Bamboo, Coconut, Cork: New “Green” Materials of Fashion

Article written by: Angela L. Serrette
Posted on: May 19, 2009

Natural Cork Pumps by Maison Martin Margiela $545.00
Coconut Shell Bag $ 1,250.00
Bamboo Spa Slippers $110.00
Natural Cork Blazer $2,500.00
Bamboo Designer T-Shirt $325.00

No this is not a joke. These are real apparel items that can be purchased and worn OR in some cases if extreme, will become collector’s items. Sustainable, Eco-fashion is a growing philosophy embraced by designers across the retail spectrum.

Environmentally-friendly fashion is serious and is already big business, from baby clothes to real estate developers who create “Green Living” residential homes and corporate buildings. Preserving the earth and responsibly utilizing our natural resources to improve life, and enhancing sustainability is fast becoming de rigueur.  Manufacturing plans are starting to take into consideration the environmental and social impact a product will have during its lifecycle.

Fashion designers, textile mills, architects, corporations, retailers, real estate developers, label makers, paper manufacturers, car manufacturers to name a few and everyday people like you and I have embraced saving the earth. This movement has helped put a new spin on the functionality of exotic materials, such as organic cotton, hemp, coconut, cork and bamboo.  And of course fashion is using the world as its global runway to showcase a fresh perspective on textile design, creativity and partnering with the consumer’s new green life style.

Our society is built on convenience, but responsibility is replacing the “use once-throw away” attitude.  After years of waste and suffering the consequences of toxins in the air, ever expanding landfills reaching into our backyards, water pollutants in our streams, reduced tree population, pesticides in foods and airwaves filled with traces of radioactivity we’ve learned our lesson.  Not to mention shrinking land and ever expanding human population. Oh yes, lets not forget about the gas prices, oil development, mom & pop shops struggling to meet energy bills and auto manufacturers racing to save their companies.  I’d say we’re long overdue for being responsible.  Today we can look fashionable while participating to save the earth and our resources.

Fashion giants such as Donna Karan, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Donatelle Versace, YSL’s Stefano Pilati were among two dozen top designers who participated in the Fall 08/09 Earth Pledge Fashion Show using organic materials such as vegetable dyes, technically advanced fibers derived from soybean, bamboo, banana leaves and hemp.  The fashion industry is serious about organic living and so is the consumer. Retailers are listening and offering everything from all natural mattress with a wood frame to stationery made of rock paper by Greg Barber Co. in New Jersey, apparel hang tags made of cork by Allworld Labels, U.S. and baby hats made of bamboo yarn.

And Hip Hop mogul Pharrell Williams is launching a new eco-friendly textile company called Bio Yarns which will manufacture textiles made from recycled plastic bottles. This is another take on responsible recycling-even man made not just organic.

Does this mean manmade fibers will be completely eliminated?  Of course not, these fibers/ materials serve as a vital part of society and evolution. But we have expanded our material usage to the exotic fibers soon becoming household names. As a people we have decided to look at natural resources as a new way to improve lifestyle responsibly, become self reliant, express talent, plan for the future and respect the earth’s rich resources which are all around us.

Lets not forget organic cotton has been in the forefront for the past few years and herald for being grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticides.  As per Earth’s Pledge, a non- profit organization 8000 chemicals are used to turn raw materials into textiles with 25% of the world’s insecticides and over 10% of the world’s pesticides used to grow non-organic cotton.  In 2007 as much as 265,517 bales of organic cotton was produced in 24 countries and world wide production is predicted to grow at an impressive rate of 50% per year!  This is good news since non-organic cotton production uses more chemicals than any other fiber and accounts for 16% of the world’s pesticides.  Apparel companies such as Patagonia, People Tree, Stella McCartney, American Apparel Organics among others are on the bandwagon for organic fashion. Even their garment hang tags promote their green causes and environmental benefits.

Bamboo dresses swayed down the runway, coconut shell handbags are a steal at $545, and a designer cork jacket can be yours for $2500–$4000. OK, the prices aren’t “wallet-friendly”, but these are just examples. There are everyday items at lower prices that utilize the same materials we can all purchase. But fashion always makes a “splash for attention”.  To some this may look frivolous, but read between the lines, preservation is becoming a way of life in all areas of business. We do pay more attention to food labels, and energy saving tips, ways to reduce cost and to maximize safety and comfort at home for our families.

We’ve evolved to become educated consumers with the power to dictate trends based on our lifestyle needs. Whimsical fashion is fun to look at but as a society and consumer driven nation we no longer allow “flash in the pan fashion” to dictate our purchasing power.  We’re in the drivers seat and retailers, manufacturers and designers are listening.

And we pay more attention to garment care labels:
100% Organic Cotton
Bamboo Cotton Blend
Made from Soybean
Made from Coconut Shells
Pure Cork

It may sound funny, but fashion has taken organic living and going green seriously. Green Fashion is here to stay—and we like it that way!!!