Muslin

Overview
Muslin a brand name of pre-colonial Bengal textile, especially of Dhaka origins. Muslin was
manufactured in the city of Dhaka and in some surrounding stations, by local skill with locally
produced cotton and attained world-wide fame as the Dhaka Muslin.

Muslin is a loosely woven cotton fabric. It’s made using the plain weave technique, which means that
a single weft thread alternates over and under a single warp thread. Muslin is known as the material
used in fashion prototypes to test patterns before cutting and stitching the final product.

Muslin comes in a variety of different forms and weights. High-quality muslins are soft, smooth, and
are woven from evenly-spun yarns, which means the thread maintains the same width throughout.
Coarser, lower quality muslins are woven with uneven yarns that can be bleached or unbleached.

There are four main grades of muslin:

1. 1. Gauze. Gauze is an ultra-lightweight, sheer form of muslin used for clothes, as a filter in
the kitchen, and to dress wounds.

2. 2. Mull. Mull is a lightweight, plain muslin usually made from cotton and silk, but sometimes
viscose as well. Mull is usually used for dress underlining, to help provide more weight and
structure to a garment, or for pattern testing garments.

3. 3. Swiss muslin. Swiss muslin is a sheer, lightweight form of muslin with raised patterns or
dots that is used frequently for warm-weather clothes.

4. 4. Sheeting. Sheeting is the thickest and coarsest form of muslin and is used in clothing and
homewares.

History
Muslin originated in what is now Dhaka, Bangladesh, with the first references to muslin dating back
to the prehistoric period. Muslin was a valuable commodity, often worth the same as gold, and has
been traded around the world throughout human history. European traders first discovered the
muslin in Mosul, Iraq, however, hence the name muslin.

During British colonial rule in India and Bangladesh, muslin weavers were brutally treated and forced
to weave other fabrics, while muslin was imported from Europe. Gandhi, the leader of the Indian
independence movement, started spinning yarn himself to make khadi, a type of muslin, as a way to
promote self-reliance and to peacefully resist British rule.

Location
Muslin was first manufactured in Mosul Iraq where it got its name from. However Dhaka was
regarded as producing the finest muslins.

Process of making muslin

Muslin is woven on a loom from natural cotton fibers. The ultimate quality of the muslin will depend,
in large part, on the quality of the cotton fibers used. Weaving was traditionally done by hand,
although these days’ machines are also used to make much larger quantities. As the cotton fibers
used to make muslin are usually very fine, handweaving was typically done in the wetter months so
the strands wouldn’t dry out and become brittle and break.
Govt. initiatives taken and Economic contribution
 On 31 December 2020, during her visit to the Ministry of Textiles and Jute in October 2014, Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed her desire to bring back the tradition of muslin. To that end, she
instructed to reinvent the technology by collecting information from the areas known for Muslin
yarn. A committee was formed and then began the search for original muslin cloth. After a lot of
searching, a cloth from the national museum of Bangladesh was found to be the actual muslin cloth
and then it was used to replicate and produce muslin.

After getting the desired fabric a group of weavers from narayanganj were selected to make the
muslin cloth. After years of searching and and trial and errors 6 sarees were finally made from
muslin cloth and one of them was gifted to prime minister sheikh Hasina.

The project director of this project Mr. Ayub Ali, hopes that it may be possible to bring this sari to
the public market in the coming year. Muslin’s rebirth is good news for Bangladesh’s textile,
garments, and fashion industries. If it is possible to reduce the cost of production of muslin cloth and
produce it commercially on a massive scale, then the cloth produced in Bangladesh will regain its
200-year-old tradition around the world, as well as play an important role in the country’s GDP and
overall progress.

End products and customers

Muslin is an extremely versatile fabric used for everything from clothing to science to theater. Here
are some functions of the fabric.
 1. Dressmaking. Designers use muslin most frequently in sewing and pattern-making to test
new patterns. Even if a different fabric is used to make the prototype, it is still referred to as
a “muslin.”

 2. Quilting. Muslin fabric is often as the backing for a quilt.

 3. Home decor. Muslin is used in home decor when a lightweight, sheer fabric is needed to
create an airy space, and is used for items like curtains, lightweight bed sheets, and towels.

 4. Cleaning. Muslin clothes are popular for multi-use cloths for cleaning everything from the
face to the kitchen countertop, as the material can be easily washed and reusing for
environmental cleaning purposes.

 5. Arts. Muslin holds dye well and is a great option for theater scrims backdrops, and sets.
Muslin is light and is a good portable seamless for photographers.

 6. Cheesemaking - At-home cheesemakers pour curdled milk, through a muslin bag to

separate the liquid whey from the cheese curd.

 7. Surgery. Doctors wrap muslin gauze around aneurysms. This helps make the artery
stronger and prevent rupture.