Fashion has finally found its distinction for the decade. After a goulash of fad-trends, Nature has emerged strongest – a potential fixture here onwards. Transcending cultural and sartorial divisions across the globe, a torrent of new fashion jargon – eco, organic, sustainable, ethical – has confused us into collective guilt. Every definition is distinct, but interlinked.

The search continues for the ideal natural fibre (where it all begins) – organically cultivated with zero or minimal artificial assistance, ethically manufactured, sustainable, processed without chemical aid, with re-usable by-products, and completely biodegradable. Idealistic? That is an understatement. It is extremely difficult to fully adhere to the strictest eco-parameters while trying to retain desirable fibre properties, especially with today’s production demands. But the quest has brought us to some notable and unexpected milestones.

Cotton, linen, wool and silk still rule the roost (and rails), but another surprise set of alternative fibres is emerging strong. While some are recycled old ideas that never popularised, others are unconventional sources, while still others flabbergast to the point of disbelief! Just like cinema, these parallel players counter mainstream leads and some are on the fast track to superstardom, with potential to become household names and wardrobe staples.

Onstage spotlight
The stars of the moment hail from China. While bamboo is the top contender for the alternative prize, soy is a fierce competitor. Scoring points for requiring very little water and being naturally regenerative – therefore sustainable – bamboo provides long stem fibres, creating fabrics that are high on drape, smoothness and lustre. Soy, made from leftover waste after tofu production (true, we swear!), is also called ‘vegetable cashmere’ due to its excellent drape and luxurious feel. Liquefied soy protein in filament form creates soy yarn, in a process similar to polyester or nylon.

Both fibres can be woven or knit in a variety of weights (including denim and jersey) and designers all over the world are romancing with them at present. Of course, prices are still higher due to niche production, but larger manufacturing houses have already started belting out affordable, mass versions. Soy innerwear and bamboo jeans will soon arrive at a store near you.

In the wings
These are veteran supporting characters, not necessarily novel, but reinvented from time to time. ‘Keep off the Grass,’ said a witty T-shirt, with a cannabis leaf print. We say, ‘Don’t!’ Hemp is a jute-like fabric made from stem fibres of the cannabis plant and has been around for a while, but is regaining popularity due to anti-plastic packaging campaigns, scoring over jute due to less water consumption. Its use in apparel is limited due to its thickness and texture, but applications in garments have been showcased time and again.

Medicinal broths and legendary witches’ brews apart, wild nettle is also a loom ingredient. Fabric from this stinger might raise eyebrows, but a flashback tells us that Germans had first used nettle to make military uniforms during World War I. Producing fabric similar to linen, the plant grows naturally on temperate, damp hill slopes in Europe, India and Nepal, reducing cultivation costs and consumptions, and is being viewed with renewed interest.

Linen’s quieter cousin, ramie, is one of the world’s oldest fabrics, dating back to 300 BC. Strong, lustrous, moisture retentive and possessing anti-bacterial properties, the stem fibre never popularised due to low elasticity, brittleness and a laborious ‘de-cortification’ (bark removal and fibre extraction) process. Modern blends with other fibres have added value to its worth in apparel and home textiles.

Backstage banter
Natural plastic may sound oxymoronic, but US researchers have created just that! Poly-lactic acid from corn (yes, the cereal crop!) can be processed into filament fibres, producing fabrics resembling synthetic fleece, but without using petroleum products. Being touted as an alternative to polyester, corn has manufacturers swearing by its strength, drape and moisture retention. And the fabric, after use, can be disposed as – hold your breath – compost!

‘What’s in your glass is in your clothes’– could be another catchy T-shirt slogan. No, not your favourite bar beverage (at least not yet), but what your mother forced you to drink when you were little – milk! Before you faint (I almost did), you should probably know that this is Hollywood’s latest spa craze. The thin but tough crust forming over milk led to another brilliant brainwave by some observant genius and voila! Often mixed with cashmere, it is soft, luxurious and porous, with moisturising properties; so it is like wearing body lotion. A natural choice for innerwear.

