I haven't done a lot of laser cutting, but I expect there will be a ranking that is basically this from best to worst: synthetic fibers > plant fibers > animal

I haven't done a lot of laser cutting, but I expect there will be a ranking that is basically this from best to worst: synthetic fibers > plant fibers > animal fibers I will also guess that more shiny is more bad. Edit: while on the topic of animal fibers, one fabric that gets way too little love in the outdoors community is wadmal. If you are doing anything that has intervals of high and low activity and you tend to sweat, it beats any GoreTex (incl. Pro versions) hands down for keeping you dry. Unless you are out in heavy rain for prolonged periods, in which case the only thing that keeps you dry is the thick PVC stuff that fishermen use.