From the category archives:

Clothing

Ultra-Efficient Design Meets Low-Impact Manufacturing: Patagonia Wetsuits

May 7, 2009

If you’re not a surfer or a diver, a wetsuit may seem like a fairly specialized or even obscure piece of equipment. But once in a while, a product arrives on the market that’s noteworthy not only for how well it performs its job, but also for how it’s designed and produced. Such is the [...]

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Old Running Shoes Never Die – But Brooks BioMoGo Really Does Fade Away

March 9, 2009

A critical aspect of a product’s “efficiency” involves not just what it does, but also where it comes from and where it goes after its useful life. Brooks has taken an innovative step to improve the life-cycle efficiency of its running shoes with its biodegradable BioMoGo cushioning material.

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Five Efficient T-Shirts Of 2008

December 7, 2008

Just a couple years ago, a simple organic cotton T-shirt wasn’t so easy to find. Now, with Quicksilver, H&M, and even Forever 21 getting into the green fashion business, eco-friendly T-shirts are a dime a dozen. Still, finding well-fitting and stylish T-shirts made using fair labour can take some work — especially if you’re interested [...]

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Efficient Jeans: Those Made With Organic Cotton Or Hemp

November 4, 2008

Efficient jeans are still hard to find. Conventionally grown cotton requires more pesticides to grow than any other crop. The more efficient method is to grow organic cotton or hemp. The surf company Reef makes some good organic cotton jeans, like their Heritage Jeans (shown above), their Philosopher Jeans and Heritage Cords. Outdoor clothing company [...]

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The Most Efficient Material For Cold Weather: Merino Wool

October 28, 2008

Merino wool is the most efficient material for cold weather. Merino wool is softer than regular wool, and it feels more like cotton against the skin. Merino wool resists wind and warms better than synthetic materials. It doesn’t absorb odors and it regulates body temperature. It is also produced in a sustainable manner.
The jacket pictured [...]

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Icebreaker: Efficient Wool T-Shirts For Warm Weather

April 17, 2008

Icebreaker, a New Zealand company, is proving that wool can be worn in warm weather. They have released a new line of  “ultra-fine” merino wool T-shirts.  I’ve been testing their Tech T Lite while biking, it has performed quite admirably in the heat — it keeps you cool, and retains less odor than a cotton [...]

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Nike’s “Trash Talk” Shoe Made With Manufacturing Waste

February 28, 2008

Steve Nash is the All-Star guard for the Phoenix Suns has forged a partnership with Nike to create the Nike Trash Talk, a basketball shoe made from manufacturing waste. The “waste” comes Nike’s own production facilities—scraps that would otherwise have been discarded. The Trash Talk is modeled after Steve Nash’s current shoe, the Nike Zoom [...]

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Cocona: A Fabric Enhancer Derived From Coconuts

November 23, 2007

Cocona is a natural fabric enhancer that is made with activated carbon. The activated carbon is derived from coconut husks — it is a “waste” product of the water filter industry. But what does Cocona do exactly? It is said to help traditional fabrics resist moisture, control odor and shield ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Activated carbon [...]

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Optimal: Making Manufacturing Processes Transparent: Patagonia

November 3, 2007

Patagonia is really a leader in effective, green manufacturing. Now the company is making its manufacturing processes as transparent as possible. Patagonia has created a web site called the Footprint Chronicles, where you can track the eco “footprint” of several pieces of Patagonian clothing. Also listed in the amount of waste and CO2 generated as [...]

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Merino Wool: Optimal Green Winter Material

October 22, 2007

Merino wool is an optimal green material for use in winter. In contrast to most other synthetic materials that are commonly used to make winter garb, it is quite sustainable. It’s softer than regular wool, resists wind, regulates body temperature, and warms better than synthetic material. Some good maker of natural merino wool clothing are [...]

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Efficient: 100% Corn-Based Clothing Hangers

October 16, 2007

Clothing hangers should not be made out of plastic. These Earthsaver clothing hangers are made from 100% corn grown in the U.S., and they are manufactured in the U.S. by Merrick. However, conventionally grown corn involves the use of many of pesticides and artificial fertilizers. Organically grown corn would be more effective. Better still would [...]

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Highly Efficient Hemp Shoes by Lafuma

September 30, 2007

This shoe, the Greenley 2 by Lafuma, is built with highly effective and sustainble materials. The uppers are made of hemp and the lining is a cotton canvas. The shoe also has a removable footbed of tanned leather (made without VI chromium or latex), and natural rubber sole. It is part of Lafuma’s Pure Leaf [...]

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Sweet: Jeans Made Out of Sugar Cane

April 4, 2007

A Japanese company is making jeans out of a blend of sugar cane and selvage denim. The cane used is Sweet Sorghum, otherwise known as Sweet Millet. It’s a type of grass grown all over the world for making a molasses-like syrup and animal feed. The Sugarcane jeans that feature this fiber have a faint [...]

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Nau: Eco-Effective Outdoor Clothing

February 27, 2007

Good news: Nau just opened their online store. Nau is a company that uses only eco-effective materials to construct their clothing, including a number of materials that they developed themselves from the ground up. Nau also closely monitors the production process of the clothing, to ensure good labor practices and environmental standards. Via Groovy Green

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Efficient Merino Wool Clothing by SmartWool

November 13, 2006

SmartWool specializes in creating 100% merino wool activewear. I’ve worn some Smartwool clothing for a couple of years now, and it still looks new — it’s hasn’t piled or worn. The merino wool is much softer against the skin than regular wool, it feels similar to thick silk. Here’s some other reasons why I think [...]

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New Sustainable Women’s Hemp T-Shirts

March 19, 2006

Fair Hemp has released some new women’s tees priced at $14.95. The shirt are made with 55% hemp and 45% organic cotton, and colored with eco-friendly dyes. They are soft, stylish and comfortable, and sweatshop and pesticide free. Fair Hemp says the fabric is pre-washed for broken-in softness and shrinkage control, so these shirts won’t [...]

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MetaEfficient: Hemp Socks

February 21, 2006

Hemp is the most efficient material for socks: it’s durable, it breathes better than all other plant fibers and it’s more resistant to bacteria than cotton. It’s also grown a environmentally sound manner without pesticides. All of these factors give it the edge in terms of sock efficiency. Usually, the hemp fiber is blended with [...]

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The Perfect T-Shirt

February 15, 2006

What’s the perfect T-Shrit? Is it this one? Better Thinking, a product think-tank in the UK, has set a challenge to create a garment with world’s lowest eco-footprint, taking everything into consideration to create “‘The Perfect T-Shirt“. They’ve set up a forum to share ideas, knowledge and opinions. They also have a blog which tracks [...]

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Metaefficient: Merino Wool and Loden Wool Jackets

February 14, 2006

Merino wool qualifies as a metaefficient material. It’s softer than regular wool, resists wind, regulates body temperature, and warms better than any synthetic material.

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Soybu: A Bamboo and Soy Bathrobe

December 7, 2005

The Colorado Trading Company has created a fabric they call “Soybu” which is a blend of bamboo fiber and soy fiber. The fiber feels like cashmere — it’s soft and buttery. I haven’t tried Soybu, but I have a bamboo fiber blanket. I’m impressed by the warmth and texture of the material. Two Soybu [...]

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