalities In Kantanmen Finished Denim

    Kurabo’s Kantanmen is a shrink and wrinkle resistant material developed using a unique method of  manufacturing from an alternative perspective, after an analysis of of the factors that cause shrinkage and wrinkles . In conventional cotton textiles, variations in the degree of agglomeration of cotton molecules cannot be avoided. For this reason, large amounts of resin were needed to produce shrink and wrinkle resistant effects. This left practical issues such as decrease in strength and significant changes in the textile.

    In Kantanmen, the quality of cotton was improved in order to produce cotton with a  uniform monomolecular structure . Kurabo has succeeded in significantly improving the above effects in comparison with conventional cotton. Additional processes at the spinning and finishing stages lend the feature of remarkably low shrinkage  and super soft handle (that lasts) to the fabric. In normal  cotton fabric, the shrinkage after 50 washes can go upto 8% whereas in Kantanmen finish fabric , the shrinkage will be under 5% – see graphical image below:

    denim shrinkage

    Lets have a look at two fabrics – one with Kantanmen finish and one without (other parameters remaining the same) and see the difference.

    kantanmen denim kurabo

    And Mr. Cotton from Kurabo will be glad if you like the product !

    kenshi kawano About Mr Kenshi Kawano : Mr Kenshi Kawano is the President Kurabo Denim(HK) Ltd. and Kurabo Denim (China division) and has been with Kurabo for over 25 years. He has been a key person in the growth of Kurabo denim and of Kurabo name around the world.

  • Kurabo Earth Denim – Making Cool Money From Waste..

     

    earth denim kurabo

    Making economic sense from environmental conciousness is not an easy task. Taking care of environment takes money, but if you can make more money than you spend, it makes great business sense.

    Kurabo Denim’s Earth Denim does precisely that.  Kurabo has ventured to contribute to reduction in Carbon Dioxide emissions by not burning its denim waste and instead recycling it back as a premium denim !

     

    The Earth Denim is made in three steps:

    1. Textile wastes from Kurabo’s manufacturing process are collected and dyed.
    2. Then they are broken up into fiber forms, mixed with virgin cotton, spun into yarn.
    3. This yarn is  then dyed in indigo.
      Because parts of the newly spun yarn are already colored at the beginning of the process, Kurabo doesn’t need to use a sulphuric dye necessary for deep color. Only indigo dyeing is required and it further reduces the requirement for chemicals.

     

    The best part is that this denim is positioned as a premium denim and it sells at $8/yard.. The Denim features features a white core and super-dark-blue color due to its unique makeup. West Coast (USA) designers  re-sponded to stretch and rigid denim with a vintage look.

    I think this is a good example of innovative thinking whereby the company shall be helping the environment as well their own kitty.

    However, it also needs to be remembered that only mills with this kind of fame can encash such innovative developments as lesser known mills will not get the price that may be required to cover the cost of such a product.

    Another noteworthy point is that the need to recycle such wastes is a more urgent requirement for developed nations as in developing economies, such wastes are automatically recycled because there is a market for almost every kind of waste ..

     

    Note:Check out the Denim Mills Directory for links to Kurabo and other Japanese denim mills.