Materials
Guide to natural fabrics
How do we protect our health—and the planet—from the toxins found in bedding, curtains, and sofas?
Textile materials are mass-consumption products, largely due to the rise of so-called “fast fashion” in recent years, which has led to an unprecedented environmental impact that already accounts for 10% of global carbon emissions.
According to the European Environment Agency, in 2020, textile consumption per average EU resident required 400 m2 of land, 9 m3 of water, and 391 kg of raw materials, and all of this caused a carbon footprint of 270 kg of CO2 per person. [1]
For this reason, the textile industry has become one of the most controversial sectors, both in the definition of international trade agreements and due to its longstanding failure to comply with minimum labour and wage conditions and its constant offshoring.
Cotton and polyester together account for more than 80% of the textile fibres consumed annually worldwide, and both fabrics depend on petrochemical processes: in the case of conventional cotton, due to the pesticides and herbicides used for its cultivation, and in the case of polyester because it is a fibre obtained directly from petroleum. [2]
For all these reasons, choosing natural fabrics whose production processes follow the principles of sustainability is an essential practice for developing a real alternative to this global problem, which must go hand in hand with reduced consumption and the recycling of discarded textiles.
But beyond the clothes we wear, textiles are widely used in architecture and interior design: we find them in rugs, carpets, furniture upholstery, curtains, bedding, towels, etc.
In this regard, and with the aim of reducing the ecological footprint of the spaces we inhabit in line with the goals set out under the Paris Agreement, the use of natural, toxin-free, locally sourced fabrics is an essential requirement to decarbonise built spaces and the elements that make them up.
Where do the fabrics we use come from? How can we replace plastic fabrics with highly durable natural fabrics? How can we produce in closed loops that recover and add value to textile materials at the end of their service life? Which natural fabrics are most suitable for our spaces?
These are the questions we aim to answer in this article, in which we explore manufacturing processes, circularity, and the most relevant certifications, among other aspects such as the most suitable applications for each natural fabric.
Types of natural fabrics
Organic cotton, hemp, bamboo, soy, corn, seashells, algae… today, virtually any material can be used to make fabrics, but not all fabrics labelled as eco-friendly have the same properties.
The fact that they are fibres of natural origin does not mean that the processes used to obtain them cannot cause serious environmental damage.
An example is the production of non-organic cotton fabrics, which today is the crop that uses the most pesticides in the world, contributing to water pollution and biodiversity loss. That is why in this article we will refer only to its organic variety as an example of a natural fabric.
On the other hand, many plant fibres presented as alternatives, such as hemp or bamboo, can have a high ecological footprint because, due to their hard and resistant nature, they must undergo intensive treatments to become textile fibres. These processes are not always carried out organically; harmful chemicals are often used to speed up the process and reduce costs. This is without even considering the dyes and finishes that may be added afterwards, for which there are very few eco-friendly alternatives.
As always, it is important to assess the full life cycle of each production process, market placement, and end of service life, taking into account the ecological and carbon impact, but also the effects of the toxins used on people’s health and the environment.
Cotton
According to the latest studies by the OTA, the Organic Trade Association, non-organic cotton accounts for 2.4% of the world’s arable land, using approximately 25% of the pesticides used worldwide (including herbicides, insecticides, and defoliants). [3]
As we know, the health of the planet and people are closely linked, and this is precisely what Stephen Yafa, author of Big Cotton, denounces when he states that 91% of people working in cotton fields in India often fall ill due to exposure to these toxins. [4]
Given these figures, it is not difficult to imagine the high likelihood of illnesses developing as a result of the end consumer’s exposure to these toxins, in a society that spends increasing amounts of time indoors. In fact, major retail chains have already begun offering organic cotton garments—whose production process may be more than questionable—recommending them for people with sensitive skin.
Organic cotton comes from controlled, environmentally respectful crops that do not use pesticides or chemical additives in fertilisers. However, organic cotton is not a perfect solution, as it requires large amounts of water both for cultivation and washing, and in many cases it is transported across several continents to its final destination. [5]
Although cotton is widely used in clothing, it is also used in the home for bedding such as sheets and pillowcases, duvets, and mattresses. It can also be found in roller blinds and cotton curtains, as well as in towels, due to its high absorbency.
In construction, cotton is also widely used as thermal and acoustic insulation in the form of pressed panels made from shredded clothing waste.
Suppliers
- GIRAFFA
In Catalonia, the company Giraffa distributes integrated-production cotton, grown in Andalusia and spun in the Vallès and Maresme regions.
