FAQs

Linen Shirts & Linen Fabric: Your Questions, Answered

Everything people ask us about pure linen, from how to tell real linen from a blend, to what it costs, to how to wash it without ruining it. We weave our own cloth in Surat, so these answers come from the loom rather than a marketing deck.

Understanding linen fabric

What is linen fabric made from?

Linen comes from the flax plant. The stalks are retted, the long fibres separated and spun into yarn, then woven into cloth. Flax grows best in cool damp climates, which is why the finest flax comes from Europe. Our shirting uses 100% European flax.

How can I tell real linen from a blend?

Three checks. Real linen creases readily and the crease has a soft edge rather than a hard fold. It feels cool and slightly dry against the skin, never slippery. And under light it looks irregular, with visible slubs where the flax fibre varies in thickness.

Blends hide all three. If a shirt sold as linen barely wrinkles, check the label. More here: how to identify pure linen fabric online.

Why does linen wrinkle so much?

Flax fibres have low elasticity. Bend them and they stay bent, where cotton springs back. Those creases are the fibre telling you it is real. Nothing you can do will stop linen creasing, and a fabric sold as linen that does not crease is almost certainly blended.

What is the difference between pure linen and cotton-linen?

Pure linen is entirely flax. Cotton-linen mixes cotton into the yarn, which makes it softer and less prone to creasing, but costs you the breathability and the durability that made you want linen in the first place. Many shirts marketed as linen in India contain a minority of it. Ours contain none of anything else. See linen vs linen blends.

What does 60 Lea mean?

Lea is a measure of yarn fineness in linen, roughly the equivalent of thread count in cotton. Higher Lea means a finer yarn and a smoother cloth. Our fabric range is woven at 60 Lea. Full explanation: what is 60 Lea linen.

Linen in Indian weather

Is linen good for summer?

It is the best natural fibre for heat. Flax is hollow and highly conductive, so it pulls heat away from the skin. It absorbs a large share of its own weight in moisture and releases it fast, which means sweat evaporates instead of sitting against you. And the weave is open enough that air actually moves through the shirt.

What GSM is best for Indian summers?

GSM is grams per square metre, the weight of the cloth. Lighter is better in heat, but go too light and the shirt loses structure and turns sheer. We weave at 125 GSM, which sits at the light end while staying opaque and holding its shape. More detail: best GSM for linen fabric in Indian climate.

Can I wear a linen shirt to the office?

Yes, with the right colour and fit. Solid mid-tones and darker shades read as formal. Loud prints and very light shades read as holiday. A relaxed tailored cut tucked in works in most Indian offices. We wrote a longer piece on it: can you wear a linen shirt to office in India.

Care and durability

Does linen shrink?

Linen can shrink a little on the first wash if it has not been pre-shrunk. Wash cold, skip the tumble dryer, and line dry in shade and you will not see meaningful movement. Heat is the enemy, not water. Full guide: does linen shrink.

How do I wash and iron a linen shirt?

Cold machine wash on a gentle cycle with a mild detergent. No bleach, no fabric softener, no tumble drying. Line dry in shade. Iron warm on the reverse while very slightly damp, or steam it. Two minutes of care and it looks sharp. Step by step: how to wash, care for and iron your linen shirt.

How long should a linen shirt last?

Flax is one of the strongest natural fibres and gets stronger when wet, which is why linen survives washing that wears cotton out. Cared for properly, a good linen shirt lasts years and softens the whole time. It is the rare garment that improves with use.

Buying from Tyra

Are linen shirts expensive in India?

Usually, yes, and mostly not because of the fabric. A typical linen shirt passes through a mill, a distributor, a label and a retail floor, and each one adds a margin. You end up paying four businesses for one shirt.

We are the mill. Tyra is the factory-direct outlet of Shree Krishna Fabrics in Surat, where the cloth is woven. That is why our 100% linen shirts sit between ₹2,300 and ₹4,000 rather than double. Related reading: is linen worth the price in India.

Do you offer cash on delivery?

Yes, we ship COD across India, with no extra COD handling charge. You pay the same whether you choose COD or prepaid.

Do you offer refunds?

No. We do not offer refunds on any order.

Every Tyra garment is cut and tailored to order, so we work on exchange rather than return. If the size or the piece is not right, we will swap it once. Details below.

Can I exchange a shirt if the size is wrong?

Yes, once. Each order is eligible for one exchange, within 15 days of delivery, for a different size or colour.

The garment has to come back to us:

unworn
unwashed
with every original tag still attached
in its original packaging

There is a flat ₹150 exchange fee, which covers collecting the garment from you and shipping the replacement back out. Full terms on our exchange policy.

How does the exchange process work?

Write to us first, before sending anything back. We will confirm the replacement is available and arrange the pickup.

Once the garment reaches us, it is checked at our facility against the conditions above. If it passes, we dispatch your replacement. If it comes back worn, washed, or without its tags, we cannot process the exchange and the piece will be returned to you.

We verify before we dispatch, so allow a few days between pickup and the replacement going out.

What if my order arrives damaged or incorrect?

That is on us, and it is handled separately from the exchange policy. Tell us within 24 hours of delivery with photographs and we will put it right at no cost to you. The ₹150 fee does not apply.

How does the fit run?

Relaxed tailored. Clean through the shoulder and chest with room to move, rather than the boxy resort cut most linen shirts default to.

Our shirts run slightly generous, so if you are between sizes, size down. Shorts run closer to the body, so size up if you are between. Check the size guide on each product page for exact garment measurements, or get in touch and we will talk you through it before you order. Since exchanges are one per order, it is worth asking us first.

Do you sell linen fabric by the metre?

We do. The same cloth we cut our shirts from is available to buy by the metre for your own tailor. Note that fabric is cut to order and cannot be exchanged, so do check your quantities before ordering. Browse pure linen fabrics.