Celanese and Under Armour developed NEOLAST as a sustainable, performance-based spandex alternative.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

Spandex, also known as elastane, has been prized for its elasticity since its invention in 1958. The fiber has become ubiquitous finding its way into sportswear, leisurewear, and even denim — any garment requiring stretch properties. However, spandex suffers from some inherent challenges when talking about sustainability. Traditional elastane fibers are not recyclable, and also require the use of hazardous chemical solvents during the spinning process. In addition, the fiber deteriorates in chlorine-heavy environments such as swimming pools, and doesn’t manage odors or moisture very effectively, among other performance issues.

With these challenges in mind, Celanese Corp., Irving, Texas, and Baltimore-based Under Armour Inc. partnered to create a new type of stretch fiber — one that is sustainable, delivers elite performance, and offers improved moisture management and comfort for the wearer. The resulting fiber, NEOLAST, is a high-performance elastane alternative made from elastoester polymers using a proprietary solvent-free, melt-extrusion process.

NEOLAST fibers are woven or knit into stretch fabrics at a percentage of between
2 and 40 percent, which allows a manufacturer to either dial up or dial down the power-stretch level, depending on the application and needed power-stretch performance. The fibers may be blended with polyester, cotton, nylon, linen, rayon and silk, among other fibers.

According to Celanese, garments made using the fiber deliver stretch, durability, comfort and moisture management properties. In addition, the elastoester polymers, depicted as “NEOLAST polyester” on garment labels, are recyclable and therefore, so are garments made using NEOLAST.

Applications include sports apparel, stretch fleece, socks, medical items, shapewear, denim and narrow fabrics, to name just a few of the potential uses seen for the fiber.

“Working with a leading global brand like Under Armour to elevate the performance and sustainability benefits of their products is just the first of many great things we hope to accomplish with this innovative NEOLAST technology,” said Tom Kelly, senior vice president, Engineered Materials at Celanese. “… We are just beginning to unlock its potential and look forward to what’s ahead as we explore other opportunities with end users.”

Under Armour recently debuted the first product to feature NEOLAST, the Vanish Pro tee.
“We took a minimalist approach to the design of this shirt, eliminating distractions for the athlete and opting for classic lines that allow the NEOLAST material to shine,” said John Hardy III, senior director, Product, Under Armour. “The Vanish Pro tee’s durable material will not only increase its lifespan, it will offer consistent fit and stretch throughout the garment’s life. We’re proud to have developed the first apparel with this innovation and are excited about bringing more performance garments that utilize the future of stretch to athletes everywhere.”

“Part of the beauty of this material innovation is the value we’ve been able to add by taking things away,” said Kyle Blakely, senior vice president, Innovation, Development & Testing, Under Armour. “…We look forward to introducing this revolutionary performance fiber across additional product lines as we work to scale it and evolve the broader industry landscape.”

The NEOLAST innovation helps support Under Armour’s goal to eliminate the use of spandex its products by 75 percent by the year 2030. “Through performance-driven sustainability and innovation, we look forward to helping athletes play at the top of their game as we work with Celanese to realize this new fiber’s potential to forge a path toward circularity,” Blakely added.

For more information about NEOLAST, visit celanese.com.

2024 Quarterly Volume III

Samsara Eco’s partnership with apparel brand lululemon moves circular nylon closer to reality.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

It’s not too long ago that the term molecular recycling entered the textile vernacular. In a depolymerization process, the technology breaks down hard to recycle items and mixed plastic waste streams into their molecular building blocks enabling a second life for items beyond plastic bottles that have typically been recycled using mechanical methods. Together, the two recycling technologies —molecular and mechanical — may make it possible to eventually repeatedly recycle most textile waste to create a fully circular economy.

While several companies now have technologies to depolymerize a wide variety of plastics — including polyester, high density polyethylene, polypropylene and other plastics — nylon was missing from the equation … until now.

