When I first started buying material here in Lebanon, I stumbled into a small fabric shop with an extremely helpful owner. The shop was no larger than my bedroom, but was piled from floor to ceiling with bolts of fabric on three walls and then some lying on the floor. A marvelous place to explore. :D
Anyway, when I told him in my very bad Arabic that I needed 100% cotton, he proceeded to show me how to tell the fabrics apart using the burn test. He took bits of several fabrics and lit a match to each one then showing me how the cotton and polyester blends melted and partially burned and the way the cottons burned into ash. I learned a lot from him but was terrified that he would set his entire shop on fire. :shock:
That was 4 years ago and his lesson on testing fabrics sticks with me. His method works every time - but I make sure the fabric is held over a sink with lots of water in case of accidents. :wink:
Connie