Do you Bamboo? Bamboo is not just for panda food anymore! With over a thousand known species of bamboo, it is the hip "renewable" plant. Our friends recently put down a bamboo floor in their home and it looks awesome. There are bamboo diapers, sheets, clothing, even sports bras--you name it. And coming soon, it will be transformed into quilting fabric as well.
Bamboo is being transformed into fabric. In a process similar to what turns wood into rayon, will turn bamboo into a silky fabric that is highly absorbent and antibacterial. Specialty boutiques and even some national chains have gotten on the bamboo bandwagon and offer many styles bamboo-based clothing and linens.
The trend is growing fast. In 2004 China exported about a million dollars worth of bamboo for textile manufacturing. By 2006, nearly 10 million dollars worth was exported.
Keep an eye out for some bamboo-based fabric at a quilt shop near you...
P.S. In case you did not know bamboo is a super fast growing...it can go from 0 to 75 feet in just two months.
It is amazing what you can learn from the National Geographic! (May 2007)
Do You Bamboo?
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YES! I bamboo!
I love my socks made from bamboo...oh so soft. I am hoping to find bamboo quilting cotton. So far I have only found bamboo knits.
Posted by: Anonymous | July 14, 2007 2:54 PM
What a neat thing for the bamboo. Never realized that they could make fabric from it. Great info.
Posted by: Angel | July 17, 2007 7:10 PM
One of my favorite things about bamboo fabric (and yarn) is there is NO shrinkage!!
Posted by: gyl | July 19, 2007 11:22 AM
I had a couple pairs of socks that were made from bamboo (Target) and they wore out very quickly. I wonder if that will be a problem with all the fabric.
Posted by: Su | July 19, 2007 3:36 PM
I bought a couple of skeins of Bamboo yarn a couple of years ago. I was going to make some socks. I will have to see if I can find them and get going on that project. Who would have ever thought BAMBOO???? WOW!
Posted by: Lynn Haider | July 22, 2007 8:43 PM
I have seen it used in yarns and a lot of the stores are carrying bamboo towels now. It will be interesting to see how the fabric they come up with takes to the dyeing process and if they will be as versatile as cotton.
Posted by: K. Anne | July 24, 2007 7:47 PM
When I was designing men's golf clothing a couple of years ago, we looked at a line of bamboo fabrics that were incredible and still very expensive at that time. I'm so glad it's becoming more accessible and affordable--what a fantastic, renewable option for fabric!
Posted by: Liesl | July 28, 2007 8:09 AM
I just bought some bamboo yarn for the first time at La Drogerie in France. It feels like silk. I was amazed. I just hope they don't need to use a ton of harsh chemicals to process it--it would be a pity if it ended up needing to be treated with pesticides and such like cotton. Do you know if it is expected to be processed in a "greener" more environmentally friendly manner? That would be a real bonus!
Posted by: sheree schattenmann | August 6, 2007 2:38 PM