Green Guide: Eco Fabric Choices

Producing fabrics for everyday use can often be a process that involves dangerous pesticides. We use fabrics not only for our clothing, but for furniture upholstering, bed linens, car seats, table cloths, curtains, dog bedding etc... The use of organic fabrics is on the rise and manufactures of products using organic fabrics are placing their products in more readily available places. You can find bamboo sheets, and organic cotton towels in your big discount stores as easily as you find cereal in the supermarket now. The use of pesticides is slowly damaging Earth's ozone, however the new options in fabrics can slow this down if everyone chooses fabrics smartly. Natural fabrics can even be found in craft stores if you are a person that likes to craft their own designs.

So how do you choose what organic fabric to go with? First you have to look at the different types. The first and most common fabric is organic cotton. Organic cotton is cotton grown without the aid of pesticides. The label alone may lead you to believe that this is the best choice however you have to look at all aspect of the fabric, including color. You may not think anything of it but the color is often what makes you choose one fabric over another. water based dyes, or natural colored cotton of course would be the greener choice

Bamboo is another green option. Bamboo is a fast growing plant that can be harvested and grown under sustainable measures. Since the plants grow fast they replace themselves fast making it a crop that has a fast turnover time and thus making its very attractive option in the green scheme of things. Bamboo can be spun into fabric, and you can even find pillows with bamboo stuffing. The second natural advantage to this fabric is that it naturally repels microbes and is excellent for people with allergies.

Silk fabrics, although pricey are a great Eco-friendly option. Silk is a naturally occurring resource from the planet, more specifically the larvae of the silk moth. Silk takes extra care to maintain, but feels luxurious against the skin. If you can afford to use silks in your wardrobe or home furnishings it is a great green way to go. Unlike petroleum based fabrics, silk is completely biodegradable once we had gotten our use of the fabric.

Whatever you personal style is, there are fabrics out there to match it. Most fabrics that are Eco-friendly are so like regular fabrics that you are used to that it is hard to tell them apart. Even soda bottles can be spun into fabric. So until you shop for and feel the fabrics in your hand, don't be quick to judge the growing amounts of fabrics out there that are healthier for you and the environment.