Unplanned experiment... Or hopping up on a favorite hobby horse

(I have so many favorite hobby horses, you're probably wondering which one it is this time.)

It's been hot here again. I'm really kind of done summer. Actually, I'm done with sweating while doing very little physical work. Hot weather is just not my favorite. It also means that I pay attention to what I wear in order to remain as comfortable as possible. It's not unlike in winter, just coming at it from the opposite direction. 

From experience, cotton is the most comfortable. Linen is great, too, but I own one nice linen shirt and I don't really want it to become a barn shirt. I even have a thin 100% wool T-shirt that actually is pretty comfortable, too. The key is breathability. All of these natural fibers allow heat and moisture to escape from your body. 

Last week due to the weaving class I took, the laundry definitely didn't happen. Over the weekend I was down to the second tier of my wardrobe. This is why I found myself wearing a poly-cotton shirt on a warm day when I had a couple of clients. There is one thing to say natural fibers breathe, but how vital that is doesn't really feel vital until you have covered the top of your body in polyester. It was miserable. And this was not even 100% polyester as it was a blend. The difference from what I usually wear was significant. 

What we wear matters. It matters not just because of how comfortable you are but also because it makes a difference to the environment. Polyester (and all the other synthetic names... acrylic, polar fleece, minky, nylon, spandex, microfiber, etc.) is nothing more than a fancy name for plastic made from petroleum. It is non-renewable, non-recylable, and sheds micro-plastics. And if your experience is anything like mine, it doesn't last. I have many clothes that are over ten years old, but my experience with synthetic fibers is that they ultimately stretch and become unwearable as well as holding onto stains far more tenaciously than natural fibers. 

It kind of baffles me that so many people don't give a second thought to the fibers they purchase whioe at the same time spend lots of money and agonizing about the food they purchase and consume. The making of textiles is a horror story of human and environmental abuse, yet people who would never buy highly processed food purchase cheap clothing from some pretty egregious sellers. Textiles are so ubiquitous as to be invisible much of the time.

Take a look in your closet. Do you know what's in there? Do you look at fabric content? It really does matter. At the very least, wearing natural fibers will keep you a bit more comfortable. 

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