Creating the world around us, one stitch at a time

Breaking news from ApparelNews.net:

A new vote has exempted fabric and yarn from the lead testing and certification requirements for children's products under the Consumer Product Safety Commission's Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. The exemption, which is expected to go into effect within a matter of days, does not include snaps, buttons, zippers and the like. The result is that the final garment will still need to be tested.

I'm sure there'll be a more in-depth analysis at Fashion-Incubator soon, and I can't wait to hear what they have to say.

(keep reading for much more!)

If you've been following our Facebook page, you've seen that the FTC is cracking down on companies that are advertising items made from "bamboo fabric" and that talk about the marvelous properties of these bamboo fabrics. According to the FTC, the fabric is actually a rayon, not "bamboo", and it doesn't have any of the specially-advertised qualities that people claim. Read the articles below for more information:

• Press release from the FTC: FTC charges companies with "bamboo-zling" consumers with false product claims: Bamboo-based textiles, actually made of rayon, are not antimicrobial, made in an environmentally-friendly manner, or biodegradable


• The FTC asks: Have you been bamboozled by bamboo fabrics?


• Environmental Leader: FTC Charges clothing firms with Bamboo-zling the public. (There's an interesting comment from Bonnie from Jonano after the article on this page.)


• An article about how the Canadian Competition Bureau sees bamboo: Bamboo Fabric Lovers Glad or Sad?

We've been saying for years that bamboo makes a wonderful flooring, great dishes, marvelous baskets, and is splendid for so many applications in which it's used as a wood. It isn't, however, very good at all when turned into a fabric; it's not generally environmentally-friendly and it's not sustainable. And that, my friends, is why we don't carry bamboo fabrics at NearSea Naturals. (We sure do love our To-Go Ware, though!).

But what should you do if you're a manufacturer who uses bamboo fabrics? Yet again Fashion-Incubator comes to the rescue. In addition to encouraging you to rethink using bamboo, Kathleen discusses how incredibly important it is to correctly label your creations. I urge you to read the whole article, whether or not you're a manufacturer; this is merely one excerpt:

The FTC is concerned that consumers are being misled by greenwashing. Although rayon is a natural but man made fabric, rayon production is highly toxic (Avtex, the largest EPA Super Fund clean up site was a rayon plant). Of all the fabrics in the rayon family, lyocell is considered to be the most eco-friendly because Lenzing, the firm that manufacturers lyocell, has a certified closed loop system. While many bamboo producers claim they use a closed loop system, the claims are dubious for two reasons. The first is that lyocell is a proprietary process patented by Lenzig which has not licensed the process to any bamboo producers. Secondly, while it's possible bamboo producers have developed their own proprietary closed loop processes, no firms to date have permitted inspectors on site to verify these claims.

Oh, and on a fun note, we've donated several items to a local public radio station's online auction. This could be your opportunity to get some of our goodies at a very good price, while supporting a good cause too. Check out the following lots:

• Sewing For Toddlers Kit (and yes, it's sustainable/organic fabrics; that's just not mentioned in the auction. Oops!)


• Colcha Embroidery Yarn & Booklets


• Colorgrown Cotton Throw Blankets


• $75 Gift Certificate for Organic and Sustainable Yarns (or, really, anything else you might want from our store)

Posted by Tara at 4:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Thanks to our amazing computer guru (I can say that, since I'm married to him), we now offer a selection of fabrics by the full roll. These rolls aren't just for wholesale customers -- anybody can buy them, so they're great for buying clubs, co-ops, and people with larger projects in mind, like the following:

• upholstery, curtains, and other home dec ventures


• tipis -- if you want to make a 16-foot tipi, you'll want somewhere around 40 yards of fabric, give or take a bit


• gifts: sew everyone in your family and/or social circle a decorated tote bag (with your kids' handprints, with ribbon flowers, freezer-paper stencils if you're okay with the waste, or some other crafty way to make it unique), a warm throw blanket or quilt, a set of of kitchen towels, cloth handkerchiefs and a holder, aprons, ...

Rolls can and frequently do have some flaws, seams, or small holes; when cutting yardage for retail orders we make sure your pieces don't include any of these. When selling full rolls, we can't do that; instead, we price the rolls low enough that you're not losing out even with any flaws. Rolls vary in size and price, and we'll be adding more as we get them so do check back.

As I mentioned above, we don't include flaws when cutting yardage and that frequently leaves us with perfectly good pieces that are simply odd-sized. Now, thanks to the previously-discussed computer guru, we're able to offer these pieces as pre-cuts, at an additional discount. These are first-quality pieces; their only misfortune is that they were stuck in-between two flaws and thus ended up as a pre-cut. Our pre-cut page has a limited number of pieces listed, but you'll find many more sprinkled throughout the site; anytime you see a fabric that has a pink "Save Money Now" box under the box in which you can buy yardage, click on it and see what your options are for buying pre-cut pieces.

This is just the beginning of an ever-changing list; if you see a fabric that you like as either a pre-cut or a full roll, you might want to snap it up quickly because once somebody else buys it, it's gone! We're working to make the site more dynamic, and we do welcome your suggestions and feedback.

(There will also be coupons, contests, and freebies on our page on Facebook within the next few weeks, so don't miss out on them! I also posted some links there about the FTC cracking down on bamboo fabrics -- something I'll be writing about here in more depth probably next week.)

Posted by Tara at 11:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

As promised, we've changed out our sale fabrics; my two favorites of the new offerings are:

• Natural Herringbone at an unbelievable price. This is my go-to fabric when I want to make something sturdy that looks good, from kids' clothes to stunning adult business attire; it also works well for home dec projects, everything from casing for pillows and mattresses to being used as upholstery by itself. Try dyeing it, too, or adding an applique if you want a bit more visual interest.


• Topiary in three different colorways -- olive, skookumchuck (which may be my new favorite word), and roasted pepper: This high-end fabric has a splendid pattern that reminds me of Frank Lloyd Wright. I want it all around my house -- and so does Winnie, so luckily we can order more! Take advantage of the sale price, and get enough for multiple projects. You won't be sorry.

After many requests and much dragging of the feet, we've finally put up a facebook page; become our fans, won't you? (Doesn't it seem silly for us to be asking for fans? It does to me!)

And on yet another completely unrelated note, I wanted to mention MPSDigital printing, who print *paper* labels (not fabric labels for your clothes, but paper labels for other items -- maybe hangtags? I don't know). They talk about helping "clients turn their packaging green" and might be worth talking to if you're looking for a labeling solution that includes FSC or recycled paper. They're at mps4digital.com

Posted by Tara at 5:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)