Three Ways to Find Sustainable Textiles, and Seven of the Best Brands

In our series of articles beginning with A Guide to Selecting Sustainable Textiles, we detailed some of the obstacles to finding an environmentally responsible contract textile. For one thing, upholstery, draperies, panel fabrics, and other textiles can be made from many different natural and synthetic fiber types, and sometimes they are blended, making it difficult to trace their origin. Some of these textiles are imported from countries with few environmental or labor controls.

But there are many sustainable textiles made in North America and Europe. To find them, look for environmentally preferred fibers from distributors that have optimized search engines to help designers select the best options based on end use, certifications, fiber, and other criteria.