This post might contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase using one of these links, we might earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Learn More

Does Viscose Wrinkle? (Answered & Explained)

It must’ve hurt when your favorite viscose blouse got ruined.  You were surely asking yourself why did that happen? How can I prevent it? How can I make it better after it got ruined? Can I even do that? Don’t worry. Even if it got drastically ruined, we can make sure that the same thing won’t happen again.

By reading this you will get to know a more detailed picture of what your clothes are made of, how to take care of them, and how to maintain them well.

Key Takeaways

  • Viscose is a synthetic fabric that is commonly used in the clothing and textile industries. It is a natural fabric created from organic substances.
  • Viscose is one of three varieties of rayon, the others being modal and lyocell.
  • It’s possible for viscose to become wrinkled in the washing machine, but thankfully there is a fix.
  • Pine, spruce, eucalyptus, bamboo, sugarcane, soy, beech, and hemlock are among the plants that aid in the viscose delivery process.

What kind of fabric is viscose?

Viscose is a material most used in making garments and textile industries. It is a natural fiber made from natural materials. Viscose is also one of the three types of rayon such as modal and lyocell. Although they are all types of rayon, they aren’t made in the same way. Each of those 3 types of rayon is made different and gets its own treatment.

Today we are going to discuss viscose. How are viscose garments made? Why does viscose clothing shrink? Why does it wrinkle? How can I prevent it? Stay tuned to this article to find out after you read it.

Why does viscose wrinkle?

Viscose wrinkles, a lot. Viscose has a smooth and soft touch and it is a quality fabric, but its tendency to wrinkle so easily is a little bit of a disadvantage because it makes it a little bit unpractical if you don’t take good care of it. One of the many reasons for the viscose to wrinkle is folding it. Viscose is a soft material and it will crease and wrinkle even if it’s folded for only two minutes, so you better watch out where and how you put your viscose clothes. Viscose is a very delicate fabric and due to that one simple step can ruin your favorite viscose blouse.

What happens when you wash and dry viscose?

Viscose clothing will get wrinkly in the washing machine too, but there are some steps to reduce the wrinkles right after you take your viscose clothes out of the machine. First of all, it is very impractical to put viscose clothing in a washing machine just like that. As we said viscose is a very delicate fabric and the washing machine can ruin it because of the water pressure and temperature. So, it is best to hand wash viscose, this fact is also written on every viscose cloth etiquette, but we know that no one reads that so that’s why we are here.  Also, it is not a good decision to put viscose in the dryer due to its agitation. So, hand wash and natural dry it is.

Viscose’s Benefits & Drawbacks

Pros

Even though viscose garments can look boujee, it is indeed selling for cheap prices in the markets. Viscose got popular because of its soft and silky look, however, taking care of viscose can be a very big ‘no’ to some people. The pros of viscose are that this material is very breathable making it perfect for sunny days. Also, viscose is very absorbent which is perfect for sportswear clothes, because it does not hold the heat and dries the sweat out. Viscose garments hold the dye very well, so after even many washes your viscose clothing will have a fresh color. It is made from natural ingredients and it is hypoallergenic. Also, viscose is stiff, but mixed with spandex it gets a beautiful stretchy texture.

Cons

Viscose fibers break down very easily when washed in the washing machine. It is tending to shrink even more with every other wash. The quality of viscose can go down if the fabric is exposed to sun, heat or other bright things making it wrinkle even faster. It is very hard to clean this fabric. Once you spill something or make a dirty spot it is very hard to get that off, there are many difficulties with removing stains from this type of fabric. The making of viscose causes deforestation because it is made from wood fibers too. Also, dangerous chemicals can be found in viscose before it is finished nicely.


How is viscose produced?

We already know that viscose is made from natural ingredients. These are pine, spruce, eucalyptus, bamboo, sugarcane, soy, beech, and hemlock. These plants contribute to the delivery of viscose. The first production of viscose began in 1883 and it was made to be an alternative to silk because silk was and still is expensive. To make the viscose fabric we first have to make wood pulp by putting wood chips and breaking them down into chemicals. After that, the wood pulp is turned into alkali so we get a nice and raw base. The alkali solution is then pressed so it pushes the liquids out and then it is treated with carbon disulfide. Then, all the air and bubbles are eliminated by filtering. After that, the cellulose fibers are being knit into a nice viscose fabric. Ta-Da!

What can be made using viscose?

This material has many benefits and can be used in many industries. Most of the things made from viscose are clothes, window drapes, cooling sheets, and mattress sheets. Viscose in clothes makes the cloth look elegant and silky without you having to pay large amounts of money for original silk. The feel of viscose is suitable for many events no matter if it’s a daily coffee look style or elegant opera dress – viscose makes many options look good. Viscose is a flowy material being perfect for making curtains. The material falls down the windows beautifully. On another note, cooling sheets are mostly made from bamboo or eucalyptus cellulose, known as lyocell, this is also a type of rayon.  Soft, breathable, and airy fresh material works wonders for sweaty sleepers, or people that feel hot every time they sleep with a blanket on, and cold every time the blanket is off.

Is viscose eco-friendly?

Well, textile industries take around 5 percent of landfills in the USA. Also, 70 pounds of clothing are thrown annually into landfills. But how can a fabric be environmentally friendly? Well, every fabric that doesn’t leave carbon footprints is considered as environmentally friendly. Because viscose is made from natural ingredients it is biodegradable and renewable making it environment friendly. Although viscose isn’t a threat to the environment itself, the process till we get the viscose has its bad side. Deforestation is one of the main causes because viscose is made from wood cellulose. But luckily, big fashion companies found a solution to this one by working with viscose made from sustainable green forests. This allows repeated usage of the things needed to make viscose without hurting nature itself.

Final Words

To finish up, viscose is overall a very convenient fabric that is used widely in textile industries and in many other manufacturing businesses. In clothing, viscose contributes heavily to portraying elegance and silkiness while being budget-friendly. Apart from that, the feeling that viscose delivers is an out-of-this-world experience.

Further Reading

There is some further reading you can do if you liked what you read so far; there is a list of some fantastic embroidery machines for custom designs, don’t miss this one.

There are also the top 5 most fantastic brother sewing machines. And also a blog where I explain the differences between embroidery machines vs. sewing machines.

Enjoy.