By Hannah
Spandex has truly defined our generation. Tanya and I grew up in the stretch pant era (which has horrifyingly resurfaced in the form of the tights-with-boots-and-a-flannel-shirt-which-may-or-may-not-cover-your-butt).
I believe I have some nice blackmail photos somewhere, of me in floral print stretch pants with a stone washed denim top.
However misused spandex may be, it's not his fault. For the love of god, where would Jane Fonda be without him?! Let's try to learn more about spandex...
Spandex = Elastane = Lycra
Spandex is another polymer fabric (like polyester) but with totally different properties. Pieces of the polyurethane chain allow for stretching, hence the rubber-like quality. For chemistry nerds, there's a lovely popular science article in Chemical & Engineering News on this. Incidentally, polyurethane is also used to make floor sealants, adhesives, and a variety of auto parts.
First synthesized in 1959, spandex got popular in the 1960s as an alternative to icky rubber. It was originally mostly used in ladies' undergarments. Nowadays, there seems to be no shame in wearing your bicycle shorts to the grocery store or hanging around in nut-huggers at the hotel pool.
Environmental Impacts
Also like polyester, the process of making spandex takes raw materials, toxic chemicals, and a lot of energy. Spandex doesn't have a super long life, which means you have to keep buying new tights and leggings, bikinis and banana hammocks.
What to Do About It
As I learned in an EcoSalon article, a company called Genomatica is working on a more environmentally-friendly spandex made from sugars instead of petroleum. While this is a step in the right direction, it won't even be available until 2011. In the meantime, you can buy clothes with a lower spandex content, preferably blended with organic fabrics, or buy used.
Or you can try to maximize the lifespan of your spandex by air-drying your clothes. Like I said in the Sustainable Skivvies blog, dryers can be murder on your elastic clothing items.
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