18/08/2026
Yay! New Liberty lawn hankies for everyone who (like me) uses them.
And gifts them.
(They are pretty folded inside a card.)
Tana lawn, the silky cotton that Liberty uses as a canvas for all its glorious prints, has African heritage.
Tana lawn (‘lawn’ refers to a fine cotton) came originally from Ethiopia.
Tana lawn is the finest cotton possible because it naturally has very long fibres.
The longer the fibres in cotton, the softer the finished fabric. It’s also more durable because there are fewer breaks and joints created during spinning.
So the naturally long-length Ethiopian cotton was imported by the Liberty company. They loved it for their luxury fabrics, and they named after Lake Tana in the country where it came from; Ethiopia.
On their website, Liberty explains how important the Ethiopian cotton was for their business:
“Back in the UK the silk-like threads were spun into lustrous form, printed with colourful ink, and turned into a material that would change the textile industry forever.
“… hundreds of new Liberty prints [are created] every year, which are then catalogued and added to the brand’s vast 50,000-strong print archive – a priceless design resource protected and maintained by the in-house archivists. These designs are printed on a variety of textile bases, with Tana remaining the brand’s most beloved and bestselling signature.”
Ethiopia still grows a lot of cotton. In fact, at least one of the varieties of cotton (known as Gossypium herbaceum) probably originated in the area.
The Tana lawn that Liberty now uses is grown in India, Egypt and the US.
Knowing the history of a fabric and manufacturing process is so cool.
Having that knowledge increases my wonder at human creativity so much.
And my love of Liberty hankies!
~ emma 🌷
