{"id":2295,"date":"2020-05-11T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-11T02:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/?p=2295"},"modified":"2020-04-22T11:01:36","modified_gmt":"2020-04-22T03:01:36","slug":"introduction-to-natural-fibers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/introduction-to-natural-fibers\/","title":{"rendered":"Introduction to natural fibers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The fashion industry\ncontributes to high pollution owing to some of the following reasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Firstly, the intensive\nfabric wastage in fashion garment production has left landfills full of fabrics\nwith a shortage of places for disposal. &nbsp;There is also a huge amount of toxic waste\ngenerated from illegal fabric dyeing plants polluting rivers, including the\nproduction and incineration of polyester fabrics (synthetic&nbsp;fabric&nbsp;that\nis usually derived from petroleum). <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All of these processes\nhave caused great damage to the environment. As the world is gearing towards\nsustainability, the same applies for the fashion industry, where the use of\nnatural fibers is extremely encouraged due to its biodegradability, and ability\nto be recycled. Natural fibers also tend to last longer than man-made\/polyester\nfabrics. Furthermore, in this sweltering Singapore heat, natural fibers are a much\nbetter option compared to polyester fabrics as natural fibers allow\nbreathability of garments, thus making it more comfortable for wearers. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Listed below are some commonly found natural fibers, which you can find at your local clothing store!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol><li><strong>Cotton<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Cotton is one of the\nmost popular and versatile type of fabric available today. You see it in so\nmany products, as they are durable, breathable, and very easy to care for. It\nis derived from the cotton plant, which is a soft, fluffy&nbsp;staple&nbsp;fibre&nbsp;that\ngrows in a&nbsp;boll, or protective case, around the seeds of cotton plants. The\nfibre is then&nbsp;spun&nbsp;into&nbsp;yarn&nbsp;or thread and weaved into textiles.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Linen-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2297\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Linen-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Linen-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Linen-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Linen-400x300.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Linen-800x600.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Linen.jpg 1056w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Linen<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Linen is the oldest\nknown fabric. Derived from a flax plant, this type of fabric resists sunlight,\nis washable, taut, and also non-allergenic. Linen though laborious to\nmanufacture, is much sturdier, more absorbent and dries faster than cotton. This\nis why linen is commonly found not just in garments, but also bedding and sofa\ncovers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"866\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Silk.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2298\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Silk.jpg 866w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Silk-300x173.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Silk-768x443.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Silk-400x231.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 866px) 100vw, 866px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Silk<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Silk, is a natural and\nprotein based fiber derived from <em>animal. Though many animals\nhave the ability to produce silk, silk that is used in garment production is <\/em>obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of\nthe&nbsp;mulberry&nbsp;silkworm&nbsp;Bombyx\nmori. Silk is considered a luxury fabric for\nits softness, drape and sheen. &nbsp;Silk also\nhas breathable and thermal properties (keeping one cool in the summer and warm\nin the winter). However, the production of silk involves the boiling of\nsilkworms while intact in their cocoons, before unravelling the fibres and this\nhas raised ethical concerns. However, in recent times, there has been the\nproduction of \u201cAhimsa silk\u201d, or \u201cpeace silk\u201d, which allows the silkworm to\nemerge from their cocoon and complete their natural life cycle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"570\" height=\"428\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fabric-care-tag.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2299\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fabric-care-tag.jpg 570w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fabric-care-tag-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Fabric-care-tag-400x300.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 570px) 100vw, 570px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Now that we have learnt of the properties of some natural fibres, do remember to look out for the garment care tag of your next garment purchase! Remember, buying natural fibres is a start to having a more sustainable lifestyle.<br><br>This article is written by Melinda Lau from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/school-of-fashion-and-design\" class=\"rank-math-link\">School of Fashion &amp; Design<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The fashion industry contributes to high pollution owing to some of the following reasons. Firstly, the intensive fabric wastage in fashion garment production has left landfills full of fabrics with a shortage of places for disposal. &nbsp;There is also a huge amount of toxic waste generated from illegal fabric dyeing plants polluting rivers, including the production and incineration of polyester fabrics (synthetic&nbsp;fabric&nbsp;that is usually derived from petroleum). All of these processes have caused great damage to the environment. As the world is gearing towards sustainability, the same applies for the fashion industry, where the use of natural fibers is extremely [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":283,"featured_media":2296,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[14,25],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2295"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/283"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2295"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2295\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2300,"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2295\/revisions\/2300"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2296"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2295"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2295"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mdis.edu.sg\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2295"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}