The Tamesis
It was clear to him that polyester could be valuable. “Not all fabrics are created equal. Time is money and the time it takes a manufacturer to create any fabric is part of the cost and therefore part of the final retail price when purchased by a third party,” explains Gaia. “Weaving techniques, dyeing, embroidery, finishing treatments and ingredients all play a role in the creation of synthetic or natural products.”
Cangioli agrees: “In these cases, the value is not in the raw material itself, but in the design, engineering and craftsmanship applied to the raw material. Consumers may question the high price point, but the cost of a garment is determined by more than just fiber content.” Postrel believes that “polyester is not evil. It is not toxic. Polyester production emits carbon dioxide and water. But all things considered, its environmental impact is no worse than competing fibers, especially cotton, which requires a lot of land and water.”
Earley believes that issues surrounding natural fabrics are often overlooked. “I want to be surrounded by linens, muslins, silks and cashmere. They are the loveliest materials, but none of them are lightweight on the planet,” she said, drawing attention to the dangers of cotton and viscose production. Earley believes it all comes down to processing: “You can get a good quality polyester […]and you may encounter low-quality cotton. Using polyester in high fashion makes perfect sense. But we need to have a massive battle working with people to understand how to use it in better ways. “Similarly, if all brands suddenly abandoned polyester and reverted to cotton, the impact on the environment would be huge.
It is hoped that the recycled polyester used by Prada, Ganni and Stella McCartney will provide a glimmer of hope. Unifi has converted 46 billion plastic bottles into Repreve fiber, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 41% compared to virgin polyester. “Our recycling platform helps brands create new products without using new materials, which reduces Repreve’s environmental impact compared to virgin polyester across multiple categories,” said Melissa Henkle, Director of Brand Sales and Marketing at Unifi.
Don’t kill McGonagall’s Moorman was less encouraged. “Recycled polyethylene comes primarily from plastic water bottles, which is in some ways worse,” she said. “Recycling plastic bottles into polyester sounds circular, but it’s not – it takes the bottle out of the existing recycling system, converts it into a form that cannot be recycled again, and still sheds microplastics every time it is washed.” Additionally, recycled fibers are typically shorter than virgin fibers and therefore of lower quality.
Still, Earley is optimistic: “It’s much better […] We have the potential to create recycling cycles that actually work. “Various cutting-edge developments are currently progressing, including Carbios’ enzymatically recycled polyester and Kintra Fibers’ bio-based polyester; whether they are scalable is another question. Currently, recycled polyester is a semi-circular solution.
Well, Fakemink’s opinion is relatively true. Through public relations and design ingenuity, polyester can be dressed up as chic fabrics. Undoubtedly, it also has applications in form and function. But for now at least, the fabric’s unsustainable nature necessitates extreme sparing in its use and purchase, and is best thought of as a long flight from clothing shopping.