Corn and milk, and now banana and pineapple (a complete breakfast)! Small scale textile industries in South India and the Philippines are creating handcrafted banana textiles for home décor, packaging and some apparel. Piña (pineapple fabric) is traditional Filipino exotica, which is now being imported by fashion giants like Calvin Klein. At present, laborious (but very eco-friendly) manufacturing processes have retained their niche status.

In the pipeline
A pair of socks created in Japan caused a furore some time back. Why? Because the material was spider-silk! Arachnophobes may shudder at the thought of web-apparel, but gossamer (spider secretion) is an extraordinary substance – as fine and light as silk, having the stretch of nylon, with almost 30 times the strength of Kevlar (strongest fibre known to man)! Though large scale production is extremely difficult due to the cannibalistic nature of spiders, small amounts of spider silk can be used in surgeries for tissue and tendon repairs. The US military is funding research and development of blends, for future army uniforms.

Viscose might just be replaced by lyocell, which is also made from wood pulp cellulose, but with a ‘cleaner’ manufacturing process (does not release toxic compounds like carbon disulphide and caustic soda), releasing chemicals of lower toxicity, 99 per cent of which are reused in a closed loop process. Like viscose, lyocell drapes beautifully, feels rich and dyes well. Art silk strikes again.

The twist in the tale
Can we rest our conscience, feel happy and celebrate with a drink (not milk)? There is no simple answer. Already, chemical washes for bamboo fabrics are raising objections. Mass production is depleting the primary food source of the panda, which is already an endangered species. Soy fibre also requires a chemical-intensive manufacturing process (closed-loop), and much of the South American forests have been cleared to cultivate soy for animal fodder and tofu.

There are more. Genetically engineering a food crop like corn to transform it into a cash crop would have to counter some resistance. And whether ‘cleaner’ or not, the core concept of using slow-growing, hardwood trees to produce fabrics like lyocell does not sit well with green brigades. Reports of goats being injected with spider venom to produce small quantities of silk protein through milk are disturbing.

The biggest issue is still the perennial theory of supply and demand and therein lies the rub. To mass-promote alternative natural fabrics, more availability is imperative, thereby increasing production and reducing costs, and in turn, prices. Recent polls in the US show that consumers are willing to pay up to 10 per cent more for eco/ethical/organic clothing. But even then, would the concept of ecological sustainability remain true if large-scale manufacturing takes the same old fibre route?

‘Relativity’ is the key here. Agreed, there is a con to each pro, but compared to giant-scale cotton cultivation requirements, the resources, costs and consequences are lower for this alternative brigade, and so far, they seem to be the ‘lesser evil’. Perhaps, a larger variety of materials would create preference segments, allowing controllable cultivation of each crop and encouraging balanced consumption. Considering the alternative, careful and calculated trial and error are the only ways to find out.

India View
Though India is a major cultivator and manufacturer of bamboo, soy, nettle, banana and pineapple, most of the fabric is used for export purposes – either in yardage form or as finished products.
A percentage of the profit made from nettle scarves sold abroad is used to help support women's cooperative societies in the Himalayas. These items are treated as craft exports, manufactured by cottage industries.

Bombay Dyeing has a range of bamboo and soy bath towels in their premium home range, available at select retail outlets across the country.
Mumbai based Mandhana Industries, headed by Manish Mandhana, are manufacturing bamboo and hemp apparel, mainly for export to large international brands.
Naina's Apparel Private Limited, another Mumbai-based export house, have featured jute excel, ramie, hemp, bamboo and soy in their collections (for retail and export), but in limited pieces, due to higher manufacturing costs.

Designers Dev r Nil have worked with bamboo blends to create uniforms for a Kolkata-based hotel.
Samant Chauhan has used Ahimsa Silk (a new method of silk manufacture without killing the silkworm) in his previous collections and represented India at the Paris Ethical Fashion Week.

Site Search

www.fibre2fashion.com
www.bharattextile.com
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