Samsara Eco is an Australia-based company that has developed Eos Eco, a patent-pending, enzyme-based technology that can extract nylon 6,6 from end-of-life textiles and reuse it in a fully circular ecosystem. Similar to other molecular recycling technologies, Samsara Eco’s process generates virgin-grade products, and can be used repeatedly with no degradation or quality loss. “Our enzymatic recycling is the only solution on the market that allows the textile industry to unlock nylon 6,6 amongst mixed feedstocks to prevent textiles from ending up in landfills,” explained Sarah Cook, chief commercial and operations officer of Samsara Eco.

Canadian/American athletic apparel brand lululemon partnered with Samsara Eco last year — the brand’s first-ever minority investment in a recycling company. The two companies are now working together to develop recycled nylon and polyester products from clothing waste. lululemon uses nylon 6,6 in many of its garments — including its Swiftly Tech Long-Sleeve Top, and Align and Wunder Train leggings — because of its high-performance properties in athletic apparel. The partnership with Samsara Eco moves lululemon closer to its goal of making 100 percent of its products using preferred materials and end-of-use solutions by 2030.

The companies recently debuted samples of lululemon’s Swiftly Tech top comprised of more than 90-percent enzymatically recycled nylon 6,6 from Samsara’s Eos Eco process. Lululemon reports the samples feel the same, fit no differently, and carry the same quality its customers expect from its apparel.

“The lululemon Swiftly top samples go beyond material innovation — they represent the exciting possibilities and impact that can be achieved through collaboration and cross-industry partnership,” said Yogendra Dandapure, vice president, Raw Materials Innovation at lululemon. “This breakthrough not only signals a turning point for sustain-able innovation in apparel, but for all industries looking to shift towards more circular models. We look forward to continuing to work with Samsara Eco to help scale this new technology in the months and years ahead.”

“Our work with lululemon represents a groundbreaking step forward in tackling the challenge of textile waste and demonstrates the potential to create a fully circular ecosystem for apparel,” said Paul Riley, CEO and founder of Samsara Eco. “We’ve started with nylon 6,6, but this sets the trajectory of what’s possible for recycling across a range of industries as we continue expanding our library of plastic-eating enzymes. This is an incredibly significant moment for the future of sustainable fashion and circularity.

For more information, visit corporate.lululemon.com/our-impact and samsaraeco.com.

March/April 2024

Saucony’s Triumph RFG running shoe features a cotton upper and 55-percent Susterra® propanediol mid-sole for a more sustainable performance product.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

Performance running shoes almost exclusively have been produced using man-made materials because performance — including flexibility, cushioning, breathability and stability — as well as durability are specifications that are easily met with synthetic materials.

But when such performance shoes reach the end of their useful lives, they are not very environmentally friendly and are typically difficult to recycle. There are roughly 22 billion pairs of footwear manufactured each year according to various sources, with the U.S. Department of the Interior reporting as many as 300 million pairs of shoes each year are discarded into landfills where they can take 30 to 40 years to decompose.

Lexington, Mass.-based brand Saucony®— a division of Wolverine World Wide Inc. — recently published sustainability goals that aim to have 90 percent of its production contain organic, recycled or renewable materials by the year 2025, ramping up to 100 percent by 2030. With these goals in mind, the brand developed its Triumph RFG (Run For Good) performance shoe — its most sustainable running shoe to date — using sustainable materials throughout its construction.

The shoe features a mesh cotton upper that is dyed using plant-based dyes. These dyes result in light, neutral colors for the running shoes.

To produce the mid-sole, Saucony collaborated with CovationBio PDO, producer of biobased Susterra® propanediol, to produce the shoe’s PWRRUN BIO+® midsole foam. The foam is made using 55-percent Susterra, a regeneratively grown dent-corn-based 1,3 propanediol, which is petroleum-free. According to CovationBio, Susterra generates
“48-percent less greenhouse gas emissions cradle-to-gate compared to 1,4-butanediol (BDO), a common petrochemical-sourced alternative,” thus reducing dependency on fossil fuels.

In addition, Saucony engineered a material for the outsole featuring 80-percent rubber, which Saucony reports performs just as well as a man-made material but is more sustainable.

