I was one of those people who thought that manufacturers were not “allowed” to sell me any product that contained something that might harm me. As I quickly learned, that’s basically not true in the United States – especially with respect to fabrics. The EU is light years ahead of the US with their REACH program, …
Since I’ve managed to figure out how to embed videos in the blog, I can’t seem to help showing you some of the most electrifying clips I’ve seen. This is one of them – please watch it! Filmmaker Penelope Jagessar Chaffer was curious about the chemicals she was exposed to while pregnant: Could they affect …
Design decisions influence our health. Our children start life with umbilical cords infused with chemicals that affect the essence of human life itself – the ability to learn, reason and reproduce. Google’s project coordinator for real estate, Anthony Ravitz, said that Google is trying to use safe building materials because: By focusing on the “health …
It looks like the plastic bottle is here to stay, despite publicity about bisphenol A and other chemicals that may leach into liquids inside the bottle. Plastic bottles (the kind that had been used for some kind of consumer product) are the feedstock for what is known as “post-consumer recycled polyester”. Even though plastic recycling appears …
I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve been told: “I’ve been an interior designer for (insert number of years here) and in all that time, not one person has ever asked for a “green” fabric!” Or the popular variation: “my clients don’t care about “green”. The implication, of course, is that I’m …
Last week we talked about the use of salt in textile dyeing. We always say the textile industry uses a LOT of three resources: water, chemicals and energy. The use of salt (a chemical – benign, essential for life, but a chemical nevertheless) bumps up the other two considerably. And though the salt itself is …
I just came from showing our fabrics to a well-known interior design firm here in Seattle. We were told that the only criteria they use to pick fabrics is that it must be beautiful – and of the right color. Environmental and safety issues are just NOT part of the equation. The visit was not …
OEcotextiles 