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Hello, I’m Kimura from the ApparelX Sustainable Team.
Up to now, ApparelX Sustainable has introduced a variety of sustainable materials and initiatives in the apparel industry.
This time, we’re introducing SEACELL®, a regenerated cellulose fiber made using seaweed as part of its raw material.
In fact, using SEACELL®, ApparelX developed an original jersey textile.
In this article, we’ll introduce what kind of material SEACELL® is, and also why we chose it and what kind of textile we finished, including the product development process.
SEACELL® is a regenerated cellulose fiber developed by Smartfiber in Germany. Its distinctive feature is that brown algae from Iceland are incorporated into the cellulose. According to Smartfiber, the seaweed used is harvested by sustainable methods. SMARTFIBER AG By incorporating seaweed-derived ingredients into the fiber, SEACELL® is presented as a material with a soft, comfortable texture. Smartfiber also introduces the vitamins, amino acids, minerals, and other components contained in seaweed.
SEACELL® is not only notable for using seaweed. In the manufacturing process, a closed-loop process is adopted in which chemicals are reused instead of being discarded. Smartfiber describes this production method as an environmentally conscious process that does not discharge chemicals as waste. SMARTFIBER AG SEACELL® is also introduced as a biodegradable and compostable fiber. In Smartfiber’s FAQ, SEACELL® is said to be suitable for home composting. SMARTFIBER AG Not only does it have the easy-to-understand story of "using seaweed," but the fact that it is a material designed with the manufacturing process and even what happens after disposal in mind is one of SEACELL®'s attractions.
There are many sustainable material options, such as organic cotton, recycled polyester, and lyocell. One reason we focused on SEACELL® among them was that, in addition to being sustainable, the material itself has a story. While it has the clear appeal of being a "fiber born from seaweed," in practice it can be developed into textiles just like ordinary apparel materials as a regenerated cellulose fiber. So rather than ending with SEACELL® as a special material, we thought about whether we could turn it into a textile that would be easy to use in actual garment production.
Not just "using SEACELL®," but making it into an "easy-to-use textile"
In development, we focused on creating a textile that would make the most of SEACELL®'s qualities while still being easy to use for actual garments. The combination we chose was 80% organic cotton and 20% SEACELL®. By combining cotton's natural texture with SEACELL®'s softness, we aimed for a jersey textile that would be easy to use for T-shirts and innerwear. Rather than simply highlighting that it uses SEACELL®, we also valued the perspective of whether it would actually be easy to use when making garments. Here we will add a connection to the previous development article.
In fact, the development of this textile is also a continuation of the "sustainable textile under development" article we previously introduced on the blog. At that time, we compared swatches with various blend ratios and fabric weights, assuming textiles for T-shirts, camisoles, and other innerwear. The SEACELL® textile introduced here is the result of selecting the actual material from those options and turning it into a finished textile.
The finished textile is a jersey textile made of 80% organic cotton and 20% SEACELL®. At 160 cm wide and a fabric weight of 140 g/㎡, it has a relatively light finish, making it easy to use for T-shirts and innerwear. When you actually touch the textile, you can feel a smooth, soft touch while still retaining cotton's natural texture.
For the "SEA001 Seacell jersey" developed this time, we also conducted quality testing so it can serve as a reference for actual product development.
First, the pilling result was grade 4.5. This is a test that checks how difficult it is for pills to form, and the result was relatively good.
For color fastness, the results were grade 4 to 5 in the tests for washing, perspiration, rubbing (dry and wet), and water. Good results were also obtained in the items that check for fading and color transfer when assuming everyday wear and washing.
In addition, free formaldehyde was 20 μg/g or less. *The standard value generally applied to underwear and sleepwear is 75 μg/g or less.
Not only sustainability, but also the fact that it is a textile easy to use in actual product development was confirmed by the test results.
Taking advantage of its soft texture, it is recommended for items that come into direct contact with the skin, such as innerwear and T-shirts. For Ladies, it works well for innerwear lines such as camisoles and cut-and-sew tops with a trendy sheer feel, while for menswear it pairs well with everyday items such as T-shirts and loungewear. It can also be considered for yoga and activewear, as well as other items where comfort and environmental consideration are important.
When you hear "sustainable materials," you may imagine something used only for special items or by limited brands. But our ApparelX SUSTAINABLE team believes it is important to incorporate sustainable materials into everyday items such as T-shirts and innerwear that are used on a daily basis. The reason we selected SEACELL® as the material this time is also because we hope it can become one of those options.
Even for accessories such as buttons and tapes beyond this textile, I think that having a story behind the material can make it easier to approach products that use sustainable materials. The accumulation of small material choices may become a support for the apparel industry and for manufacturing going forward.
In addition to the products introduced this time, ApparelX is also offering sustainable products and developing original products, which we introduce from time to time, so we hope you will take a look.