“At Saucony, we say that when we innovate, we elevate — the industry, our partners and the sport,” said Rob Griffiths, Saucony global brand president. “But quite simply, the future of our sport depends on the future of our planet, and we know we can do better for ourselves and the earth. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. That means as a member of the global community, it is imperative that we are constantly innovating, researching, and committing to our promise to find more sustainable options. We believe there is no finish line when it comes to sustainability; we are dedicated to pushing ourselves and the industry to do better.”

“We are proud to be a part of Saucony’s sustainable mission, and this marks a milestone for Susterra propanediol,” said John Hurban, vice president of global marketing and sales at CovationBio PDO. “It’s the first example we’re aware of where this percentage of bio-based content is used in the midsole of an athletic shoe. We believe runners and fitness enthusiasts will benefit from increased high-performance shoe flexibility, comfortability, and durability. This shoe sizes up against the competition and goes the distance to have a lighter environmental footprint.”

For more information about Saucony’s Triumph RFG shoe, visit saucony.com; and for more informa-tion about Susterra®, visit susterra-performs.com

January/February 2024

Garments featuring Rheon Labs’ RHEON energy-absorbing super polymer help

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

Rheon Labs® originated with a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) project. Dr. Dan Plant was investigating alternatives for a foam-based material that would not explode in space when he discovered materials that behave in a non-Newtonian way, changing their behavior depending on the forces applied. After the discovery, Dr. Plant worked with a team of engineers, scientists and designers at Imperial College London for 15 years to refine the material.

The technology is known today as energy-absorbing super polymer RHEON.

The ingredient technology is soft and flexible in its natural state, but stiffens when subjected to force. As the material intelligently strengthens in response to changes in movement, it can control the energy of any amplitude or frequency from small vibrations to life-threatening impacts, according to the company.

Dr. Plant’s interest in the world of sports engineering led him to first explore sport applications for RHEON. Supported by university partners, Rheon Labs’ Head of Design Olga Kravchenko has explored algorithmic design for more than a decade. This work helps the company generate data to create products based on an athlete’s motion. “Our technology has combined years of biomechanical research with complex chemistry in a way that will unlock a new world of athlete potential and shape a new era of performance,” said Simon Huntsman, director of Apparel at Rheon Labs. “RHEON has a unique chemistry which means it can be formed into almost endless formats,” Huntsman added.

“In apparel, RHEON film is simply heat-pressed onto base textiles to give them responsive properties. RHEON has worked primarily with synthetic knits and wovens in the early stages of our apparel category, however we have seen few compatibility issues with a range of fabrics so far. The first step of any project is to run compatibility tests on the brand’s textiles, to identify how RHEON can be applied to be most effective.”

Adidas recently launched an Adizero Control x RHEON collection featuring garments designed for elite-level runners. The garments help “athletes reduce wasted energy and maximize their running performance” by reducing unwanted muscle movements known as shearing. Computer modeling was used to determine the best positioning for strips of Rheon to best support the most important muscle groups when running. According to Rheon Labs, early test results show the material has the potential to control up to four times more energy than typical elastane-based fabrics.

This is the second Adidas apparel collection to feature RHEON. The Techfit Control x RHEON collaboration, launched earlier this year focused on tops and full-length leggings for high-intensity gym workouts and weight training.

The company believes there are almost endless applications and possibilities for the technology including vibration-dampening saddles, responsive sports bras or ballistic vests. “Adidas were very early to show interest in the RHEON material technology,” Huntsman noted. “As an ingredient brand, having partners that share our vision for the potential of RHEON is one of our key factors in deciding who we partner with. The products you see today are just the first step of that journey.”

For more information about RHEON, contact Ross Flew, head of Sales Operations at
Rheon Labs, ross.flew@ rheonlabs.com; rheonlabs.com.

November/December 2023

Cotton Incorporated’s RESTech COTTON technology imparts increased softness, moisture management properties and durability to cotton sheeting for a more restful night’s sleep.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

When polled by Cary, N.C.-based Cotton Incorporated as part of a Home Textiles Survey, 79 percent of respondents said quality is a priority when choosing sheets, 70 percent actively seek 100-percent cotton goods and quality bedding translates to better sleep according to 87 percent of people polled. In addition, 71 percent express a desire for environmentally friendly textiles.

