What are Sustainable Fabrics? The Ultimate Guide

2020-02-04 Mama Minimalist

To make fabric, you need thread. And to make thread? You need fibers. But what are sustainable fabrics, exactly, and why are they important?

Natural fibers create sustainable fabrics.

Plants and animals produce natural fibers.

What are sustainable fabrics? Cotton, hemp and linen are 3 examples of sustainable fabrics made from natural plant fibers. Wool and silk are two examples of natural fibers from animals.

Sustainable Fabric #1: Cotton

Consumers adore cotton because it’s absorbent and hypoallergenic; it’s quite soft, too.

But not all cotton is created equal: While pesticides and insecticides cover non-organic, conventional cotton and pollute the planet, cotton farmers harvest organic cotton without GMOs, pesticides, insecticides or other chemicals.

Still, cotton – both conventional and organic – requires significant water to grow. Cotton is therefore an environmentally demanding yet sustainable fiber.

Sustainable Fabric #2: Linen

Flax fibers – or flax seeds – create linen.

Linen absorbs and releases water quickly. It feels cool and dry even in hot, humid weather.

Linen is also lint-free and softens during washing.

Linen is very durable and strong; as a result, linen garments last a long time.

But linen has low elasticity – it doesn’t stretch – so linen garments are often looser fitting styles.

Did you know?

You can find The Sustainable Minimalists Podcast wherever you get your podcasts.

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Sustainable Fabric #3: Hemp

Hemp grows quickly without chemicals and with very little water. It is hypoallergenic and non-irritating to the skin.

Hemp garments are scratchy at first; however, hemp ages well: the more you wash hemp, the softer it becomes.

Wool

Wool is a natural fiber that humans have used for centuries as a natural insulator. It is wrinkle-free, hypoallergenic and absorbs harmful pollutants, too.

But learning land and cutting down trees to raise raise sheep for wool decreases biodiversity and contributes to soil erosion.

Silk

Silk is a breathable fabric that retains heat in cold weather and expels heat in warm weather.

Silkworms spin long threads inside cocoons which then becomes silk. Silk is not suitable for vegans because silkworms are killed in the silk-making process.

Do synthetic fibers create sustainable fabrics?

No. Humans create synthetic fibers through chemical synthesis. More than half of the textile fibers used in the world – 60% to be exact – are synthetic.

Examples of synthetic fibers include nylon, polyester, spandex and acrylic.

Polyester: The most popular synthetic fiber

These days, polyester is everywhere. Indeed, it’s easy to miss unless you rigorously check garment labels.

Why do we love polyester? Polyester is convenient, and we consumers crave convenience. It’s wrinkle-free; it dries quickly, too. And the best part? Polyester clothes tend to be inexpensive.

Melted plastic – when squeezed through a spinneret – creates long, continuous filaments. Those filaments become polyester when spun together.

As we wash our polyester clothing, these filaments break down, enter our waterways and contribute to microplastic pollution. Because polyester isn’t biodegradable, microplastics remain in our ecosystem for hundreds of years.

Every wash, up to 1,900 fibers per garment shed from our synthetic clothing.

While high-quality polyester clothing can last for many years, the vast majority of polyester on the market is very poor quality. Indeed, most polyester garments are fast fashion items.

What’s a semi-synthetic fiber, then?

Semi-synthetic fibers are manmade plant fibers.

Said another way, semi-synthetics require chemicals to break plant fibers down into a soft and wearable fabric. It’s a very toxic process to take a tree and create a fiber: It’s bad for garment workers and, when those chemicals are dumped into waterways around the factories, it’s very bad for the planet, too, .

Examples of synthetic fibers include Viscose (or Rayon), Modal, Lyosell and TENCEL™.

Rayon and Viscose

Bamboo creates Rayon fibers, also known as Viscose.

Bamboo is the fastest-growing plant in the world. It does not require chemical fertilizers or pesticides; to grow, it requires four times less water than cotton, too.

But while you won’t see “bamboo” written on a shirt label, you will see the terms Viscose or Rayon.

Viscose and Rayon are semi-synthetic fibers because they’re made from bamboo (a natural fiber); however, transforming bamboo into soft, fuzzy fabrics requires many chemicals (hence, the semi-synthetic label). These chemicals pollute waterways.

TENCEL™, Lyocell and Modal

Eucalytus creates soft and wrinkle-free semi-synthetic fibers.

Garment manufacturers write TENCEL™, Lyocell and Modal on labels to connote their origins in eucalyptus. These semi-synthetic fibers don’t necessarily require harmful chemicals; however, they do contribute to deforestation.

To get technical, factory workers utilize a safer chemical during TENCEL™ production. They do not discharge it into waterways, either.

This semi-synthetic isn’t benign, however, as eucalyptus grows on arid land which makes it impossible to plant other crops.

While Tencel, Lyocell and Modal are more eco-friendly semi-synthetic alternatives than Viscose or Rayon, they’re not as sustainable as natural fibers like linen and hemp.