We’ve always thought of bamboo- when we’ve thought about bamboo at all– as the snack of adorable panda bears. Or else, a furniture material found in homes more “zen” or “beach-y” than our own.
So we were a little surprised when we read in the Guardian today that bamboo is the latest and greatest arrival on the eco-fashion scene. Every item of clothing- from jeans to t-shirts and beyond- can incorporate, or be made of entirely, this earth-friendly resource.
We want to be all for it- the material is bio-degradable and won’t feel any heavier than cotton. We especially love that our use of it for clothing would not deprive any pandas of their favorite food.
But are bamboo clothes really soft enough? The Guardian writes that it’s “similar in feel to silk or cashmere,” but we’re not so sure. We checked out some bed sheets at Target last weekend and cotton/bamboo blends were on sale. Intrigued, we unzipped a package to inspect the texture, which turned out to be too rough to consider buying, even on sale.
Are we being too picky, or is bamboo still a bit too scratchy for everyday wear?
—ALISON COOL
posted by guest
Nov 14, 2007 11:22AM
The thread count for the Target sheets might have been low, so that's why it could've been scratchy feeling. It really depends on how the sheets or shirts are made, the shirts are probably made under better conditions to make them into yarns that are smooth and drapeable so that they have a similar hand to cashmere or silk.