Cotton Incorporated’s latest innovation, RESTech COTTON, uses advanced chemistry to create a 100-percent cotton sheeting solution that checks all the boxes to meet those consumer concerns and produce a restful night’s sleep. The company reports the technology brings comfort, durability and softness to sheeting products, while remaining an ecofriendly choice because it’s biodegradable and recyclable.

According to Cotton Incorporated, RESTech COTTON-treated sheets are up to 40-percent softer than untreated cotton sheets, with durability that beats polyester and rayon when tested against ASTM D3885 – Standard Test Method for Abrasion Resistance of Textile Fabrics. In addition, RESTech boosts the natural moisture management and thermoregulating properties of cotton, and  may dry up to 50-percent faster on the skin, thus providing cool comfort for hot sleepers. Cotton also is a naturally hypoallergenic fiber that is gentle on the skin for people with skin sensitivities.

The technology is applied as a finish using a standard pad-dry-cure application after the sheets have either been bleached to a finish white or dyed.

According to Mark Messura, senior vice president, global supply chain marketing for Cotton Incorporated, the cotton-specific innovation was designed for practical implementation and may be licensed from the company with the only requirement that it be used on 100-percent cotton fibers. However, there may be further applications for the technology that will be introduced in the future.

“RESTech COTTON technology takes the best attributes of cotton and cotton finishes to create a unique, durable product with non-fluorine technology,” noted Dr. Hongqing “Mike” Shen, vice president and managing director of product development and implementation for Cotton Incorporated. “It allows sheets to hold less moisture, dry more quickly, maintains remarkable softness and comfort. This combination makes it a triple threat.”

“With our RESTech COTTON technology, we’ve captured the timeless comfort of cotton and enhanced it with modern innovation, redefining the possibilities of a good night’s sleep,” said Jennifer Lukowiak, director, supply chain marketing, for Cotton Incorporated. “This technology is a perfect choice for those seeking not just better sleep but a more sustainable one. It’s another proud mile-stone in our continuous effort to promote the natural excellence of cotton.”

For more information on RESTech COTTON please visit cottonworks.com /restech-cotton.

September/October 2023

TenCate Protective Fabrics’ Tecasafe® 360+ workwear fabric aims to blur the lines between workwear and leisurewear.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

Workwear fabric serves a purpose — to protect and in some cases make workers highly visible. To that end, the focus tends to fall heavily on the protective properties and not as much the comfort or style of a finished garment.

Union City, Ga.-based TenCate Protective Fabrics (TCPF) is looking to change that narrative with the introduction of its Tecasafe® 360+ flame-resistant (FR) fabric. The fabric was developed with the idea of comfortable, but stylish clothing every day that can be worn on and off the job in mind.

According to Michael Laton, vice president of Global Strategy and Innovation, the TenCate Protective Fabrics name is synonymous with comfort and many of company’s comfort innovations come from trends it sees in consumer markets. “The inspiration for Tecasafe 360+ was rooted in that same idea,” Laton said.

“We asked ourselves questions like, ‘What do people like to wear when they aren’t at work?’ and ‘What comfort technologies from the consumer market haven’t made their way into FR apparel yet?’”

TCPF discovered a common theme was a desire for a stretch FR fabric. “However, for a long time, no fabric makers had been able to engineer a stretch solution for flame-resistant fabric that could withstand the extreme environments and laundering conditions that industrial FR workwear undergoes on a daily basis,” Laton said.

Tecasafe 360+ features XLANCE® stretch fiber from Italy-based fiber producer XLANCE S.r.l. This polyolefin-based elastic yarn features crystallizable ethylene and non-crystallizable 1-octene monomers. In the solid state, the copolymers build an elastomeric network. Crystallites reinforce the structure acting as physical crosslinks to connect the flexible amorphous polymer chains. The fiber can withstand temperatures of up to 220°C without compromising its integrity and stretch performance, which makes it suitable for high-temperature textile processes.

The woven Tecasafe 360+ fabric comprises a blend of XLANCE with aramid, modacrylic and lyocell; and has a nominal weight of 8.5 ounces per square yard. Navy blue is the standard color available, and the inherent FR protection is maintained even in industrial laundering conditions, according to TCPF.