This type of production limits the use of chemicals to protect the environment, as well as workers’ health and safety. Although it is not organic, it is a more sustainable option than importing organic cotton, which is mainly grown in Asia and the Americas.
- ORGANIC COTTON COLOURS
The company Organic Cotton Colours, based in Girona, specialises in selling organic cotton. To avoid the dyeing process—the second-largest source of chemicals after pesticides—they produce naturally coloured fabrics derived from the seed.
These are cotton varieties that have grown in the wild for more than 5,000 years, and that naturally produce coloured fibres from the moment they sprout from the seed, in various shades of ecru, green, and brown.
As a result, their producers can state that their undyed organic cotton fabrics are completely free of toxins and chemicals.
Their project also supports the economic development of various farming communities around the world (in Brazil, Egypt, and Turkey) that use regenerative farming methods—i.e., combining species to foster biodiversity and the principles of permaculture.
- LORENA CANALS RUGS
Regarding rugs, the brand Lorena Canals in Sant Just Desvern has developed the new Ruggcycled line, produced from recycled cotton.
When using recycled raw material, it is difficult to ensure it is 100% cotton, so in this case they state 97% cotton and 3% other fibres. To limit the presence of toxins due to migration from the recycled raw material, dyes are avoided, so colour tones may vary slightly between products.
- FROCA
The Alicante-based company FROCA produces and distributes organic cotton fabrics, which it uses to make its Prisma upholstery line. For curtains, it uses cotton and linen, and in some cases recycled polyester fibres.
- ISOLTEX
The Catalan company Isoltex collects jeans to later shred and form them into recycled cotton panels for use as insulation. These panels can be used in interior partitions, walls, separating elements with party walls, ventilated façades, and ceilings.
- FAB.BRICK
Fab.BRICK is a French company whose goal is to add value to discarded textile waste. They offer customised transformed products for the very companies that produce the waste, in the form of furniture, lamps, or cladding, analysing the composition of the raw material and paying attention to the colour range. In addition, they specialise in producing insulation panels made from recycled cotton.
- ELEVAA
Elevaa is a Granada-based company that works with artisans who visit textile factories and collect leftover or rejected cotton from the fashion industry, which they then transform into a kind of skeins used to weave jarapas (rugs), blankets, and cushions.
Wool
Sheep’s wool is one of the few natural textile fibres of animal origin, which gives it a high hygroscopic capacity that can buffer changes in ambient humidity, which is why it is widely used as insulation. In addition, this ability to absorb moisture, combined with the protein components of the fibre, makes it an inherently flame-retardant natural fabric. It is also highly resistant to dirt, as the fibre structure gives it the ability to repel liquids and keeps dirt and dust near the surface, making it easier to clean by vacuuming.
Sheep are often confined to pastures that are too small, which causes overgrazing and damages the land. Pesticides are also used both on the pastures and on the animals themselves to control pests and parasites.
According to a study by the Organic Trade Association (OTA), the pesticides most commonly used in sheep farming—fenvalerate, permethrin, and malathion—are highly toxic to fish and amphibians. In addition, the widespread use of agricultural antibiotics is contaminating surface and groundwater in many rural areas, as a result of the manure produced by the animals. [6]
As a response to this issue, and similarly to organic cotton, organic wool is presented as a solution, limiting the amount of antibiotics used on sheep and the number of sheep per hectare.
However, as with cotton, chemicals are used in cleaning, bleaching, dyeing, and finishing wool-based fabrics. Therefore, for wool to be considered free of chemical agents, it must not only be produced organically, but also processed organically.
Suppliers
- CASAQUESUMA
The Spanish company Casaquesuma manufactures and distributes artisan-made wool fabrics, minimising chemical processing as much as possible. To do so, they carry out small production runs in workshops with artisans, not only to revive textile manufacturing, but also to preserve local knowledge that is being lost in favour of industrialisation.
To this end, they use only national wool washed with Ecolabel-certified detergents, without acids or bleaching agents, and they preserve the fibre structure as much as possible—so much so that they have been able to confirm that their pieces do not have static electricity.
- GIRAFFA
The previously mentioned Girona-based company Giraffa distributes natural fabrics made from recycled wool, using leftover offcuts from textile factories. They are separated by colour, shredded, and spun again, thus avoiding waste and the dyeing process.
- ROLS CARPETS
Another Spanish company that uses recycled wool is Rols Carpets, located in Crevillent, Alicante. It manufactures rugs and carpets from this material using energy from photovoltaic panels and distributes them within a 30 km radius. For distribution beyond their local area, they have official distributors and showrooms in Spain’s main cities.
