3 ms·

Wool is a great material to consider as well.

by bacon_waffle 8y ago

Tharkun 8y ago
Especially for socks during exercise. I find it helps keep my feet dry much more than cotton oe synthetics.
- cmrdporcupine 8y ago
  Last year I discovered the joy that is merino wool ski clothes. A friend had a pro-discount on Icebreaker and I stocked up before a ski trip. Excellent stuff. Here's a good/entertaining video that compares synthetic to merino for ski layers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh8BFytupwA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh8BFytupwA His conclusion is that the synthetic was just as warm, but the merino wool did a better job of dissipating .. aromas... and stayed 'clean' longer. It's unfortunate that a lot of the 'wool' out there is still blended with synthetics for cost or supposed-technical reasons.
J-dawg 8y ago
I want to believe that materials like wool are the answer, but I fear they're not. Raising animals is carbon intensive, and all those sheep need somewhere to graze. If people switched to wool clothing on a big scale, it would probably lead to mass deforestation.
- schiffern 8y ago
  Sheep can graze in [re]forested pastures, ie silvopasture. This also sequesters carbon. http://stevegabrielfarmer.wixsite.com/silvopasturebook/single-post/2016/10/31/Six-Key-Principles-for-a-Successful-Silvopasture http://stevegabrielfarmer.wixsite.com/silvopasturebook/singl... https://www.drawdown.org/solutions/food/silvopasture https://www.drawdown.org/solutions/food/silvopasture
- bacon_waffle 8y ago
  I agree that it's not the answer, but I think one of the main lessons we should be learning is that monocultures are not the answer either. Here in New Zealand, much of our agriculture has shifted from sheep to dairy cows. There's a growing fear (I don't know how justified it really is) that synthetic milk, or even meat, will become a reality and wreck the traditional dairy industry. So, in our situation, maybe more wool use would be a good thing.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]

Wool is a great material to consider as well.

Tharkun 8y ago

Especially for socks during exercise. I find it helps keep my feet dry much more than cotton oe synthetics.

cmrdporcupine 8y ago
Last year I discovered the joy that is merino wool ski clothes. A friend had a pro-discount on Icebreaker and I stocked up before a ski trip. Excellent stuff. Here's a good/entertaining video that compares synthetic to merino for ski layers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh8BFytupwA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh8BFytupwA His conclusion is that the synthetic was just as warm, but the merino wool did a better job of dissipating .. aromas... and stayed 'clean' longer. It's unfortunate that a lot of the 'wool' out there is still blended with synthetics for cost or supposed-technical reasons.

J-dawg 8y ago

I want to believe that materials like wool are the answer, but I fear they're not. Raising animals is carbon intensive, and all those sheep need somewhere to graze. If people switched to wool clothing on a big scale, it would probably lead to mass deforestation.

schiffern 8y ago
Sheep can graze in [re]forested pastures, ie silvopasture. This also sequesters carbon. http://stevegabrielfarmer.wixsite.com/silvopasturebook/single-post/2016/10/31/Six-Key-Principles-for-a-Successful-Silvopasture http://stevegabrielfarmer.wixsite.com/silvopasturebook/singl... https://www.drawdown.org/solutions/food/silvopasture https://www.drawdown.org/solutions/food/silvopasture
bacon_waffle 8y ago
I agree that it's not the answer, but I think one of the main lessons we should be learning is that monocultures are not the answer either. Here in New Zealand, much of our agriculture has shifted from sheep to dairy cows. There's a growing fear (I don't know how justified it really is) that synthetic milk, or even meat, will become a reality and wreck the traditional dairy industry. So, in our situation, maybe more wool use would be a good thing.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]