The fabric also has been certified by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) to standard NFPA 1975 for station uniforms for fire and emergency services as well as NFPA 2112 for protection from flash fire; and ASTM International standard ASTM 1506 for protection from flame resistance and electrical arc.

The fabric was recently launched in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific making it TCPF’s first global product launch. To tie in with the launch, the company even organized the “Make It [Work] Wear Fashion Challenge,” where students from around the globe were tasked with designing a new type of FR garment that redefines workwear.

“The introduction of Tecasafe 360+ is a watershed moment for the FR industry, and we’re incredibly excited to offer this new level of comfort to the hardworking people we serve,” Laton added.

For more information, please visit the Tecasafe® 360+ Virtual Experience at us.tencatefabrics.com/tecasafe-360-plus.

July/August 2023

Green Theme Technologies’ EMPEL offers apparel brands like Artilect a sustainable, PFAS-free option for water repellency.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

Brands often lead the way when it comes to sustainable textile products as they look to make the best products for the planet while satisfying consumer demands. Boulder, Colo.-based outdoor brand Artilect is one such company.

According to Artilect Founder Trent Bush, the company’s mission is to improve performance for both people and the planet at the same time. With this in mind, choosing a durable water repellent (DWR) for its outdoor clothing means choosing a per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)-free solution is of the utmost importance.

After researching available options, Artilect chose EMPEL from Green Theme Technologies Inc. (GTT), Rio Rancho, N.M., to protect products including its new Darkstart Fusion jacket, which is part of Artilect System’s (A/SYS) collection of apparel.

The EMPEL platform is built on the principles of clean chemistry, and in addition to being PFAS-free, also is a water-free technology. GTT developed a curing pod to molecularly bond its patented chemistry to each fiber in a polymerization process. The large pressure-cooking vessels move the EMPEL monomer chemistry into the fibers where it is then cured using heat to create performance enhancing polymer chains. Once cured, the finish is stable and durable, and EMPEL easily lasts for 50 washes and beyond. “The finish does not appear to come off, and now we are trying to figure out how to test for life of garment,” said Martin Flora, GTT’s president of Global Business Development.

To demonstrate the treatment’s water repellence, EMPEL DWR has been tested in six-hour hurricane rain chamber tests as well as using the Bundesmann Water Repellency Tester to international test standard ISO 9865.

Despite coating the fibers in the chemistry, the treated fabrics are breathable, as well as soft and do not become stiff. EMPEL’s base chemistry uses components found in facial creams that act as a softening molecular lubricant to maintain this soft hand.

In addition, the DWR chemistry is compatible with any fabric construction type — woven, knit or nonwoven — and all man-made fibers such as nylon and polyester as well as natural fibers like cotton and wool. This flexibility in application means a broad range of garments from man-made-fiber-based technical garments to knitted hoodies and wool blazers can benefit from the technology.

GTT is focused on making a change in the way textiles are processed globally. “Our technology is a targeted solution that delivers better long-lasting performance to keep clothing working for a much longer period of time,” Flora emphasized.

Artilect currently is the largest partner of EMPEL based on the number of styles the brand offers that incorporate the technology. “I chose EMPEL because it is the only DWR solution that outperforms not only C0 DWRs, but also C6 or C8 chemistries,” Bush said. “The fact that

it is PFAS-free is of course critical, and it allows us to follow our mission.”

For more information about EMPEL, contact Martin Flora, martin.flora@greenthemetek.com; greenthemetek,com.

For more information about Artilect’s Darkstart Fusion jacket, visit artilect.studio/us/.

May/June 2023

Polartec® has engineered Shed Less technology to produce fleece fabrics that reduce home laundry fiber fragment shedding.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

Think fleece, and Polartec® likely comes to mind. The words Polartec and fleece fabrics have become ubiquitous over the years. The company, today a Milliken & Company brand, introduced its original PolarFleece in 1981. But as fleece fabrics have been caught in the crosshairs of the microfiber pollution issue, Polartec sought to innovate and develop a new fleece fabric that would reduce home laundry fiber fragment shedding.

