{"product_id":"linen-sauna-bench-runner","title":"Linen Sauna Bench Runner","description":"\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003eComing Soon\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA hot wood bench at 190°F is, at best, unpleasant to sit on directly.\u003c\/strong\u003e That is the problem a bench runner solves, and most of the ones sold for it are polyester and\/or a cotton terry that holds water and goes cold.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis is 100% European flax in a heavy washed waffle.\u003c\/strong\u003e Linen sheds water rather than holding it, which is why it is the traditional cloth for a sauna and why it dries between rounds and sessions instead of souring.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003eWhy it is this long\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e26 by 71 inches\u003c\/strong\u003e (66 by 180 cm).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eMost bench runners are made at the length of a table runner, because that is what the mills already weave. \u003cstrong\u003eWe produced 71in\/180cm instead, which is long enough that almost anyone can lie down on it.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe width is 26 inches for a reason too: that covers your typical bench depth and then some.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe cloth\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e390 grams per square meter.\u003c\/strong\u003e That is heavy for linen and considerably heavier than a standard towel weave, which is the point: waffle has structure, so it lifts off the bench and lets air move underneath rather than lying flat and wet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eUndyed and unbleached. Washed in water only, with nothing else added.\u003c\/strong\u003e The color is the color flax itself is what you get.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003eWhat is usually done to linen, and what we did instead\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eMost linen you can buy has been through a finishing process nobody puts on the label. \u003cstrong\u003eOptical brighteners\u003c\/strong\u003e, which are synthetic dyes that fluoresce under daylight to make white look whiter. \u003cstrong\u003eSilicone softeners\u003c\/strong\u003e, which coat the fiber so cloth feels plush in a shop and absorbs worse for the rest of its life. \u003cstrong\u003eChlorine or peroxide bleaching.\u003c\/strong\u003e And on anything sold as easy-care or wrinkle-resistant, a \u003cstrong\u003eformaldehyde-releasing resin.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eNone of that is illegal and almost none of it is typically disclosed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWe're selling undyed, unbleached, washed in water only, with no softener and no resin.\u003c\/strong\u003e And because a specification is only a sentence until somebody checks it, \u003cstrong\u003ewe tested the cloth under UV light during multiple sample runs.\u003c\/strong\u003e Optical brighteners glow under UV. Ours did not.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThere is a reason this matters more in a sauna than in a linen closet.\u003c\/strong\u003e A wrinkle-resistant resin was formulated for a wardrobe, not for a 190°F sauna, and nobody who makes those finishes has tested them there. We would rather have cloth with nothing on it than cloth with something on it that nobody has thought about.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe one synthetic in this product, and we are not going to bury it\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe hem is sewn with polyester thread.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eWe asked for cotton. The mill refused outright. Cotton thread does not survive repeated laundering, and they were not willing to make an exception.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eAnother mill we spoke to does offer cotton thread. We did not use them, because their cloth was not the cloth we wanted. That was a real trade and we made it with our eyes open: the fiber you touch is 100% flax, and the thread holding the hem is not.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eIt is a few grams of polyester in a product that is otherwise entirely flax, and you are reading about it here rather than finding out later.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003eWhat we are still confirming\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003ePhotography. The runners are still being woven, so what you see here is an actual fabric close-up rather than the finished piece. Real photographs will follow when we receive the shipment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\"\u003eAvailability\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNot yet available. Leave your email and we will tell you the day it is.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Brinna","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49523394183395,"sku":null,"price":145.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8388\/2979\/files\/Brinna_waffle_close.jpg?v=1792696245","url":"https:\/\/brinnasauna.com\/products\/linen-sauna-bench-runner","provider":"Brinna","version":"1.0","type":"link"}