- GABRIEL FABRICS
In 1851, the fabric manufacturer Gabriel was founded in Denmark, but today it has expanded across Europe, with a presence in Barcelona and Madrid. It specialises in wool fabrics for furniture, but in recent years it has incorporated materials such as recycled polyester, all of which have certifications such as Oeko-Tex, EU Ecolabel, and Cradle to Cradle.
The wool comes from New Zealand sheep, as it is considered a very high-quality raw material—whiter, cleaner, and purer due to the area’s environmental conditions. In addition, New Zealand has a set of ethical standards within the wool industry to ensure that wool farming, processing, and production are genuine and safe, as well as to provide guarantees regarding integrity, traceability, animal health and welfare, natural resources, and biosecurity.
Manufacturing takes place in Lithuania, and the fabrics are designed to ensure durability and full recyclability at the end of their service life to minimise environmental impact, while also committing to facilities that run 100% on renewable energy and dyes free of heavy metals.
- CLIMATEX
The Swiss company Climatex has redesigned wool as a raw material in collaboration with a recycled polymer they call Cradura, derived from combining the terms Cradle to Cradle and durability, to underscore the unlimited recyclability of the fibres following the principles of the circular economy. This polymer comes from fishing nets found in the sea and recycled carpet pieces.
The aim is to achieve a natural fabric whose main component is wool, while combining its qualities with synthetic ones, making it breathable, elastic, and flame-resistant at the same time.
Hemp
Hemp has been used for millennia as a source of fibres and, more recently, as the fabric used in the first pair of Levi’s jeans, which gave rise to a global market based on this clothing, designed to last under extreme working conditions.
Due to its rapid growth—it reaches maturity in 80 to 120 days—and low irrigation needs, it is one of the fibers with the lowest ecological footprint. [7]
Hemp is four times stronger than cotton, and also more resistant to abrasion and mould. In addition, it requires far fewer pesticides or other chemicals, proportionally speaking.
Despite all the advantages mentioned, hemp, like flax and jute, is a coarse fibre, so it requires an additional fibre-extraction process called retting. Although it can be carried out organically using microorganisms, it is increasingly done using chemical derivatives, softening the fibre with caustic soda and acid washes.
This process causes the resulting fibre to lose most of its qualities, such as durability, and it also produces hazardous waste that is destructive to the environment. [8] However, it is not as harmful as the process used for bamboo or wood to extract their derived natural fabrics, as the plant breaks down more easily.
Suppliers
- CANNABRIC
The Spanish company Cannabric, whose factory is located in Guadix, is best known for producing construction blocks made from earth, lime, and hemp.
It also produces hemp textiles designed for upholstery or curtains, with yarns of varying thickness that prioritise durability or aim for greater softness. In addition, they seek to minimise dyeing or processing, offering a wide range of fabrics that preserve the natural colour of the raw fibre and a few colours with less harmful dyes: greens, blues, or blacks.
They also offer fabrics that blend hemp with a similar fibre such as flax, as well as with organic cotton or silk. There are recycled hemp fabrics at a lower price, but it is true that they may contain small percentages of synthetic fibres.
- AVDELAURA
The Valencian company Avdelaura manufactures and distributes upholstery and bedding fabrics made from natural textiles sourced from km 0 or of recycled origin. In its natural textiles line, it produces hemp fabrics, although these are blended with 15% viscose, a synthetic fabric despite its cellulose-based origin, as it requires processing with chemicals that are highly harmful to the environment and to the people involved in its production.
- OECOTEXTILE
The English company Oecotextile manufactures and distributes natural hemp textiles, but what is most interesting is that it carries out an incredible educational effort on the issue of manufacturing hemp using industrial logics that do not meet the requirements of existing certificates regulating the use of chemicals.
They have developed a blog whose articles are classified by topics as interesting as the chemicals contained in fabrics or the different existing certifications—two topics we will cover later.
On its homepage, they share a 2023-reviewed article by the Organic Trade Association (OTA) that compares CO2 emissions per tonne of resulting fabric, distinguishing between the cultivation and treatment of different fabrics. Thus, chemically treated hemp consumes 2.15 kg of CO2/tn, while organic cotton consumes only 1.45 kg of CO2/tn and non-organic cotton 1.70 kg of CO2/tn. [9]
Bamboo and soy
Bamboo and soy are similar in that they are two types of crops that renew easily. However, their high consumption has recently led, in some cases, to the absurd practice of cutting down forests to plant them as monocultures—a situation that cannot be classified as sustainable farming, as it prevents any kind of biodiversity.