Its new process, Shed Less, comprises yarn, knitting, chemistry and manufacturing techniques to create a fabric that reduces home laundry fiber fragment shedding by an average of 85 percent compared to the baseline fabric, according to the company. The fabric was tested using the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists’ (AATCC’s) TM212-2021 test method for fiber fragment release during home laundering.

Shed Less produces a lofted fiber —required to impart a soft hand to the fabric — that resists breaking and rubbing off during home laundering. All the other properties fleece is known for —such as warmth, light weight and breathability —also are maintained using the Shed Less manufacturing process.

“Polartec has a long tradition of Eco-Engineering its products to reduce their environmental footprint,” said Dr. Ramesh Kesh, senior vice president, Milliken & Company. “Shed Less is the latest progression of these efforts and the result of many years of research and development.

“While performance fabrics contribute a small percentage of the fiber fragments shed by the global textile industry, Polartec has been researching root causes and mitigation strategies for many years,” Dr. Kesh added. “Shed Less Fleece is a natural progression of this curiosity toward our goal of reducing fiber fragment shedding to near zero in all of our performance fabrics.”

“In 2016 we began looking into how we might test for fiber loss because there wasn’t a lot of research on the issue,” said Aimee LaValley, Polartec Textile Development, Dye and Chemistry manager. “This led to new products like Polartec Power Air, new manufacturing processes, as well as our participation in the TextileMission workgroup to study the issue on an interdisciplinary basis.”

TextileMission, a three-year collaborative initiative of academia and industry to reduce the impact of textile microplastics, was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

The Association of the German Sporting Goods Industry, Hochschule Niederrhein— University of Applied Science; TU Dresden — Institute of Water Chemistry; Vaude Sport; WWF Germany; Adidas AG; Henkel AG; Miele & CIE; and Polartec LLC were some of the founding partners of this collaborative effort.

In addition to modifying its manufacturing techniques to produce Shed Less, Polartec has installed vacuum and filtering systems for surface finishing machinery to reduce the spread of fiber fragments. The company also upcycles all fabric waste to be used in other products.

Polartec 200 Series Fleece is the first fabric to benefit from this new manufacturing process. The Shed Less Fleece is currently available in the United States and the technology will be applied to other fabric platforms and worldwide manufacturing locations in the near future.

For more information about Polartec’s Shed less, please visit Polartec.com.

March/April 2023

New Zealand-based TMC Ltd.’s twist-free spinning technology allows wool’s natural properties to shine through for high-performance applications.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

New Zealand has long been associated with wool, so it’s not surprising that New Zealand-based company TMC Ltd. is responsible for developing a new twist-free spinning technology for producing performance wool yarns. Dubbed Nuyarn® Merino, the spinning method drafts a superfine merino wool yarn with a high-performance nylon filament carrier yarn. The result is an ultrafine, two-ply yarn with more volume and aeration than merino yarns produced using traditional worsted spun-yarn technologies.

According to Nuyarn Founder Andy Wynne, the technology “unleashes the natural performance of merino wool,” and doesn’t “twist the life out of the fiber.” The idea behind the technology was to create wool products that perform as close as possible to wool in nature. Spun yarn processes compress natural air pockets, introduce tension, create loops and restrict natural fiber movement — all of which reduce the wool fiber’s inherent advantages and impart scratchiness to a garment.

Independent testing performed by Intertek® Vietnam and AgResearch, New Zealand, showed compared to a conventional ring-spun 100-percent merino spun yarn, Nuyarn yarns:

• Dry five times faster;
• Are 85-percent more elastic;
• Offer 35-percent more thermal retention as a result of the increase in natural air pockets;
• Are 35-percent more air resistant;
• Feature a 50-percent increase in tensile strength;
• Are 8.8 times more resistant to abrasion; and
• Produce 120-percent stronger seams in garments.

These enhanced performance benefits all last for the lifetime of the garment because they are created using a mechanical versus a chemical process.

The company considers itself to be an ingredient brand and it works with all its partners to create unique products —modifying the merino to nylon ratio, weight, and feel, among other parameters, to meet performance criteria — and then controls the supply chain from fiber to end garment on behalf of the brand.

