http://www.wearableartblog.comI just came across this post over at Crafting a Green World (excellent blog, by the way!), all about a TED Conference talk given by Suzanne Lee about the creation of a new fabric that is truly sustainable. Though the end product needs some refining to make it more usable, it seems an inspiring start towards the use of truly sustainable fabrics in the garment industry.
A few years ago, when I began really making a go of selling my handmade items in earnest, I started researching which fabrics are truly 'eco-friendly' and which are just way too terrible for the planet to use at all. I was dismayed to find that there are really no truly ecologically friendly fabrics and this is because all fabrics seem to use either a ton of water to produce, or a ton of chemicals or a combination of both. It seems that organic cotton is the least harmful of the mass-produced fabrics, and bamboo is one of the worst (although it is often touted as an 'eco fabric') as it apparenly uses a vast amount of chemicals to break down the tough fibers of the bamboo enough that it is able to be woven into a fabric. I was very sad reading that after just discovering how lovely and soft bamboo fabric was!
Whenever I start to get dismayed about the state of the planet and what we seem to be continually doing to harm it, J. will often kindly remind me that 'necessity is the mother of invention' and that it is likely that when we humans are 'down to the wire' we'll really start using our resources to remedy our situation. Some (most?) may argue that we are, in fact, now currently 'down to the wire' and that is why I'm always buoyed to read about inventions such as this new fabric, that will take some pressure off of our already taxed resources and start moving the planet in the right direction, so to speak.
Here is a short quote from Crafting a Green World, on the nature of this new fabric:
"In this fascinating TED Talk, Suzanne Lee talks about an exciting new technology that would allow designers to grow clothing in a process similar to making kombucha at home.
The fabric is actually created by bacteria, yeast, and other microbes that “spin” a cellulose fiber as part of their life cycle under certain conditions, and if this process caught on it would significantly cut the impact of fabric production. Instead of growing plants or raising animals then shipping and processing the materials all over the world to create finished products, this technology would allow designers to grow their own microbe fabric using a very low-energy process and form it into shape."
Pretty neat! You can head over to the TED blog too, if you'd like to read more, or watch the talk by Suzanne Lee.
I think these fabrics are the way of the future for the garment industry. I know I'd feel so much better using these sustainable fabrics, but I suppose for now (until they are able to refine the end product) I'll keep trying to reuse and 'upcycle' as much as possible, as this seems at the moment to be the most ecological means for clothing production.
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