A T-shirt made of banana plants

Swiss bag brand QWSTION created a jersey version of their Bananatex material, also made of banana plants, which they used to create a T-shirt.

Nearly 70% of all textiles in the fashion industry are plastic-based. Pure cotton or natural blends only makes up a small portion, and less than 1% of all cotton is certified organic. Moreover, many T-shirt fabrics blend natural and plastic materials, meaning they’re not recyclable.

To tackle this waste problem, QWSTION launched Bananatex in 2018, a technical fabric made from banana fibre, without the use of plastic (find this material in our collection here). To make the fabric, the company uses the Abacá banana plant, which is cultivated within a natural ecosystem of sustainable mixed agriculture and forestry. The plant is sturdy and self-sufficient, requiring no pesticides or extra water.

In the past few years, QWSTION developed a jersey knit version of the fabric that is suitable for garments, rather than bags. This undyed material was used to make a T-shirt. Even the sewing thread was made of banana fibres, which means the T-shirt is fully compostable.

Called the T-shirt of Tomorrow, the shirt is not for sale yet, but prototype testing has started.

Photos: QWSTION