Itching, scratching, poking. That’s what I feel every time I put on my new blue cotton v-neck sweater.
Why does this happen? I can’t be allergic to cotton. I know I’m not allergic to v-necks. I’m positive I’m not allergic to blue; it’s my favorite color. I’m sure I’ve missed the poison ivy of summer, haven’t backed into any mosquito nests, and couldn’t find poison sumac if I searched for it. Yet every time I put the sweater over my head
it feels as if there are pieces of barbed wire sticking between my shoulder blades.
Maybe I could block the irritating spot. Tape: scotch tape. If I put a piece of tape over the troublesome area all will be well. No: not on me, on the sweater. I need to do some investigating. I know I am not imagining this feeling. It is real, it is constant, and I am still itching. So what IS the cause of the itch? Taking a closer look at the inside of the sweater I discover the cause of the problem.
A thread. A simple little thread. Not a cotton thread, like the ones that hold the sweater together, but a nylon thread that attaches the label to the sweater. An abusive, irritating nylon thread. It feels more like a fishing line with the hook left in, but even without the hook the rough, scratchy part is obvious to the touch. Who would ever suspect anything as innocuous as a little piece of thread? I dissect the label out of the sweater, pull out the offensive culprit and start loving the look and feel of my soft, comfortable new blue sweater.
MorristownMemos 
Comments on: "ITCHY, SCRATCHY BACK" (26)
I have a sweater that’s itchy too. Time to check the thread used for its label. 🙂
Great detective work. Enjoy your blue sweater!
I have a sweater like that too…but I don’t think a nylon thread is the culprit (darn it). I just think it’s itchy. Ick. Enjoy your comfy sweater now. You deserve it after doing that detective work.
Mystery solved. Glad your sweater is less itchy. Now, if the heat and humidity would let up a bit, you could wear it.
Yupyupyup – I am an absolute fiend about removing tags from all of my garments! I totally hate that feeling of being scratched repeatedly in that one spot between the ‘blades. Ugh!
I hate those little plastic things! Good post, could “see” the entire thing. Enjoy your blue sweater!
Aha: so it’s not just me…why do you suppose they sew those pesky things in, anyway???
I feel your pain! I am sensitive to threads/tags on sweaters so I always remove the tags that irritate the back of my neck. Trouble is, then sometimes I can’t tell the front of the sweater from the back! (Until someone recently told me that washing instructions are always sewn into the left side seam of the sweater. Hopefully that tag doesn’t irritate too).
Not unless they use that pesky nylon thread…
I can relate to your irritation over bothersome tags, threads, etc. on clothes. Do they ever try these things on humans before they ship them off to the stores? Good detective work. Now, enjoy your beautiful, new clothes. 🙂
Thanks; maybe we should start a writing campaign to manufacturers complaining about those annoying nylon threads…
Damn labels… I’m allergic to them… not that it affects me literally… but when I see one I break out in temper… been scratched too many times…
Yes, and photographing wild animals in Africa is no danger compared to putting on a shirt whose tag is sewn with a nylon thread.
The shirt will be a bigger dander… the animals love me…
I was going to say, Century 21 strikes again, but I know better
Harvey
Are you suggesting that iIt serves me right for shopping at a discount store? That’s a strange comment from a husband. I will assume it means that you prefer that I buy all my clothes at full retail prices.
Maybe the dust mites cause a lot we never see them by our naked eyes 🙂
Oh, no: something else to worry about: things my naked eye cannot see.
Right away I figured it might have something to do with the stupid label..can’t tell you how many times I’ve had similar issues…sensitive skin in the first place and then a stupid label and the way it’s sewn onto the sweater or jacket or even pants in the second place isn’t a good combination. So glad you discovered the problem and the fix! By the way, I love that blue sweater you pictured…not sure if it really is the one or not, but cute.
Thanks, Sylvia. That IS a cute sweater, but not even close to the one I bought. This one comes courtesy of Google Images.
I recently had this same problem with a garment more personal than sweater. When I went back to the lingerie shop the saleswoman discovered the nylon thread debacle.
As my father would say every time I showed him something new on me, “Wear it in good health.”
Thanks, Gail. May I wear this cyber-sweater in good health too? I’l bet your Dad never came across THAT type of new sweater!
It’s like the pea and the princess all over again. 😉
I like the comparison.
I bought your new kindle book, The Senca Scourge and hope to write a review when I read it! Congratulations.
Thank you! That is so nice to hear. I hope you enjoy it. A little death and disease is always so uplifting. 😉
Kind of relates back to this pre-presidential season, don’t you think?
Ha ha! For sure. 🙂