可持续的方式

Like most industries, sustainability is a hot topic in the world of fashion. As much as 8% of greenhouse gases and 20% of global wastewater annually can be attributed to the fashion industry, 根据联合国的说法.

A course at the University of Idaho inspired Asiah Brazil-Geyshick, a junior studying 服装、纺织品及设计, to investigate how she could play a role in reducing the environmental impact of the fashion industry.

替代纺织品

Leather is commonly used in the apparel industry for a variety of products but is often criticized for its negative impact on the environment. Leather production generates solid waste and industrial sewage at various stages of processing.

Fashion brands are looking into lab-grown biomaterials and plant-based leather as eco-friendly leather alternatives. Companies are trying everything from mycelium — the root-like structure of a fungus — to agricultural waste from plants like pineapple, 苹果和仙人掌.

Chelsey Lewallen他是伊利诺伊大学的一名讲师 玛格丽特·里奇家庭与消费者科学学院, was discussing the environmental impact of leather during one of Brazil-Geyshick’s courses and mentioned current research into another biodegradable leather substitute — kombucha tea.

Brazil-Geyshick is a member of the Ojibwa people and leather is an important part of her culture. Lewallen asked if anyone was interested in conducting an undergraduate research project on kombucha and Brazil-Geyshick saw her opportunity to make a difference.

康普茶时装

For the past few years kombucha tea has been researched as a potential zero-waste fiber. Kombucha is made by introducing a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY) into brewed tea and sugar. The cellulose fibers of the SCOBY grow as a gel-like film that feeds off a mixture of vinegar and sugar.

Lewallen和Brazil-Geyshick向Armine Ghalachyan寻求建议, an assistant professor at the Washington State University Department of Apparel, 销售, 设计, 和纺织品, 对于这个项目.

“Armine showed us samples that they had been working on and Chelsey went and saw their lab and their SCOBY culture,巴西盖希克说. “After that we got excited and went and bought all the stuff we needed to grow the culture.”

Brazil-Geyshick received an undergraduate research grant from the U of I 本科生研究办公室 该项目于2022年秋季启动. 她开始种植SCOBY, 一次七个箱子, 并接受了莫斯科Love 's Kombucha的SCOBY捐赠.

She experimented by growing some SCOBY with just sugar and others with just glycerin. 她还用靛蓝和洋葱皮染了一些SCOBY.

“I was thinking that growing it in glycerin would be a double whammy because the glycerin makes it more pliable and it’s also a sugar,”她说。. “效果不太好. 糖使它更耐用，而且不易撕裂. 当我把它放在甘油里时，它就裂开了.”

在SCOBY达到所需厚度后, Brazil-Geyshick soaked it in a soapy solution for 24 hours to reduce the strong smell. 然后她把SCOBY放在晾衣架上, 这个过程中最困难的部分是什么.

“它已经干得酥脆了，这是个问题，”她说. “So I have to resoak it then redry it and come back later and it’s still a crisp. I’m trying to figure out how to dry it correctly so it’s not too dry.”

After the SCOBY is dried glycerin is applied to make it more pliable. 下一步是把它剪成一个图案，然后缝制成最终产品.

Brazil-Geyshick decided to honor her heritage by making a pair of SCOBY moccasins. Her mother makes moccasins as a hobby and helped Brazil-Geyshick make a leather pair using the same pattern as the SCOBY pair for comparison. She also made a SCOBY wallet and laser cut the emblem of her tribe on it.

来自安纳代尔, 明尼苏达州, 巴西-盖希克是专门来伊利诺伊大学买衣服的, 纺织与设计专业. 她在这里的经历, 包括本科生的研究项目, 帮助她发现她想要她的学位带她去哪里. She will graduate in spring 2024 and has become more interested in patternmaking.

“When I was making the pattern for the moccasins, I was having so much fun,”她说。. “Some of the classes I’m taking right now, digital patternmaking, I love that class so much. Participating in this project has already helped me to know what it would be like to research material. I’ve had a lot of fun trying to figure out what I want to make with it.”