T-Shirt Recycling Is Here, And It Could Transform Fashion

by Stephen Garner

“I’m looking forward to the day when it is normal to turn in your old, favorite T-shirt into a store, then pick up a recycled shirt made from other people’s old favorite shirts,” says Michael Natenshon, founder and CEO of Marine Layer, a San Francisco-based fashion label that is best known for its soft T-shirts. “There’s a kind of poetry to knowing your T-shirt was reincarnated from another T-shirt.” This reality may be around the corner, thanks to brands like Marine Layer and factories that have been quietly working on designing a new system of fabric recycling. On the 28th of April, Marine Layer drops a new collection of men’s and women’s T-shirts, called Re-Spun, made up of 50% recycled cotton T-shirts and 50% other sustainably sourced recycled and virgin fibers. The brand partnered with a textile factory in Alicante, Spain, on a new recycling technique that requires no chemicals, dyes, or even water. Read more at Fast Company.