With more and more earth-friendly fabric options, including organic cotton, all kinds of silks, hemp and bamboo fibers, Girlawhirl's found that it's getting easier to dress green. And it looks like it's only going to get better from here on out. There are new kinds of fabrics that keep things closer than ever to Mother Nature…
• Girlawhirl's already excited about PLA, a corn based resin that she's seen used as a substitute for petroleum based plastic spoons, forks and other takeout containers. It can also be used to create a kinder, gentler polyester fiber.
• From Japan comes Sasawashi, that's made by combining washi, a Japanese paper with leaves from an herb called kumazasa. It's all mixed together and twisted into yarns, which are then woven into fabric that resembles linen. The fabric is strong and breathable and has antibacterial and deodorant properties.
• Peace silk, also called vegetarian silk, differs from regular silk – which is already sustainable and renewable – by the fact that throughout the process, silkworms are allowed to emerge from their cocoons and live out their full life cycles. The silk fibers come from unraveling the cocoons.
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• Girlawhirl's not sure she'll ever see or feel Piña, because it can take six months to gather the fibers needed to make just two pounds of fabric. Made from leaves found on pineapple plants, the fibers are hand knotted together to make them long enough to weave. This one sounds pretty special and combining it with silk ups the elegance factor.
Girlawhirl hasn't seen these fibers in the stores yet, but the designers who participated in the most recent FutureFashion show in New York used them, along with recycled wools, organic cottons, hemp and more to create the clothing featured in the show.
related articles:
| May 17, 2007: | plastic water bottles are everywhere! . read full entry |
| Apr 27, 2006: | bamboo fabric. read full entry |