In a letter to consumers back in May, the company wrote:
If you have chosen not to participate in Blair's recall of our Full-Length Chenille Bath Robe or if you haven't yet returned your robe to us, we urge you rethink your decision to keep it. While we are pleased that you value your robe, we urge you in the strongest possible terms to discontinue using the robe immediately and return it to us, even if your robe appears to be safe. Some robes fail to meet federal flammability requirements and present a risk of serious burns to consumers if they are exposed to an open flame.
The horrible irony here is that the catalog photo for the original chenille robe has a candlestick in the background.
Blair Expands Recall To All Women's Chenille Apparel Due to Burn Hazard; Additional Reported Deaths Prompt Re-Announcement of Robe Recall [CPSC]
Important Product Recall Information [Blair]
From the Consumer Product Safety Commission website: "After this re-announcement, Blair received four additional reports of deaths allegedly due to the robes catching fire. Three of these victims were cooking and a fourth was tending a pellet stove; three of the four victims were in their 80s and one was in her 70s. All nine reported deaths occurred prior to the April 2009 announcement of the recall."
Look at the age group of these 4 victims - 3 in their 80's and 1 was in her 70's. That says a lot, especially the part about the pellet stove. I wonder if there was a gas stove involved in the other 3 deaths?
Some older people are pretty spry and sharp, while others can barely get around and their mental capacity is diminished. Plus, the elderly women I know are perpetually cold, hence the heavy robe. This is a very sad situation, and we all have to remember that most clothing will burn when exposed to flames.
]]>I remember as a kid, back when everybody smoked, I'd get burned time to time by a careless smoker. I had a favorite shirt -- it was orange and had a cartoon lion on it -- that was ruined when I was about seven. We were walking around Marina Del Rey in Los Angeles when some woman slammed her cigarette into my shoulder and burned a hole though my shirt. Burned me, too. But see, it didn't engulf me in flames and kill me.
Saying all fabric is flammable is like saying we're all dying. It's true, but it misses the point.
]]>Perhaps the silk ones that are well made stay nice and last a while.
]]>OK, guys. I used to work in a fabric store. All normal clothing is flammable, including sleepwear. No clothing fabric is safe to wear in a fire. No normal clothing protects you from fire. The best you can get is wool, which often puts itself out, or glass fibers (which you would never wear to bed anyway). Flame retardant treatments reduce the burning rate of other fabric so hopefully your burns are not as severe.
More info: [www.fabrics.net]
]]>Way #51 to leave your GILF lover!
]]>It's a fuzzy lint type effect. FWOOMP... next thing you know, Grandma's doing her human Tiki Torch impression.
Honestly people, I can understand kid's PJ's and Halloween costumes really need to be fire resistant, but do we have to have this all the way across the board now?
Where's the common sense that says don't mess with the fireplace or the huge scented candles while you are wearing a loose floppy housecoat or robe?
I'm guessing it probably happens when people cook breakfast while wearing their robes, and reach across a hot stove burner?
]]>@bloggerX: Actually, she looks like a mannequin. Or possibly just really drugged up.
]]>Chenille is in general a pretty damn flammable substance--it's basically a blend of tinder and air.
]]>How the hell did they manage to make 100% cotton flash flammable?
]]>@Laura Northrup: I always associate chenille with cheap sweaters. The material just seems really, really cheap to me.
]]>Wikipedia explains that it's a type of yarn and weaving process rather than the actual fiber source: [en.wikipedia.org]
]]>On the other hand, someone who thinks he is the Human Torch can now have his delusions confirmed.
]]>The folks at Haband (which offers very similar nerchandise) better take a 2nd look at all that corduroy they're selling.
]]>She looks like she was superimposed in this picture. Her posture has a, "hurry the f*ck up, I need to take a sh*t look to it". The sly smile is only a cover...
]]>It can be made out of recycled soda bottles, as far as I know.
]]>Just what the heck is chenile, any way? A synthetic fabric that's a favorite of the geriatric set?
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