Nuyarn is suitable for a wide variety of applications, however, the light weight and softness of the yarns make them perfect candidates for next-to-skin applications in baselayer garments in particular. Multiple brands have collaborated with Nuyarn to create baselayer products including Artilect, Trew, KUIU, Outdoor Vitals, Odlo, Black Diamond, Wuru Wool, Mosko Moto and Universal Colours.

“The problem with most traditional merino wool is you have to use higher weight fabrics to get an acceptable level of durability, and Nuyarn solves that basically by reinventing the way the yarn is created,” said Chris Pew, Trew co-founder and CEO. “Nuyarn construction is lighter, stronger, and more durable than anything that we’ve seen before it’s also stretchier, loftier, and has more thermoregulating capabilities.”

The ODLO team also noted: “While everyone at ODLO loves pure, natural merino, it does have one fatal flaw; once it reaches peak saturation, it ceases to wick sweat, and the fabric structure retains moisture. This is where Performance Wool powered by Nuyarn stands apart.”

According to Wynne, some of the limitations related to wool use in the performance apparel industry were related to how the yarns are spun.

The Nuyarn innovation removes those limitations and gives brands an opportunity to harness the natural attributes of wool along with weight and performance advantages in both winter and summer performance garments.

For more information about Nuyarn® Merino, visit nuyarn.com

January/February 2022

Apparel brand Paka recently introduced Tri-Blend Terry French terry garments to its line of alpaca-based products.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

Los Angeles-based Paka is a young and fast-growing apparel company founded in 2017 by Kris Cody. He was inspired when he learned about the soft, warm and hypoallergenic properties of alpaca fiber on a trip to Peru where he purchased an alpaca sweater handmade by a Peruvian grandmother. Seeing an opportunity, Cody put his studies on hold to launch a sweater that was funded by a Kickstarter campaign.

Today, the company is a successful certified B-Corp. business that works directly with non-governmental organizations alongside the indigenous people in Peru. Paka operates with the mission: “… to create natural, all-purpose clothing for people who love the outdoors … by innovating with alpaca fiber and other materials that are healthier for people and the planet, so that consumers can connect to our natural world, make more conscious choices, and support the communities where our products come from.”

After the alpaca are sheared — a process performed at least once a year to maintain the animal’s health and hygiene — the traceable fiber used by Paka is hand sorted by skilled women trained to differentiate between the varying diameters of the natural fiber based on feel. Then the fiber is dyed when necessary, carded and spun into yarn, and finally knit and sewn by Peruvian artisans who sign every sweater they make.

Paka works with the Peruvians to develop sustainable fiber blends featuring alpaca. The company’s newest introduction is the Tri-Blend Terry Collection. The yarns are made using an all-natural blend of 50-percent Tencel, 35-percent organic Pima Cotton and 15-percent Royal Alpaca fiber. Tencel confers moisture-wicking and wrinkle-resistance, premium cotton adds durability, and the Royal Alpaca — with a fine fiber diameter of 17 to 19 microns — imparts softness, as well as temperature regulation and anti-odor properties to the French terry fabric.

Paka currently offers a unisex crewneck and drawstring shorts for both men and women in the Tri-Blend Terry fabric. The garments are available in four earth-tone shades — sandstone, iron oxide, Andean moss and timber — and all components are OEKO-TEX certified, including the dyes. The garments are even shipped using fully biodegradable packaging.

One unique feature included on all of Paka’s garments is a handwoven Inca identification label that is created by the company’s team of Quechua weavers in Peru. These women are paid more than 4 times the family living wage for their work.

“Sourced directly from the Peruvian Andes, our alpaca fiber comes from animals that roam free in their natural environment,” said Paka Founder Kris Cody. “By merging functionality with sustainability, Paka is providing an alternative in performance-based clothing for consumers and helping them make choices that are better for the environment’s wellbeing as well as their own. Our line is as soft and cozy as cashmere, but so breathable and performance based that you can work out in it!”

For more information about Paka’s Tri-Blend Terry Collection, visit paka.co.

November/December 2022