Thread count is often used as a measure of fabric quality, so that "standard" cotton thread counts are around 68 - 150 while good-quality sheets, Percale, start at 180. Any fabric labelled as percale must have minimum thread count of 180 Some, but not all, of the extremely high thread counts (typically over 500) tend to be misleading as they usually count the individual threads in plied yarns (a yarn that is made by twisting together multiple finer threads).If fabric of over a thread count of 500 does not specify that they are single ply yarns it is likely that these are twisted two or three ply yarns. For marketing purposes, a fabric with 250 two-ply yarns in both the vertical and horizontal direction could have the component threads counted to a 1000 thread count although "according to the National Textile Association (NTA), which cites the international standards group ASTM, accepted industry practice is to count each thread as one, even threads spun as two- or three-ply yarn. These higher thread counts tend to sold from or in the United states where the commissions have disagreed on what is and is not misleading to consumers.
Combed cotton percale is exactly as it sounds, cotton with a thread count of over 180 where each individual fibre is combed, making the finished fabric softer, smoother and more hard wearing as there is less friction from the fibres rubbing.
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