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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.

Circularity Materials

Marine Micro Fibres: Moving from Conversation to Action

October 27, 2016

The effect of plastics in our oceans has been repeatedly hit in the news over the last few years. A hazard in two forms: as a plastic in totality; or as a microfiber/micro particle, which also carries chemistry (pollution) into the environment, from the product they started life as. Research to date shows that this pollution cannot be exhaustively blocked through wastewater treatment plants, consequently micro particles are ending up in our global waterways.

Consumer-ism Definitions Materials

The World for Sale (… or ‘of ‘ sale?)

January 2, 2011

The task was easy, so one would think: Shop for a sensible winter-apt overcoat as ethically as possible and at a reduced budget. But nothing is easy in fashion!

Brand Portraits Materials

Sawang Boran and the Isan silk weavers – A social community business in Thailand

September 13, 2010

Sawang Boran is a social community business in the Thailand. They use traditional skills to produce high-quality hand-woven silk ikat fabric made of golden Isan silk.

Circularity Consumer-ism Globalisation Materials

Where does all the clothing go? – Insights from academic research, but without the jargon

February 2, 2012

The 'Everything must go' exhibition, that took place from January 20 to 22, 2012, introduced the wider public to the details of the global value chain for discarded clothing. Drawing from the results of 5 years of research, the numbers and facts are staggering, and intriguing at the same time.

Biz Strategy Circularity Consumer-ism Definitions Finance Materials

Straight Talk: ESG is Not ‘Sustainability’

November 3, 2020

Financial accounting is rather ill suited as well as ill equipped to deal properly with a system that has finite natural resources. Else, why would it not record the environmental losses that come with e.g. extracting bauxite? And what about ESG? Well it turns out, ESG is just more of the same (growth) just in a shade of ‘green’. It is for a reason that the Global Materials Footprint has kept growing in alignment with the much coveted GDP growth. Despite all green efforts. ESG – investing in ‘greener’ tech and businesses – is definitely NOT ‘Sustainability’ as we need it.

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'.

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.

Circularity Materials Trade Shows

Performance Wear: Leading the way of innovation and development in textiles

May 15, 2013

Like its larger sister ISPO – normally taking place at the end of January or the beginning of February, half way between the two Fashion Week cycles – Performance Days feature a high-end portfolio of performance and sports wear manufacturers, many of which actively develop and push the innovation agenda of their industry.

Brand Review Materials Supply Chain

Better Business series: C&A

July 9, 2013

C&A, part of the Cofra Holding that owns C&A Europe, Brazil, Mexico and China, has been a family business since 1841. The company is quite conservative in communicating corporate responsibility achievements. Their style of communication appears to be more emotional than factual. The company has been awarded the Textile Exchange Future Shaper award in 2012 recognising the company’s commitment to promoting the analysis and certification of organic cotton and textiles.

Definitions Materials

Upcycling, Recycling, Downcycling: Definitions sorted, challenges remain

February 7, 2013

For most of us within the small professional circles of sustainable fashion, the terms ‘upcycling’, ‘recycling’, and ‘downcycling’ flow aeasy over our lips. However, while there are a few simple definitions of what these terms means – to follow hereafter – the concept demands a bit more attention when drilling down into material streams related to fibres, in particular

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.

Materials Supply Chain

Sustainable fashion: What with hangers?!

June 19, 2011

What about environmentally-friendly alternatives to the common plastic clothing hangers? An analysis of the market, & concrete products that help solve the dilemma.

Book Reviews Circularity Consumer-ism Materials Supply Chain

A T-shirt that means the world

October 15, 2010

"The Travels of a T-shirt in the Global Economy" takes the exemplary T-shirt, and takes us on a journey to discover its origins. From Texas, to China, to the US again, and then to the second-hand trade in Africa.

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.

Materials Trade Shows

Review: Future Fabrics Expo 2012

December 24, 2012

The second Future Fabrics Expo was hosted at the London College of Fashion on November 7th – 9th 2013, and was attended by a rather large number designers, buyers and students. Roughly 650 fabrics with a reduced environmental impact stemming from around 50 textile mills world-wide, were showcased, along with inspirational and/or interactive videos and information panels.

Circularity Consumer-ism Materials

Creating a Used Clothing Recycling System in Japan

August 25, 2011

The amount of textile products thrown away, incinerated using fuel, or sent to the landfill in Japan comes to about 1.97 million tons per year. Contrary to other materials, for textile products, however, there is no nationwide recycling law in place.

Materials Supply Chain

Material Traceability 101: An short intro for apparel brands

January 8, 2014

Traceability can be implemented at three different levels of stringency. Which level is implemented typically depends on the exact needs (technical, quality), legal and customer requirements – and last but not least also on the budget available.

Future Tech Materials

Will Europe become the biggest research centre for smart textiles?

January 2, 2013

After 10 years in the make, CETI, the European Centre for Innovative Textiles, was finally inaugurated in October 2012. The aim of the research centre is to give the textile industry a platform to research and prototype innovative textiles that can be used in sectors like: Medical, Sport & Leisure, Hygiene, and Protection sectors representing 25% of technical textile manufacturing industry; building and civil engineering that account for 10% of the production; transport making 26% of the market volume (and 15% of the market value) of technical textiles.

Brand Portraits Materials

Living Textile Craftsmanship – A Story of Masters and Students

December 29, 2011

Bryan Whitehead is one of the few remaining textile craftsmen in Japan who not only rears his own silk, but masters the whole textile process. Just as he as learned from seasoned crafts people, he now hands his knowledge on to his students. A plea to best of craftsmen and women cherish their expertise by teaching.

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

Materials

StGall – 800 years of luxury lace work: A homage

Marine Micro Fibres: Moving from Conversation to Action

The World for Sale (… or ‘of ‘ sale?)

Where does all the clothing go? – Insights from academic research, but without the jargon

Straight Talk: ESG is Not ‘Sustainability’

Performance Wear: Leading the way of innovation and development in textiles

Better Business series: C&A

Upcycling, Recycling, Downcycling: Definitions sorted, challenges remain

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

Sustainable fashion: What with hangers?!

A T-shirt that means the world

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

Review: Future Fabrics Expo 2012

Creating a Used Clothing Recycling System in Japan

Will Europe become the biggest research centre for smart textiles?

Living Textile Craftsmanship – A Story of Masters and Students

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