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Materials

StGall – 800 years of luxury lace work: A homage

August 11, 2011

Laces have been a firm part of haute-couture since the medieval, and the fabric still is, and always has been, a luxury product. The StGall exhibition in Switzerland pays tribute to 800 years of lace work featuring the best of European textile artisanry and technology.

Brand Portraits Materials Supply Chain

Stephen Walters & Sons Ltd, 9th generation silkweavers

April 6, 2012

Julius Walters of Stephen Walters & Sons is a ninth generation weaver of a family business founded 1720. This is the company that wove the silk for the Queen’s coronation robes and for Princess Diana’s wedding dress.

Luxury Materials Supply Chain

Luxury & Endangered Species

July 13, 2012

The reaping (black market) trade in reptile skins for the luxury fashion and accessories market is an openly talked about, albeit ugly, reality of the present. The recently published UNCTAD BioTrade report and toolkit provides useful and pragmatic info for designers.

Circularity Future Tech Materials

Circular Economies: The past, the present – and the future?

April 11, 2013

The term ‘circular economy’ has recently been – again – converted into a buzz word. To some extent there are a couple of good reasons for that as both common sense as well as the Ellen McArthur foundation's most recent report prove.

Circularity Materials Supply Chain

One man’s woolly waste is another man’s woollen treasure

June 11, 2018

Wool is slowly recovering some of its former popularity. While for some it is an old acquaintance, for many others in our industry, and in this current time and age, it is a new, or maybe better novel, material for the portfolio. And what about Recycled Wool? This report answers many of the key questions.

Brand Portraits Materials

The Huguenots – spiritual fathers of ‘Made in Britain’

May 2, 2013

The British textile industry, chances are, never would have reached its former pre-offshoring movement glory if it was not for immigrants. In fact, if it had not been for the Huguenot influence on silk weaving – and by means of cross-fertilisation, cotton and wool – the industry would have served a pure domestic purpose for the 18th, 19th and first half of the 20th century.

Materials Supply Chain

Is the leather industry next in line for a ‘Detox’?

January 6, 2013

In Medieval times the location of a tannery was heavily based on the requirements of a nearby river or stream, cattle which could supply the hide, and of course oak trees which would supply the bark needed for the tanning process. In the present, because of the demand for luxury at the cheapest possible prices, the industry is pushed out to where it is easier to ignore the moral and environmental reek.

Brand Portraits Materials Supply Chain

Portugal’s Cork Industry is Trading up (Part 1 of 2)

October 31, 2012

Cork is one of the most sustainable natural materials extant. Portugal supplies about two thirds of the world's cork, but the increased use of plastic bottle stoppers for wine, instead of cork, poses a threat to the country's industry. This post presents some data around cork and describes the bigger picture. The follow up post will look at how innovative uses of cork find application in fashion.

Book Reviews Labels Materials

Spotlight on labels: Cradle to Cradle Practitioners in Apparel and Textiles

July 19, 2013

The Cradle to Cradle (C2C) idea has been around for a good decade now, longer if we’d track it right back to its inception. The first C2C fabric was developed sometime in the early 2000s, and flies now around the world as upholstery fabric on the A380 Airbus models.

Consumer-ism Materials

What I also talk about, when I talk about knitting

April 22, 2011

Wanting to buy hobby knitting yarn more ethically is a difficult undertaking. Read what why it can be problematic, and 'do good by doing better'.

Handbook of sustainable textile production

Book Reviews Materials Supply Chain

Know thy facts: A handbook for textile sustainability practitioners

June 6, 2013

The textile supply and production chain is complex. With this in mind, the ‘Handbook of sustainable textile production‘ is a unique resources: bit fosters knowledge acquisition across the different disciplines and specialities in the textile production chain, it prepares the ground for a factual, holistic discourse, and dissemination of best practise.

Materials Supply Chain

Italy: High-end Fashion Mekka – also for sustainability?

April 24, 2014

Italy. Known for the style of its inhabitants, the quality and sharp cut of its suits, the inventiveness of its fashion designers, the quality of its fabrics. Yet, if we were to talk sustainability in textiles and fashion, what is going on on the ground?

Materials Supply Chain Trade Shows

London Fashion Week February 2011: D3 – Sourcing = Knowing + Acting

February 21, 2011

London Fashion Week 02/2011 - Day 3: Sourcing ethically is all about knowledge. It's primarily about livelihoods and survival, beyond the 'Human-Rights factor'.

Materials Supply Chain

Portugal’s Cork Industry is Trading up (Part 2 of 2)

November 14, 2012

Cork is one of the most sustainable natural materials extant. Portugal supplies about two thirds of the world's cork, but the industry has been under pressure in the past few decades. This post shows how innovative companies have found application for the material in the realm of fashion.

Circularity Materials

Made to Last – The life of a yukata

July 26, 2011

This article has originally been published online by ‘Japan for Sustainability’ (JFS) on May 30, 2005. It is the 1st...

Biz Strategy Book Reviews Circularity Materials Supply Chain

Love the children of all species for all time

March 23, 2010

“When you do something wrong, don’t try improve upon it.” Instead you go back to design of a product, and fix the problem right where it went wrong in first place

Brand Portraits Materials

Connecting People and Color – Lilou’s color quest

March 1, 2012

“The raison d'être of Lilou is my desire to connect people with 'their' colour. I wanted to take the opportunity and expose people to their colour, the ones that make them feel relaxed, energized, happy, motivated..." says Ingrid Vercruyssen, the textile designer behind Lilou.

Brand Portraits Materials

Shazia Saleem – Varanasi’s hand woven brocade in couture

July 14, 2011

Interview with Shazia Saleem, a London-based couture fashion designer, who specialises in hand woven textiles & works in cooperation with Varanasi brocade hand weavers.

Book Reviews Consumer-ism Labour Materials

Clean Clothes – the consumer’s eco fashion guidebook, made in Germany

September 7, 2011

'Clean clothes' is THE German eco fashion book, already published in 2009. It is pragmatic yet radical, with plenty of hands on tips and explanation you need to understand how and why to change your wardrobe.

Brand Portraits Materials Supply Chain

Indigo Blue – The Colour of Opportunity in El Salvador

August 15, 2013

Indigo is probably the most famous of all dye stuffs. Hacienda Los Nacimientos is one of only 2 farms world wide that produce certified organic Indigo, and is located in El Salavador. The farm's story reaches far back, and is marked by the years the country suffered from a violent guerilla civil war.

Future Fit Industries of 'Stuff': Governance, Responsibility, and the Age of Doughnut Economics

Materials

StGall – 800 years of luxury lace work: A homage

Stephen Walters & Sons Ltd, 9th generation silkweavers

Luxury & Endangered Species

Circular Economies: The past, the present – and the future?

One man’s woolly waste is another man’s woollen treasure

The Huguenots – spiritual fathers of ‘Made in Britain’

Is the leather industry next in line for a ‘Detox’?

Portugal’s Cork Industry is Trading up (Part 1 of 2)

Spotlight on labels: Cradle to Cradle Practitioners in Apparel and Textiles

What I also talk about, when I talk about knitting

Know thy facts: A handbook for textile sustainability practitioners

Italy: High-end Fashion Mekka – also for sustainability?

Portugal’s Cork Industry is Trading up (Part 2 of 2)

Made to Last – The life of a yukata

Love the children of all species for all time

Connecting People and Color – Lilou’s color quest

Shazia Saleem – Varanasi’s hand woven brocade in couture

Clean Clothes – the consumer’s eco fashion guidebook, made in Germany

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