While we struggle with soggy paper straws, the fast-fashion industry pumps out millions of tons of plastic clothes every year.

 

Fast-Fashion Polyester

So, what's the problem with polyester? It's everywhere in our clothes, it can even masquerade as natural fibers.

Satin? No, that's not silk, it's a style of weaving fabric for a silky finish. And yes, satin is usually polyester.

Fleece? That's fluffy polyester.

Velour? Plush polyester.

Crepe? Crinkled polyester.

100% polyester labels from fast fashion clothes.

 

 

What is polyester?

Polyester is a fabric woven from plastic.

Yes, the same plastic that's used for things like bottles and food packaging. This PET plastic is processed from plastic chips or pellets into a fiber that can be woven into a material.

 

Polyester fibers and PET plastic pellets, two sides of the same coin

 

The history of polyester

Polyester was invented at the start of the 20^th century, and like much modern technology, it saw great advancements in development in the 30s and 40s due to the industry changes in WWII. Natural fibers were in limited supply, and people had to make do and mend with what they had due to clothing rationing.

So, when a fabric was invented that could be produced from crude oil, without any of the issues of supply that cotton and wool had, it really took off. Free from those limitations, and revolutionary in its features, polyester was the answer to all the clothing problems.

 

PET plastic chips, the same material clothes are made from

 

 

Why are we wearing clothes made from plastic?

The huge benefit of polyester over natural fibers was that it washed and traveled well without wrinkling or shrinking. It could be produced in ways that would make it water resistant or moisture wicking, compared to natural fibers like cotton or wool, which would absorb water and become heavy and dry slowly.

We could have sports clothes and swimsuits that weren't made from soggy wool. Jackets that could keep us dry without being heavy and waxed. 

Polyester could be washed without any care and then hung up to drip dry in a few hours. It didn’t need to be ironed, which reduced a lot of work. 

It was revolutionary, but “dresses made from plastic” would have been a hard sell even back in the 50s. It doesn’t exactly sound comfortable.

Polyester was given shiny new brand names and marketed as the savior to all life's clothing problems. And whilst it is a fantastic fabric for the improvements it makes to practical clothing for sport and weather, it comes with one huge problem.

 

 

 

Why does fast-fashion use so much polyester?

When 70% of clothes are made from polyester now, there has to be a reason for it.

• Polyester is cheap

Polyester is an extremely inexpensive synthetic fiber to manufacture. This low cost allows fast-fashion brands to produce clothing very cheaply compared to natural fibers like cotton. They can skip supply chain and labor costs from harvesting a natural fiber.

• Polyester mimics expensive materials

Polyester can be woven into many different fabrics with various textures and finishes. It can act like any fabric, from cotton to silk, velvet, and wool. This allows fast-fashion brands to copy styles made from expensive materials without changing their supply chain.

• Polyester is quick and easy to mass-produce

Unlike natural fibers, polyester can be rapidly produced in factories. Fast-fashion's model requires quickly replenishing inventory with new styles. Polyester can be whipped up quick enough to recreate any style for immediate turnaround.
All of this makes polyester the perfect material for our current ultra-fast-fashion market. 

 

 

The huge problem with polyester

As we've covered so far, polyester is plastic, and as you probably know, plastic does not decompose — not for hundreds of years anyway. Meanwhile, it simply piles up in landfills and across beaches in the Global South.

Or, it's incinerated. Burned to attempt to get rid of, releasing toxic fumes and pollution that never truly leaves.

 Plastic does not decompose, including polyester clothes.

 

The fast-fashion plastic catastrophe

Fashion used to move in seasons, before that, years. In the recent decade we've gone from 4 seasons of trends a year, to 52 weekly trends a year.

The current demand for new fashion is so high that only materials that can be quickly and cheaply sourced and turned into clothes can satisfy it. There just isn't time to source ethical or sustainable materials and turn them into trends at the speed we consume them. 

If the demand for new fashion stays this high, the supply will keep using polyester.

But it's not just a demand problem. Fashion companies create this trend cycle to push us to buy, buy, buy. We don't need new clothes more than once a season or less really, but they can create a buzz around a trend that makes you feel you need something new to be in on it too.

In fact, it's estimated that the industry produces 40% more garments than consumers actually purchase. Much of this excess clothing, often made from polyester or other synthetics, ends up being incinerated or landfilled, before it was ever worn.

And because of the poor quality of fast fashion, a significant portion of it is unsuitable for reuse and recycling. Pretty much only 1% can be recycled, and 12% downcycled for rags and scraps. The rest is only good for waste.

According to a recent survey conducted in America, 69% of people are unaware that their clothing is even made from plastic, so the crisis is going unnoticed.

 

 

 

 

Should you stop buying polyester?

No, you should not stop buying or wearing polyester. If we stop using the polyester clothes we have, there's nowhere for it to go. It would lead to an overwhelming amount of dumped plastic.

Polyester is a fabric with amazing properties. We need it for sportswear, swimwear, and weatherproof clothing. But that doesn't mean we need to buy new polyester clothing.

With so much polyester clothing out there already, the best choice is always to shop secondhand. Buy polyester clothing secondhand whenever it is possible. This reduces the demand for new polyester clothing to be made, and keeps it out of landfills too.

 

 

What about microplastics from washing polyester?

There's no perfect way to deal with the pollution from washing polyester clothes, but currently, there are several microplastic water filters on the market to reduce the amount that ends up back in the oceans.

You can choose from microplastic filters that attach to the washing machine hose, or bags you place your synthetic clothes into inside the washing machine.

Re-wearing secondhand polyester clothes is still preferred to avoiding them completely. Because if everyone stops wearing polyester, there's nowhere for it to go but to be dumped or burned.

 

What about recycled polyester? 

Fast-fashion brands have been pushing their use of recycled polyester in an attempt to convince us that they're sustainable now.

Unfortunately, that's not the case. Check our blog on why recycled polyester isn't sustainable here.

 

 

Where can you buy secondhand clothes?

At ThriftTale, we make fashion actually sustainable. We buy up discarded clothes and bring them back into the world for true circular fashion.

Our collection of vintage and secondhand clothes is packed with quality stuff that deserves a second chance at life. From designer brands to unique handmade vintage pieces, we're showing the world that you don't need to buy brand-new - you can be sustainable and stylish with secondhand.