Selecting our Fabric: The proof is in the touch

So much care and attention is dedicated to sourcing the highest quality, most indulgent yarns. Our criteria for selection is strict but simple: every fabric must possess a touch that takes you to a place of calm. What’s more our skin-loving fabric offers sun protection of 50+UPF, at tested to British standards. The nurturing nature of our material allows both the body and skin to breath, while giving the feeling of a cosseted baby in combination with a sculpted fit that is unbelievably pleasurable to wear.

Designing Homebody: The Art of Storytelling

At Homebody, we like to design in stories. Each collection takes inspirations from the world around us – from travel and art, to nature and the city. Whilst each colour has its own, unique story with a personal connection to our founders. It is by carefully pairing these shapes and colours, that we begin to test the boundaries of loungewear.

Handmade in England: Unrivalled quality as standard

We select fabric with the softest, most luxurious touch possible. However, this does not mean it is always easy to work with. That is why we only trust a select few expert makers to work with our clothes. Furthermore, every piece of Homebody is made here in the UK so we can keep a close eye on our production ensuring you will always receive unrivalled quality as standard.

 

Homebody's Modal - Sens

Made from sustainably grown and harvested European beechwood trees, our Modal- Sens fabric is comprised of fine cellulosic fibres that has the softness of silk and the breathability of cotton. We use a finer fibre than used for Modal that is lighter weight and so soft to the touch, which is key to its desirability.

A man-made fabric, our Modal is spun out of wood pulp from beech tree chips. This natural composition makes it a breathable fabric, suitable for wearing close to the skin. The silky look of Modal belies the fact that it does not trap perspiration and therefore leaves the skin freer to breathe and why it is so ideal to sleep in.

We have then mixed in a small percentage of elastane to allow the fabric to adjust with the body easily, Although elastane is not breathable, only a very small quantity is used, it gives the fabric its much admired movement and drape.

‘Modal Sens’ is composed of cellulose (a compound which gives plants their stiffness) that has been extracted, dissolved and then realigned to make a fibre. It sounds simple on paper but, trust me, it's not. None-the-less, despite being man-made, the fibre itself is composed of long chains of the cellulose molecules lined up to make a useful filament (very long continuous fibre), not unlike silk. 

This plant-based chemical structure is what gives these textiles their desirable properties of natural skin like feel, breathability and good moisture management.

It is because our Modal is plant based that the temperature of the fabric adjusts to our body temperature.

When you first feel our fabric it is cool to touch but after a short time, the fabric adjusts to body temperature.

Modal-Sens may be man-made, but chemically it is still plant based and therefore not synthetic. That's what sets it apart from Nylon or Polyester which are fully synthetic made from compounds derived from petroleum and not naturally occurring.

Synthetic fibres do not have the same properties of breathability or moisture management, which is why they have quite different uses. Why? It comes down to the chemistry of the base compounds and how they react with water.

The naturally occurring cellulose compound is attractive to water (they are said to be hydrophilic). Water molecules 'wet' the fibres and even penetrate into micro pores inside the fibre structure. This is why Modal is a water absorbing fabric. This affinity to water (and water vapour) is what helps to make this fabric so breathable.

The third process to creating our fabric is the finishing and it is a process that has been refined by us in the UK over many years of research to achieve the maximum softness possible.

Finally, even post production, our fabric is still not finished  as it has to be allowed to rest unwound before being made into clothing – it’s a really involved process! 

The reason we jump through these hoops is because it is our goal to make clothes that nurture the wearer and make us all feel good as well as look good.

We believe that the pleasure of wearing such beautifully soft clothes on the skin should be the most restorative experience possible to rest and sleep in and it is why our clothes are called magic- they really do help you learn to switch off!