Natural fabrics are the most eco friendly, organic cotton, organic linen and wool, but a new range of eco fabrics are now becoming available. Fabrics made from recycled bottles are now available from a range of companies.
Linwood have introduced their new Omega Velvet collection, their first eco velvet fabric. Omega III is now woven with recycled polyester in the pile, removing 10 large plastic bottles from the environment for every metre woven. Their new Omega velvet is also inherently FR which removes the chemical back coat for fire retardancy, which is kinder to the environment and produces a softer, low chemical, more luxurious velvet. It’s taken years of research to develop, but they wanted to produce the best plain velvet fabric – a velvet that feels good, looks good and doesn’t harm the earth. It is extremely hard wearing, a 100,000 rub test which means its also suitable for contract use.
Kirkby Design has a range of eco friendly fabrics. The Fleck collection has been re-engineered as a sustainable addition to Kirkby Design’s plains portfolio, Fleck Eco has been adapted to become a more environmentally conscious, textured chenille that retains the much-loved speckled aesthetic of the original Fleck fabric. Created from 47% Sustainable Tencel lyocell, 28% Recycled Wool, 20% Recycled Acrylic, 5% Recycled Polyester
As part of The Romo Groups commitment to reducing the impact on the environment of this collection, they have partnered with Trees for Life. For every metre of fabric sold a percentage of proceeds will be donated to support reforestation projects in the Scottish Highlands. For more information, please visit www.treesforlife.org.uk.
Linwood also have a recycled leather in their collection called Saddle. The collection is made using leather off cuts from shoes and bags, which are usually sent to landfill. It is available to buy by the metre making it a cost effective option.
These are just a few of the fabrics we have used personally and are happy to recommend. There more companies taking the initiative to offer eco friendly fabrics which is what the industry needs. Please do get in touch if you need any help or advice in choosing the fabric which suits your lifestyle.
