Fashion and functionality join hands
AgResearch scientists are collaborating with a number of New Zealand fashion designers to showcase the latest developments in textiles research at Air New Zealand Fashion Week 2008.
Natural, wool-based fibres allow the AgResearch’s researchers to create fabrics in a sustainable way, offering comfort, breathability and insulation. According to its corporate affairs manager, Allanah James, the textiles team is supplying fabric to designers such as Annah Stretton, twentysevennames, Stitch Ministry, Zambesi, Hailwood, Liz Mitchell, Jaeha, Sera Lilly and Salasai.
“We have provided fabric that will enable the designers to use their creative talents to tailor garments that are visually appealing and have unique functional properties,” she said.
AgResearch’s Vintage Merino fabric has an aged/washed look achieved through the use of dye resist and dye release treatments, while its Tone-on-Tone knitwear achieves tonal coloured patterns through a single dyeing process.
“This eliminates the need to dye yarn to a wide range of colours. When placed in a one colour dye bath, the fabric dyes itself to more than one colour,” says Ms James.
The Rip-Stop for casual and sports apparel is made from 95% wool and offers better breathability than synthetic competitors, according to AgResearch.
Ms James says: “Our next-to-skin apparel will also be profiled at fashion week. This fabric is made from a super-fine merino wool yarn that is knitted into a range of fine gauge knit structures that are finer than any other natural fibre available in the market-place and offer drying properties superior to competing synthetic fabrics. We are proud to provide this fabric to Annah Stretton for her self-titled label.”
Another fabric that will appear is a wool/possum fibre blend that is knitted directly from the fibre, without needing to be spun into a yarn first. The machine used to make it has been specially modified for AgResearch, and is the only one of its type in Australasia. A range of fabrics can be prepared in this way, from the luxurious through to the highly functional.