If grown sustainably, bamboo naturally resists pests, so pesticides are not necessary in its production, although they are often used in monocultures. In addition, it requires a great deal of work to be transformed into fabric, as it is a very rigid grass.
There are two ways to process bamboo: mechanically or chemically. The mechanical method involves crushing the plant and using natural enzymes to break it down so that the resulting fibres can be spun, producing what is known as bamboo linen, as it is a process similar to flax. This process is largely done by hand, which makes the product more expensive, and consequently very few manufacturers use it. [10]
The most widespread alternative is a highly polluting chemical process based on solvents such as caustic soda and bleach, which create sulphide emissions that act as neurotoxins.
This is a process very similar to soy fabric or viscose, in which the raw material is renewable but the process and high amount of toxins make it impossible to classify it as a natural or sustainable fabric. [11]
Suppliers
- MAS VALLS
The manufacturer and supplier Mas Valls, located in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, has more than 130 years of tradition and still imports bamboo from Southeast Asia today, having produced classic design objects such as Miquel Milà’s Manila lamp.
Beyond the non-local origin of the raw material, of which there is very little production in Europe, what is interesting is that they develop curtains and blinds made from bamboo slats, canes, or fabric. These fabrics are thicker than those used for clothing production, so their production can more easily be carried out mechanically.
They also distribute the material in rolls that can be used as blinds, dividers, wall or ceiling cladding, table runners…
- TRAETELA
On the other hand, the distributor Traetela in Gijón works with different fabrics, and in the case of bamboo it specialises in towels thanks to the softness, breathability, durability, and antibacterial capacity of natural bamboo fabric. Their products are certified to Oeko-Tek Standard 1000.
- POVEDA TEXTIL
The Alicante-based company Poveda Textil mainly manufactures organic cotton, but also distributes alternative materials such as bamboo. It is the first company in the sector certified as climate-neutral through emissions offsetting by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition.
They do not specify whether their production is carried out through a mechanical process, but they emphasise the low resource use of bamboo crops—70% less water than cotton—and their ability to generate 36% more oxygen. In addition, it is biodegradable and breaks down naturally with sun and soil.
Coconut fibre
Coconut fibre is the natural fibre extracted from the coconut husk, uncommon in the textile sector. The so-called fragments, strands, or hair of the fibre are typically 10 to 30 centimetres long and can be braided for use in products such as rugs, doormats, curtains, awnings, ropes, and insulation. Coconut fibre contains more lignin and less cellulose than fibres such as flax and cotton, making it stronger and less flexible.
SUPPLIERS
- BARNACORK
In Spain, the company Barnacork markets products from the Portuguese company Amorim, such as coconut fibre boards and rolls for insulation, in addition to its speciality, cork. The difference between the two formats, aside from thickness and rigidity, is their composition: boards require the use of natural resins as a binder, while rolls do not, although neither contains any toxic substance or poses a risk to users’ health.
- SCOURTINERIE
The French company Scourtinerie manufactures 100% natural coconut fibre fabrics through a fully artisanal process. In their workshop, they have 11 machines—the oldest from 1900—connected by large shafts and belts and powered by the driving force of water from a nearby canal. They produce fabrics designed to be stretched, such as awnings that protect from the sun or curtains. There are different shade-fabric densities depending on the desired level of opacity, but all of them are natural fabrics that filter the sun’s rays to provide a cool, pleasant feeling, unlike plastic materials.
Cellulose
The most widespread cellulose fabric globally is viscose, widely produced in Asia and a source of pollution on the continent. Paradoxically, its origin is not inherently unsustainable, since as a plant-based fibre it can be obtained from the cellulose of a wide variety of trees and plants, and it can also be biodegradable at the end of its life cycle.
For this very reason, there are brands that market it as an eco-friendly fibre, even though its production uses large amounts of toxic chemicals to turn this raw material into fibre.
In addition, like all wood derivatives, if sustainable sourcing management is not guaranteed, it can threaten forests by causing deforestation. [12]
For this reason, natural cellulose-derived fabrics have recently been developed with closed-loop processing systems that limit emissions. Known as Lyocell—Tencel is its patented trade name—it is a regenerated and treated cellulose fibre whose manufacture minimises its environmental impact. [13]
The cellulose source is wood pulp, in this case from sustainable FSC-certified forests, which is broken down using a non-toxic solvent that is also continuously recycled, with a 99.5% recovery rate. In this case, its producers can state that the final product is fully biodegradable.
